As a visceral, camera-shuddery ride into foamy-mouthed zombie hell, it’s efficient enough — but if you’ve already seen [Rec], steer clear...
Quarantine (2008)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:76
Fresh:45
Rotten:31
Average Rating:5.7/10
Consensus: Quarantine uses effective atmosphere and consistent scares to stand above the crop of recent horror films.
Rated: 18 [See Full Rating] for bloody violent and disturbing content, terror and language.
Runtime: 89 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Theatrical Release:21-11-2008
Synopsis: A faithful adaptation of the 2007 Spanish film REC, QUARANTINE chronicles the outbreak of a rabies-like disease in a Los Angeles apartment building and the struggle of the unaffected residents to... A faithful adaptation of the 2007 Spanish film REC, QUARANTINE chronicles the outbreak of a rabies-like disease in a Los Angeles apartment building and the struggle of the unaffected residents to stay alive after the authorities trap them inside in an effort to contain it. Equal parts BLAIR WITCH PROJECT and 28 DAYS LATER, the film is presented through the eye of a video camera, putting the audience in the middle of the action and creating a heightened level of intensity and realism. Television reporter Angela (Jennifer Carpenter) and her cameraman, Scott (Steve Harris), are covering the goings-on at a firehouse for a program about night shift workers. As she clowns around with two flirty firemen (Jonathan Schaech and Jay Hernandez), an alarm sounds, and a truck is dispatched--with Angela and Scott on board---to an apartment building where an old woman has seemingly lost her mind. The woman bites one of the firemen and is soon killed, but when more tenants turn up with the same disorder, it's clear that a chain reaction is occurring. Unfortunately for Angela and the rest of the uninfected residents, the authorities have quarantined the building---but she and Scott continue to document the tragic and terrifying events inside the building as those inside are one by one transformed into bloodthirsty monsters. Director John Eric Dowdle, whose film THE POUGHKEEPSIE TAPES also used a pseudo-documentary approach in detailing the crimes of a serial killer, creates a sustained level of chaos and fear that will have all but the most seasoned horror fan cowering in the corner. Though the shaky camerawork may be difficult to take for those prone to motion sickness, it--along with a complete absence of music--gives the film a startling realism and immediacy to accompany its stomach-churning descent into full-on hopelessness and dread. [More]
Starring: Jennifer Carpenter, Jay Hernandez, Columbus Short, Greg Germann
Starring: Jennifer Carpenter, Jay Hernandez, Columbus Short, Greg Germann, Steve Harris, Dania Ramirez, Rade Sherbedgia, Johnathon Schaech
Director: John Erick Dowdle
Director: John Erick Dowdle
Screenwriter: John Erick Dowdle, Drew Dowdle
Producer: Doug Davison, Roy Lee, Sergio Aguero
Studio: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Reviews for Quarantine
An American remake of the Spanish horror movie ‘[Rec]’ that adopts the same basic recipe, but removes any hint of flavour or texture, reducing cutting-edge Catalan cuisine to bland, bite-sized McNuggets.
Just like its forebear, this is bluntly effective exercise in first-person horror.
Quarantine is a lucrative steal by Dowdle. The Spanish original is arguably the best vérité fright movie since The Blair Witch Project. The American version is not quite in the same league.
Good news for those who missed the Spanish zombie horror [REC] when it opened here a few months back. Here comes the inevitable fast-tracked Hollywood remake, which covers the same ground without the burden of all those subtitled hysterics.
What director John Erick Dowdie has done is veer away from the supernatural atmosphere of the Spanish version and ramped up the bloodletting – it’s more gory than ghostly.
Despite tweaking the format, Quarantine successfully replicates the claustrophobic tension of [REC] and cranks up the sudden eruptions of frenzied violence, making it as much of a white-knuckle terror ride as it was the first time around.
The downside is that for the final half-hour the camera shakes so badly I started suffering from motion sickness.
I raved about the oddly-titled Spanish horror [Rec], saying it turned the terror up to 10. Now, as night follows day, it’s time for a Hollywood remake – and the result isn’t half bad.
If you didn’t catch REC fever first time round, let yourself get bitten by Quarantine. Such brilliance is an isolated incident in modern scary movies.
The Spanish did it all a little better but Carpenter rivals her European counterpart in hollering blue murder.
Quarantine is a well-acted, competent remake that doesn't betray the original, though it's somehow less scary and slightly longer than it needs to be.
Unlike so many other jerky camera horrors, and even zombie film shockers, Quarantine escalates the tension with a perfect sense of fearful exploitation. One of the best chillers of 08.
Rather too hysterical to be coherent, but it's still jittery and thoroughly unnerving
'Quarantine' is a solid horror movie and one of the better to be released this year. The last 15 minutes is hardcore suspense that redeem any cheap movie making flaws.
A respectable, if uninspired, adaptation of... [REC], a Blair Witch-style variation on zombie movie cliches that might seem fresher had it not opened after veteran George Romero's grimly pared-down Diary of the Dead.
Real no frills filmmaking. Anything that gets in the way of the main idea is stripped to the bone. This includes certain niceties like character, humor, and even story.
Not as frightening as it should be, but still better than the average Hollywood scare-a-thon.
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