“Quarantine” is loaded with problems and either a marketing scheme that shoots itself in the foot or attracted as many people as possible on opening weekend before word gets around that this movie doesn’t live up to the hype of the trailer

Let me start by saying “Quarantine” IS NOT “Cloverfield”, yes the story is all told through the lens of one camera, yes its a thriller and you don’t know what will really happen or who the “enemy” is…. but that’s where the similarities end.   And while I’m not a big fan of the Horror Genre, my wife is, and she didn’t really rate this movie much higher than me.

“Quarantine”

(2008) (rated R for bloody violent and disturbing content, terror and language) (1 hr, 29 min)

Starring: Jennifer Carpenter, Steve Harris, Jay Hernandez, Johnathon Schaech, Columbus Short, Andrew Fiscella, Rade Serbedzija, Greg Germann, Bernard White, Dania Ramirez

Genre: Horror/Mystery/Thriller

The Plot: Television reporter Angela and her cameraman are assigned to spend the night shift with a Los Angeles Fire Station. After a routine 911 call takes them to a small apartment building, they find police officers already on the scene in response to blood curdling screams coming from one of the apartment units. They soon learn that a woman living in the building has been infected by something unknown.

MY TAKE (minor spoilers):  

Horror movies are supposed to be scary and full of tension, suspense, and uneasiness… with the audience focused on which characters will survive the ordeal…. and this would have worked if I didn’t see the trailer about 30 times on tv.

That trailer may have got us into see the movie, but as I mentioned above, some of the suspense and tension are lost at critical points in the movie…. ruined by what I knew from the trailer.   This is one of those bad cases where the trailer either has the best stuff (“Baby Mama”) or gives away too much (“Quarantine”) without spoiling too much, the major thrills and chills in the trailer are major plot points… but by watching the trailer on tv or online, you know who is going to die!!!

The best part of the movie is not the frights, but the unknown… the story throught the lens of the news camera puts you right in the middle of it all.. straining to see around the corner or through the dark… and trying to figure out with the characters what is causing this “infection”.  I guess I would have been more interested if this had been more about figuring out what the cause was or who is responsible… but that was really only touched on in one scene.

The movie also did one of those “no-no’s” – focusing on a character or object, then totally forgetting about it… it also asked a lot of the audience – to believe everything that was being thrown at you, and also expect you not to think about survival options the characters would not have thought of.

THE BOTTOM LINE:  Although there were still points where I jumped in my seat or felt uneasy from the gruesomeness, the overall plot just became following the inevitable… who would die next.. and how?    Its probably no surprise, but I give it 5.5 out of 10…. with some redeeming value for the concept and ideas.. but ultimately, the movie falls apart with its flaws… and if you’ve seen the trailer even just once or twice… you know who lives and who doesn’t.  WAIT TO RENT, BUT ONLY IF YOU ARE REALLY INTO THIS GENRE OF MOVIES!!!

So what did you think?  Please post a comment!

Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/aaronlafferty

** CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MY OTHER MOVIE REVIEWS **

“Quarantine” poster courtesy Screen Gems