Quarantine (2008)

Director:

John Erick Dowdle

Writers (WGA):

John Erick Dowdle (screenplay) &
Drew Dowdle (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

10 October 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

On March 11 2008, the government sealed off an apartment complex in Los Angeles. The residents were never seen again. No details. No witnesses. No evidence. Until now.

Plot:

A television reporter and her cameraman are trapped inside a building quarantined by the CDC after the outbreak of a mysterious virus which turns humans into bloodthirsty killers.

Plot Keywords:

Television | Reporter | Cameraman | Television Reporter | Apartment

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Jennifer Carpenter	...	Angela Vidal
Steve Harris	...	Scott Percival
Jay Hernandez	...	Jake
Johnathon Schaech	...	George Fletcher
Columbus Short	...	Danny Wilensky
Andrew Fiscella	...	James McCreedy
Rade Serbedzija	...	Yuri Ivanov (as Rade Sherbedgia)
Greg Germann	...	Lawrence
Bernard White	...	Bernard
Dania Ramirez	...	Sadie
Elaine Kagan	...	Wanda Marimon
Marin Hinkle	...	Kathy
Joey King	...	Briana
Jermaine Jackson	...	Nadif
Sharon Ferguson	...	Jwahir

Also Known As:

Quarantined (USA) (working title)
Rec (USA) (working title)
Cuarentena (Argentina) (Peru) (Venezuela) [es]
En quarantaine (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Quarentena (Brazil) (Portugal) [pt]
Карантин (Russia) [ru]
Karanteeni (Finland) [fi]
Karantena (Croatia) [hr]
Karantiin (Estonia) [et]
Karantina (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Karantina (Greece) (DVD title) [el]
Kwarantanna (Poland) (poster title) [pl]
Quarantäne (Germany) [de]
Quarantena (Italy) [it]
Rec: The Quarantine (Japan: English title) (DVD title) [en]

MPAA:

Rated R for bloody violent and disturbing content, terror and language.

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #44262) | UK:18 | Australia:MA | Canada:13+ | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (British Columbia) | Canada:18A (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) | New Zealand:R18 | Ireland:18 | Singapore:NC-16 | Finland:K-18 | Malaysia:18SG | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Peru:14 | Argentina:16 | Germany:16 | Brazil:16 | Portugal:M/18 | Chile:14 | South Korea:18 | Netherlands:16 | Spain:18 | Norway:15 | Italy:VM14 | France:-12 (with warning)

Filming Locations:

Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Andale Pictures

Trivia:

Remake of the Spanish movie [Rec] (2007).

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): In the United States, it is illegal for a law enforcement official to order someone not to film or photograph something.

Quotes:

Scott Percival: The door closed behind me.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Queerantine! (2009)

Soundtrack:

My Kinda Lover

Infectious Horror

Even at a glance, it is clear that Quarantine has boarded the 'fad' bandwagon it two respects. Firstly, this chiller joins up with the abundance of remakes that choke the gullet of Hollywood, and at an impressively rapid pace I may add, duplicating its Spanish predecessor (Rec) within a year's time. Secondly, it is the successor in a line of films, some from earlier this year in fact, that adopt the hand-held camera technique (which may soon be classified more accurately as a gimmick) to construct a first hand, real time account of events. Yet, despite succumbing to these popular fixations, and the flag of death that is the studios reluctance to screen the film, Quarantine is crisp effective horror.

When comparing (Rec) and Quarantine, the similarities are glaring. In fact, the films are almost identical, save a few altered snippets. Which is good in the sense that nothing was lost in translation and although nowhere near as disgraceful as remaking classics or art films, it still begs to ask the question why? Alas, the average viewer does not wish to read subtitles, especially when watching horror, so the update went through. Directed by newcomer John Erick Dowdle he makes the most of his debut. Procuring a larger budget then its inspiration, Quarantine looks better as a whole (despite more frequent incomprehensible shots involving darkness and jiggle cam) and is able to incorporate some effects into the production, such as a continuous and chilling shot of a person being tossed down a stairwell. Comparisons to 2008's earlier films Cloverfield and Diary of the Dead are unavoidable, and remains squarely in the middle; a far-cry from the ingenuity and atmosphere of Cloverfield, but avoids the horrendous acting and scripting of Diary.

Mirroring (Rec) Quarantine begins with a reporter, Angela Vidal (Jennifer Carpenter) who hosts a late night television program. On this particular night, Angela and her cameraman Scott (Steve Harris) are doing a ride-along with the firemen of a local station in L.A., including Jake (Jay Hernandez) and Fletcher (Jonathan Schaech). After a tenuous night of boredom and anxiety, they are finally called to the scene of an apparent accident in an aging condo, involving an elderly tenant. Things are not as they seem however as soon after, the CDC seals off the building with the foursome, and the reaming residents still inside. Their reasoning is good it seems, as all hell breaks loose as a mysterious rabies virus rips through the building turning those exposed into zombie-like fiends. The survivors must work together to battle the infected, the authorities and each other.

Both films incorporate the inherent problem of the disease itself, which seems to frequently shift in its required incubation period, but is not really a huge impediment for the film as a whole. The opening act which is situated entirely at the station is both surprisingly involving and witty, and works to some extent as character development. The finale is also pulse-pounding, if not entirely inspired, but lacks the sheer terror I felt at the finale of (Rec). When breaking it down, Quarantine's opening is better then the original, and (Rec)'s final act is better then its imitator, so things balance out. Each film boast a superb scene mid to late film, including the aforementioned stairwell plummet in Quarantine and a scene in (Rec]) involving the same stairwell in which the heroes peer down to see the lower floors of infected peering back; eerie stuff. I would encourage horror fans to see both before making their choice, and to be honest I haven't quite chosen myself which is superior. Regardless, Quarantine takes advantage of a ploy that has not yet become stale, and yielding authentic portrayals from its relatively unknown cast and an ominous atmosphere, this flick is infectious to be sure.

See all my reviews at: http://simonsaysmovies.blogspot.com