Quarantine (2008) Review

Quarantine Plot Summary

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.

My Thoughts

So, we have another film that utilizes the P.O.V camera angles, similar to the styling very popular films like The Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield. I have to admit, it is pretty cool to see a zombie film shot this way. Shortly before Quarantine hit theaters we saw the straight-to-DVD release of Diary of The Dead, which was also shot using the P.O.V schtick. Quarantine is a much better movie, in my opinion, and that’s why I’m going to review it first.

Watch Quarantine (2008) Online

Some people complain about this type of film, but the person behind the camera in Quarantine is a cameraman for a television/news show. This means that the cameraman has some experience behind a camera. Therefore, things don’t get too shaky on us; which of course, is a good thing. The use of this type of camera styling definitely gives films a more realistic feeling to it, if done correctly. Quarantine also changes things up a bit by having a ton of jump-scenes. Mix that with the realistic camera and you have some pretty intense moments. I saw a ton of people jumping and screaming in the theaters, so it must have been fairly scary to the general masses.

Through the whole film, the cameraman basically follows Jennifer Carpenter’s character. Get used to seeing her; she’s obviously the main character of the movie. So, we’re basically tossed into this run-down apartment building and no one has a clue as to what is going on. This is the setting for pretty much the whole film. It doesn’t take long at all for some action to begin once we’re inside the apartment building, anyways. Inside the apartment building things are pretty dark. At times, it’s honestly a little too dark. This is where the realistic camera angles and the surplus of jump-scenes come into play. Some of the scenes are set up cleverly and you don’t see some of them coming. The zombies also move pretty fast in this movie, just like the ones in the Dawn of The Dead remake. This also makes things seem pretty intense for the audience. Once things get going, you don’t get a whole lot of time to rest.

However, with these types of movies you never get much of a story. It’s usually characters thrown into a horrible situation and they don’t have time to investigate, or figure out exactly what’s going on. There are very few parts where we get any story at all, actually. Unfortunately, near the end of the movie is where the story begins to unfold. That doesn’t last long at all, though. The bit of story we do get was definitely intriguing, though. I wish we could have gotten a bit more.

There were also a few cheap laughs in this movie which had people cracking up in the theater. I enjoy some cheap laughs, but it seems like they went a bit out of the way to toss those in. The characters act pretty typical. No one knows what’s going on, why the building is quarantined and why no one seems to be helping them as there are a few injured/sick people in the building. So, they run around the building trying to find ways out, while avoiding the infected.

Of course, Quarantine is an American remake of a flick known as [REC], which came out shortly before Quarantine. I honestly do not know why people hated on this film and enjoyed [REC]. The movie is basically a shot-for-shot remake. Yes, I’ve watched both films and have compared them. The only difference I really noticed was the ending. I will say that [REC] had the better ending. Keep your eye out for a review of that one in the future.

The Good

It’s nice to see a zombie film shot in the point-of-view style.

Jennifer Carpenter gives off a great performance.

There’s plenty of scary moments that will have you jumping out of your seat.

The Bad

It’s a point-of-view film, which can cause motion sickness.

Some scenes can be hard to see what’s going on.

Some scenes are meant for comedic relief, but may seem forced.

Final Thought

It’s nice to see a zombie movie in the P.O.V. style and it is packed with a ton of scenes that really make people jump. Sure, it’s a remake, but it’s a remake of a Spanish film, so I wouldn’t classify it as a cheap ass cash-in like most remakes. If you want my honest opinion, I’d say to watch both [REC] and Quarantine, as they’re both pretty good flick that will deliver a ton of scares.