[REC] - Spanish zombie film

[Dillinger]

I d/led this movie off isohunt and i'm approximately forty minutes into it. So far it's underwhelming. I don't get what all the hype is about. But i'll wait until I watch the rest before I cast my final judgement. So far it's just an annoying reporter trapped in an apartment when a couple of dufus cops, a little girl & a fireman or two. I'm at the part where the health inspector is performing an autopsy on the dead cop that was bitten by the old broad in the upstairs room.

[clanglee]

The DVD release has English subtitles. If you don't understand Spanish, watching it in English is a must. There is quite a bit of characterization that would otherwise be missed. A friend downloaded an unsubbed avi and thought the movie sucked. I was unaware of any DVD release. I know for a fact it wasn't released in ANY form here in the U.S. but I didn't know it had more than a theater release anywhere else yet. I watched it in spanish and it scared the wholly crap outta me. I understand a little spanish, so that just helped enough to bring me into the film enought to get lost in it and buy it. I then watched a badly dubbed version. . which did help fill in a lot of the gaps for me. But I loved the movie even without understanding it entirely.

[DubiousComforts]

I was unaware of any DVD release. I know for a fact it wasn't released in ANY form here in the U.S. It was released on DVD in Spain, and is available in the US as an import: [REC] DVD I think people compare POV flicks to Blair because that's where it all started. Perhaps those less knowledgeable are prone to do that, but POV technique in films and the horror genre in particular didn't begin with Blair Witch Project.

[Redman6565]

It was released on DVD in Spain, and is available in the US as an import: [REC] DVD Perhaps those less knowledgeable are prone to do that, but POV technique in films and the horror genre in particular didn't begin with Blair Witch Project. Blair Witch was the first to use it for the entire movie and make it popular. The whole Blair Witch concept was fantastic. The net helped breath life in to it. I know a lot of people thought it was real. lol

[EvilNed]

Blair Witch was the first to use it for the entire movie and make it popular. The whole Blair Witch concept was fantastic. The net helped breath life in to it. I know a lot of people thought it was real. lol Cannibal Holocaust, anybody?

[Redman6565]

Cannibal Holocaust, anybody? Well, if that's a movie title I'll pass. haha

[EvilNed]

Well, if that's a movie title I'll pass. haha Yepp! It was released in 1980, and was filmed much the same way as Blair Witch Project. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078935/ Veeeeery disturbing film. It's the kind you watch maybe... once. Or twice, ten years apart. Also, at the time, many people believed it to be real. It was definetly an inspiration for Blair Witch Project.

[Redman6565]

Yepp! It was released in 1980, and was filmed much the same way as Blair Witch Project. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078935/ Veeeeery disturbing film. It's the kind you watch maybe... once. Or twice, ten years apart. Also, at the time, many people believed it to be real. It was definetly an inspiration for Blair Witch Project. hahaha watched the trailer. Wow, that looks bad. I'll have to pass on that one.

[EvilNed]

hahaha watched the trailer. Wow, that looks bad. I'll have to pass on that one. Think of it as the opposite of Love Actually. It's a film made to... make you feel horrible!

[DubiousComforts]

Blair Witch was the first to use it for the entire movie and make it popular. The whole Blair Witch concept was fantastic. The net helped breath life in to it. I know a lot of people thought it was real. lol Blair Witch wasn't even the first to utilize the "found footage" concept; Cannibal Holocaust did that, as well, and so did another film produced around the same time called The Last Broadcast which was ultimately out-hyped by Blair Witch. The reason that people believed Blair Witch was real was due to the film's marketing. At least one year prior to the film finding a distributor and being released theatrically, the filmmakers launched a web site to feed out bits of the back story as though it were a real historical event. One of the primary inspirations for Blair Witch was the In Search Of... tv series; the filmmakers simply manufactured their own phenomena to investigate. As entertainment, that much is brilliant, but I don't know of anyone that believed it was real after watching the actual movie. Due to the way Blair Witch was filmed, there are many little details in the movie that are entirely lost on the audience unless they happened to know the back story.

[MinionZombie]

Cannibal Holocaust is a great, sleazy, exploitation flick from back in the day - and like you say - you watch it once, maybe twice with a huge gap of time in between. Mind you, CH has some film-film sequences in it (when the people in New York - always with New York, lol - are reviewing the footage). But indeed, there were even court hearings regarding whether it was real or not (geeeeeez, lol) and they even had to get the person who played the chick who was skewered on that pole, and then show how they did it. Insane, indeed. A very tough film to watch though, but a classic nonetheless. It's in fact, a surprisingly good film, I know I was shocked when I watched it. It's actually a film, and not just a load of gore and sleaze ... although it's got tons of that as well.

[Dillinger]

84C Mopic or 84 Charlie Mopic used the first person camera long before Blair Witch. It was almost like a 1st person shooter video game in a Vietnam setting. Pretty cool movie actually. In fact, you can catch it on Stars or HBO every now and again really late at night. As for Cannibal Holocaust. I had the (dis?)pleasure of seeing that a while back. You're right that it had lost footage that the reporter brought to New York, but it still had a normal camera style. Which brings me full circle to Blair Witch. It wasn't original, it wasn't scary and it is exactly what it is, a college movie. Everything it had, 84C had, and 84C actually executed it better than Blair Witch's shaky cam or the news cam used in REC. As for New York being the opening for those Cannibal movies, ala Cannibal Holocaust, Cannibal Ferox, etc.. I read in an old magazine of mine that Italian law required directors to begin all cannibal movies in New York. It didn't elaborate why or anything, but it was some censorship loophole or something.

[MinionZombie]

It didn't elaborate why or anything, but it was some censorship loophole or something. I'd heard it was something to do with selling them to an American audience, made it easier like. Same thing with Zombi 2, bit of New York at the start and finish, and in between it's all island somewhere that definitely isn't anywhere near New York.

[EvilNed]

I'd heard it was something to do with selling them to an American audience, made it easier like. Same thing with Zombi 2, bit of New York at the start and finish, and in between it's all island somewhere that definitely isn't anywhere near New York. Yeah. If they include New York it opens up to a grander audience. Also, Cannibal Holocaust was definetly the first of it's kind. Only difference between it and Blair Witch (in that thematic point of view) is that half of Cannibal Holocaust is about the guy finding the footage. THEN we get the footage. But the party that everyone remembers is the footage anyway.

[Redman6565]

Blair Witch wasn't even the first to utilize the "found footage" concept; Cannibal Holocaust did that, as well, and so did another film produced around the same time called The Last Broadcast which was ultimately out-hyped by Blair Witch. The reason that people believed Blair Witch was real was due to the film's marketing. At least one year prior to the film finding a distributor and being released theatrically, the filmmakers launched a web site to feed out bits of the back story as though it were a real historical event. One of the primary inspirations for Blair Witch was the In Search Of... tv series; the filmmakers simply manufactured their own phenomena to investigate. As entertainment, that much is brilliant, but I don't know of anyone that believed it was real after watching the actual movie. Due to the way Blair Witch was filmed, there are many little details in the movie that are entirely lost on the audience unless they happened to know the back story. So if the Last Broadcast out-hyped Blair Witch then why doesn't everyone compare POV flicks to it? Blair Witch was far more popular. As for the back story, that was a great idea. They used the net to pump it all up and it worked out fantastic for them. As for any story lost on the audience that also worked out. People hunted it up and continued to look for stuff after seeing the movie. The whole thing was brilliant.