[Rec]

Even though this film’s creators don’t bring anything new to the table, instead just combining the technique from The Blair Witch Project with the final exposition of The Silence of the Lambs (the green night-vision mode, similar setting), their low-budget result still managed to raise my adrenalin level and in places I was scared so much that I wanted to avert my eyes from the screen (which hasn’t happened to me in some fifteen years). The climax is truly BADASS, because it doesn’t stay in the realm of pure film entertainment, but throws in an unsettling this-could-actually-happen feeling. Brrr! (01/09/2009)

This movie is awesome! It’s been long since a horror film pulled me into the story in such way that I felt scared. REC is probably the best and most original zombie flick I’ve even seen and far above all the other films shot with a “handheld camera”. Unlike Blair Witch, it never gets boring (really, things move at full steam from beginning to end, there isn’t a single quiet moment), the characters are very believable in their fear, terror and ignorance, and their behaviour is logical (unlike Cloverfield). The old house and the fact that danger can lurk behind every door generate an amazing atmosphere that is best enjoyed watching the film alone and in the dark. I now must correct my ranking of favourite horror movies. Wholeheartedly recommended. (02/13/2008)

An intense horror inferno in which the directors hit the viewer with such vigor that you won't care about the questionable handheld camera - even though it has a strong defense for being there given that it’s part of a TV show where journalists want to film everything. Knowing that there’s not much new you can do with zombies, the film brings an excellent group of characters to the scene, who crystalize in the calm opening so that you can cheer them on, tooth and nail, in the final inferno. The main character is a decent character and I realized that I haven't worried about anyone in a movie as much as I did about her in a long time. The few shocking moments (the fall down the stairs, the little girl with her mother) and the entire ending, starting with the entrance to the attic, is a chapter of its own, for which I would gild the filmmakers' hands. I’d have to look far back in time to find SUCH a quality horror film. (01/01/2009)

The handheld camera is seasonally in style, zombies and satanic worshipers with rabies have been doing well for a few decades, so why not combine it all together... In addition, the film as a whole works well and escalates very solidly in the end. What undermines this film, like the American film Monster, is the ostentatious playing for effect and the violent emphasis on everything being filmed NOW, AUTHENTICALLY, IMMEDIATELY. The result is compulsion, predictability, and annoying hysteria, but these smudges fail to cloud my otherwise positive impression. [Rec] can be watched with gusto and a slightly indulgent smile, but it radiates somewhat of sympathetic aura. I like it... (06/27/2008)

If it weren’t for the ending in the secret room, my satisfaction would be almost boundless. Not because the finale in the attic is bad, but I didn’t think it fitted with what came before it at all. Simply the first hour seems out of place with the final fifteen minutes, and vice versa. But otherwise, everything is as it should be. Atmosphere cuttable by knife, ideas and ideal pace and it’s punchy and effective like an attack by Barça FC. I will definitely have to think hard about where to stay in Barcelona this time round. One thing I know for sure, I won’t stay in an old tenement block under any circumstances. (07/13/2008)

Although I'm glad that the "randomly filmed unorganized horror" format still works great, this time it might have been a bit too much for me. While I was willing to hold my breath for Blair Witch and cower in fear for Cloverfield, [Rec] not only failed to make me identify with anyone (killing the reporter with her eternal "Keep filming! Film everything!") but the extra experience is not about atmosphere and escalating tension, but rather about when there's a moment that stops my heart and makes my ears explode. And even though those moments are really deadly, I need much more satisfaction than that. 50% (04/28/2008)

I finally watched the horror movie Rec, which is praised by horror fans, and I must admit that I am somewhat disappointed with the result given the high ratings and the enthusiastic reviews. Partially, it may be due to my exaggerated expectations because it is certainly not a bad movie. I just expected that a movie with an 80% rating would have an original theme, story, or truly quality execution. I was disappointed by the subject because the mystery turned out to be yet another version of a zombie horror, and I have mentioned in my reviews before that zombies simply do not scare me, or rather I am not interested in them as a horror theme. I was also disappointed by the execution because Rec does not significantly innovate the theme, it only slightly modifies it with a pseudo-documentary style, which already appeared some time ago in The Blair Witch Project. Although Rec surpasses that movie by several orders of magnitude in terms of professionalism, it is evident that the crew shot it with enthusiasm, there is a lot of energy in it, and considering what it offers to the viewers, there are no dull moments. However, that is not enough for the fourth star. There are simply too many clichés in it. Because I have seen something similar already, I essentially know exactly when someone will jump at someone else and which one of the characters will scream next. I would have liked it if the creators had taken a different path because to incite fear, isolation in an surrounded house is more than enough - fear of unknown danger, uncertainty, claustrophobia, and rapidly spreading paranoia. As it is well known, people are most afraid of what they do not see. The most atmospheric shots for me were from the attic laboratory, and I got startled once when the bulkhead doors fell... Rec has a likable cast - not that obvious acting talents appear in it, as this type of movie does not allow for that, but it is pleasant to see unknown faces instead of constantly looking at the same faces of several acting stars. I was specifically annoyed by the handheld camera, which, of course, played a crucial role in the story, but most of the footage was unnecessarily shaky and ruined my impression. The cameraman was supposed to be a professional, and if he showed me in real life something similar in the style of a seizure combined with the withdrawal of an advanced addict, I wouldn't fire him, because I would just kill him right away... Overall impression: 55%. (05/04/2009)

They told me I was going to be scared, and they were right. At night and with headphones on my ears, nothing was more believable for me than that frantic panic that gradually increased in [Rec], until finally erupting to the fullest. All this performed by unknown actors and shot by a TV camera... The zombie horror according to the proven model made it even more intense than I expected. (05/05/2019)

The fact that the Americans are currently lagging far behind Europe in horror filmmaking is something we have seen several times recently, and this Spanish psychological thriller is a prime example of the European domination. REC combines to perfection all the tried-and-tested horror techniques, such as handheld camerawork, shooting in a small space and the complete absence of music, resulting in a disturbing and bloody adrenaline ride with an appropriately short runtime that doesn't allow the viewer to slack off for a moment, forcing them to constantly chew their fingernails. The grand finale in the style of Silence of the Lambs deserves my respect just because I was sweating at least five times more intensely than in the case of the famous thriller. The potential for a sequel is great, but the bar is set perhaps too high. Very strong 4*. (05/31/2012)

Big, big mistake that this missed theaters. A horror film with everything it needs. Severely brutal and especially towards the end I almost shit myself. I'm curious to see the second one... (02/17/2010)