To run down the plot Quarantine follows a field reporter with a local LA news station, who is shadowing a fire department squad for the night. All seems quiet when they finally get a call to what they think is going to be a basic medical emergency. They arrive at the apartment complex where the call originated and find an elderly woman in a zombie like state who attacks one of the already on scene police officers. When the group attempts to leave the building to get help for the downed officer they find that they have been locked in by the police and CDC. From here they enter a battle to survive with whatever it is that is infecting the residences of the apartment building.
Think The Blair Witch Project meets Outbreak meets Dawn of the Dead and you have Quarantine in a nutshell. In a cast of mostly no name actors the performances delivered were surprisingly effective given the material that they had to work with. This is by no means a ground breaking or altogether amazing movie, but I have to admit that I was on the edge of my seat for a majority of the movie. The tension is built using some of the old parlor tricks like people jumping out from nowhere, however the bulk of the creepiness came from two main things; the lack of action through a good part of the movie and the absence of any score. No, usually if I say a lack of action it’s going to be a bad thing, however for this movie it worked. Every time something starts to happen and you think its zero hour for everyone involved the terror begins to recede, the tension you feel waiting for something to happen does not. The lack of a score is, I think, one of the most underused tricks in the horror movie genre. Sure creepy music can intensify any feelings of dread, and shock scores like the famous Psycho theme will get you right to the point of being horrified but they really serve to keep you OUT of the movie and in your seat. Quarantine does an amazing job of having no musical cues at all which really keeps you in the movie, experiencing what the characters are experiencing. The flick is shot in the handheld style made famous by the previously mentioned The Blair Witch Project through the point of view of the news stations cameraman. Most of the time I find this style not only distracting but nauseating and just downright annoying, however Quarantine managed to do this in a way that only served the suspense and terror created by the story, I do have to admit that even though I didn’t mind it this time there still were some scenes where I though the shaking was a bit over done and it became a bit uncomfortable to watch. On the bad side for this one, like I said earlier you’re not seeing anything new. This really serves as a watch and forget it type movie that would be best viewed this time of year when everyone is looking for a good scare. Also, the actual story of how the whole “infection” began is glossed over very quickly and unless your paying really close attention to everything in the scene and everything that’s said you may just miss it totally, then again this may be another way to make you feel like your really there because really that’s all the characters in the flick get for an explanation.
Quarantine is a definite theater movie for this time of the year. If you plan on seeing a movie this weekend and you want to be on the edge of your seat for 90 or so minutes I would definitely recommend this film. However, if you don’t get out to see it this weekend I would just wait for the DVD as there are a bunch of more Halloween flavored flicks coming out over the next two weeks.
7/10 for a good scare
5/10 for a good movie
