Monday, August 8, 2011

The Crazies

The Crazies (2010)



Status:
Repeat Offender

Directed By:
Breck Eisner

Starring:
Timothy Olyphant
Radha Mitchell
Joe Anderson
Danielle Panabaker

Favorite Character:
Russell Clank

Plot Summary:
Something ain't quite right in America's heartland. A small town sheriff, David, whose leading an idyllic life with his pregnant wife (aww, how sweet...hey, that rhymed!), and whose days probably consist of breaking up bar fights and pulling over speeders (exciting...right?) has his life turned upside down one fine spring afternoon when the town's drunk, Rory, stumbles onto the baseball field with a shotgun.

Drawing his gun, probably for the first time in his life, he tries (rather unsuccessfully) to talk Rory down and ends up shooting him...to DEATH! (How rude!) He attributes the incident to Rory being drunk, but is schooled by Rory's wife that he was sober now, which the ME backs up later on making David look like a douchebag.

Over the course of the next twenty-four hours or so the townsfolk start going batshit crazy (I'm using that term mildly) and before David can get a handle on what's going on he, and the rest of the townsfolk, are kidnapped by men in military uniforms and gas masks and transported to a makeshift quarantine area where David is separated from his wife Judy.

True love prevails and David and his deputy, Russell, bust the fuck out of the quarantine, get some ammo, and head back to kick some ass and take some names. Only problem is, they've still gotta make it past the barricades and out of town...preferably in one piece, and that ain't gonna be easy. (I mean, these guys aren't rocket scientists...)

Favorite Quote(s):
David Dutten: [In the car wash, to the Deputy firing his shotgun out of the car window] RUSSELL!
Russell Clank: I saw a movement!
David Dutten: Everything is fucking moving!

Favorite Scene:
The car wash.

Review:
I'm not a huge fan of remakes, and despite having seen scores upon scores of horror movies, there are still those that have managed to slip through the cracks. The original version of this film is one of those few. Having shared that I don't have a problem saying that I really like this movie. I think I would really like this movie even if I had seen the original, which I plan to do very soon seeing as it's available on Netflix Instant.

The movie has a solid cast who all give top notch performances. The story isn't new (obviously) nor all that unique, but it is well done. Let's be honest, as a society we're pretty desensitized to most of the horrors out there. Murder, rape, war, famine, and abuse (to name just a few) are all things we see on a regular basis, but this manages to take all those atrocities we're so numb to and make them terrifying again because one thing that we still find frightening is disease of the weaponized viral/bacterial variety.

Also, here, we have the small town sentiment where everyone knows everyone and to watch people you've possibly known your entire lives descend into madness and depravity has to be not only terrifying to see/experience, but heartbreaking as well. That fear/heartbreak does a lot to add to the tone of the film and, in many ways, makes it scarier than it might have been otherwise.

If you're a horror fan and you haven't seen this one I would definitely add it to your list. It's not, by any means, the great horror film you will ever see, but it is definitely worth watching.

Interesting Fact:
Lynn Lowry, who costarred in the original version of The Crazies, has a cameo as an infected local riding her bicycle through the deserted center of town.

Rating:


Trailer:

3 comments:

  1. Um hello where be the blog? It just says The Crazies (2010) Ya lazy bum

    ReplyDelete
  2. It has nothing to do with being a lazy bum and everything to do with it not posting when I hit publish. It kept giving me an error message when I tried to post it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I figured as much but I still gots to harass you for it because you love me. Oh and is the sarcastic rhyming gonna be a regular thing I kinda liked it.

    ReplyDelete