Non-communicative creature in a closed space with a countdown of people (a brief retelling of the film "Alien" and some other films of similar subjects)
I didn't want to write this review. So it's okay if you don't want to read it. In fact, I just had to stretch my fingers, clear my brain and pay tribute. The combination of these factors led to the fact that I write (and you, accordingly, read) black letters on a light background.
There was a lot of shit going on in London. No, not the stuff that made it stop being the capital of a great empire, where the sun never sets. That thing happened a long time ago and has nothing to do with it. This shit was of a different nature. But it, until a certain time, had nothing to do with the crap that happens in the life of the main character - wonderful, compared to the stormtrooper from the seventh episode of "Star Wars", an African-American who was born neither in Africa nor in America. In general, this politically correct negro experiences sadness and sadness at the realization of the fact that he was abandoned by a girl of Aryan appearance. He is saddened and goes to the company of his best friend to the designated vault number 24, where the property is to be divided with the same babentzia. The next series of events will be very unpleasant and will bring only additional grief to the already dejected hero of Ethiopian appearance.
I will not go round the bush by roundabouts, by unnecessary verbal turns and clarifications, increasing the volume of the text (the so-called “water pouring”), but, doubtlessly, I will proceed, perhaps, to the analysis of the main qualities of this, let me say, film. Actors don't play well. One Negro comrade is clever, with knowledge and experience. With the rest, again, the situation is deplorable. The script isn't good either. Characters are superficial, emotions are not prescribed, reactions are inconclusive. In general, there were two loneliness: a bad game and a mediocre script. It was shot, in principle, without complaints, thank you. With a separate tick, I would like to mark the authors’ obvious gravitation to banal dramas of the Brazilian-Mexican sense, where everyone abandons each other, betrays and languishes with high feelings of deep penetration. They turn out better than deliberately fantastic stories and reactions to unusual stressful situations.
As usual, not knowing other exquisite ways to finish the wording, I am forced to mark the end of the story, made in the best traditions of such masters of science fiction, whose names I now do not remember. But you'll notice if anything.
And, perhaps, on this major note, I will allow myself to recant, answering at last the question hanging in the air: “To watch or not to look?” Or don't look.
Night. Street. The plane crashed. Closed storage with random passers-by in it. And the beast that's scouring around looking for someone else to gut? That’s right, we have another horror movie. So this is "Storage 24."
Initially, I had some hopes for this painting. And I was not confused by the low ratings of the picture, nor the absence of famous actors in the first roles. After all, this film was shot in the UK, and they are able to shoot quite non-standard horror stories. And for the first fifteen minutes, nothing foreshadowed trouble. People ended up in the storage building for a reason, but as a result of the fact that a plane crashed nearby, damaging the power distribution shield. The monster appeared for a reason, but because the crashed plane was carrying this wonderful animal. And it seems that everything is fine, of course, not taking into account how the monster got into the sealed vault, as well as acting, which I will talk about a little later. But then comes the realization that the plane crashed and the power outages were all the screenwriters' imaginations had. No, I understand that there were three writers, which is a good number to drink some alcoholic beverage, but do you have to have a conscience? Was it so hard to think of what the characters would do in a huge vault besides running from a monster? Apparently, yes, it is difficult. I’m not even sure that most of the film is not an improvisation of actors, it’s painfully played. No, well, judge for yourself, the heroes walk around the vault without any purpose, and instead of looking for a way out of the current rift, they periodically accuse each other of all mortals. We're locked up and we need to find a way out? Lazy, somehow. People dying? People always die, so it's okay. A terrible thing is staggering around the vault and we should find some weapons to give the monster a worthy rebuff? We should, but we'd rather have a little fight. Fascinating? Wrong word!
As for the actors, not only that the characters forgot to prescribe the character and sane dialogues so none of them even demonstrates something at least remotely resembling acting. I said they're fighting most of the picture, right? Well, imagine characters who throw mutual accusations at each other, but not a muscle twitching on their face. It's so exciting! No, of course, among the gathering of primates there was one alpha male who decides everything for everyone, demonstrates something remotely reminiscent of acting, and his dialogues do not resemble the ravings of a madman. But here's the problem of this someone is Noel Clark, who is the screenwriter and producer of this film. The best for writers, huh?
As for camera work, there is also not much to praise. Most of the film will show us the faces of the actors close-up or scenes of running, during which the picture jumps from side to side and thanks to these two factors to understand what is happening on the screen is not possible.
The visual part of the picture was pleasantly surprised. I was surprised by how much the budget horror category "B" can surprise. The antagonist of the picture resembles a humanoid grasshopper with a vertical mouth and looks very good. The creators also did not stint on blood and severed limbs, and it is thanks to this that the film is perceived as a horror film, not as a cheap melodrama.
Summing up, I want to say that the creators of the picture had an interesting idea, but so effectively implement this idea they could not. We needed, if not a good, then at least a sane scenario. If not, at least the actors who can play. And the director should be changed in a good way. That's when this picture could come out useful, and so it turned out a movie that brings boredom and sleep.
3 out of 10
Several people in an enclosed space are trying to escape from an evil alien monster. How many times have we seen a story like this? However, I can hardly give even an approximate figure. After the masterpiece film "Alien" Ridley Scott, such a plot move became so popular as the film itself Ridley Scott. The boom of this happened in the 80-90s. While from the cornucopia poured a lot of imitations of the alien. And there were sometimes very decent films. There was no less garbage, though. The recipe for these films was simple: take a few different characters, an enclosed room (basement, house, bunker, space station), an alien monster, add a little relationship between people and focus on their fates with fake drama, a little action, bloody scenes and humor. We mix it all up and get a movie. It goes without saying that such films, after several successful initiators, have become synonymous with stamping. And degenerated into standard Direct-to-video.
That’s why I didn’t expect this movie at first. The director was known to me as the creator of several cheap horror films. The names of the actors didn’t tell me anything. The trailer evoked thoughts on a typical cheap thrash with ultra-bad computer graphics and zero atmosphere. The only thing that made me pay any attention to the film was the story of an alien monster (one of my weaknesses) and the fact that it was a British film. The latter was the decisive factor. Albion has always been able to make good movies, including horror fiction films. And about aliens, they shot no less excellent films than Hollywood. They're just less known. For example, the film "Extro" or "The Man Who Fell to Earth". In the past few years, British film fiction has been booming again. Last year we were able to admire a great horror comedy "Aliens in the neighborhood". About juvenile criminals fighting off alien creatures. This year there was a plague "Dredd", and from the films about aliens were a carbon monochrome horror comedy "Grebbers" with a stunning Irish flavor and "Storage 24".
I must admit I was wrong about the movie. Well, I was half wrong. The movie is a stamp. There's nowhere to sample. Starting from the plot, about a few people who are stuck in a vault with an evil alien, ending with template dialogues and phrases. Like, "Don't go there, it's dangerous," I won't let anything happen to us. But despite that, I was half wrong. My worst expectations didn’t come true, and the movie was a great old school movie.
For the first time in his career, director Johannes Roberts managed to create tension and atmosphere in his films. No, the movie itself is not scary, but it’s a tense, powerful movie. The atmosphere thickens from the very beginning and gradually introduces us into a feeling of isolation. And suspense builds up to a frankly unexpected ending.
This is complemented by small action scenes running from the monster, which are made very convincingly. No less merit in whipping up the atmosphere were rather bloody episodes and the alien himself. There is no need to complain about the lack of bloody scenes here. The alien rips people's hearts, crushes their heads, gnaws their faces and tears them in half. And finally, the appearance of the monster. A real hello from the '80s. Two-meter humanoid insect-like creature. We have to pay tribute to special effects. Despite the fact that the budget of the film was very small (although for a director it is the most expensive film), the special effects are simply excellent. You can immediately see that they worked on the graphics for glory, the alien came out very convincing and creepy.
A word about actors. There are no high-profile world stars here, although there are several well-known personalities. First, it's Noel Clark. A well-known personality, primarily from the TV series Doctor Who. He played well, not to say that his character differs in depth, but Clark managed to give him some charm. By the way, it is on the character of Clark that the main percentage of wits and jokes in the film falls. Nor did Colin O'Donoghue. The actor known to the audience on the TV series "Tudors" and the mystical thriller "Rite" played here a rather hypocritical type with the right amount of persuasiveness. His character is the most unpleasant type, and his death does not cause much regret. But for dessert, I want to celebrate Irish actor Ned Dennehy. Don't say that, but his character is a paranoid demi-comb, the most colorful in the film. And the most charismatic. By the way, Denehi is the second time this year encounters aliens — the first was the recent “Grabbers”.
So, we have a low-budget fantasy thriller. With a good atmosphere, acting and special effects. Connoisseurs of the genre should appreciate the film. Because if it's the fact that most movies with this plot are crazy thrash, this movie is really attractive. With such a plot, a good movie is rarely made in our time. And the fact that, despite all its cheapness, it does not cut eyes only adds to the pluses of the film.
9 out of 10
It would seem that the theme of locked space with some creature that kills people one by one, is now unable to bring absolutely nothing. The concept that began with “Alien” has outlived itself with a bunch of imitations of varying degrees of sanity, but can still please, without even having a stellar composition (as once in “Alien”).
Shown in a limited edition somewhere in Britain, with a completely unremarkable title, and a very frightening director, Warehouse 24 could easily pass unnoticed and be underestimated. In its atmosphere and production, the film is close to the wonderful and striking Skyline, rather than fellow monster-killer concept.
The horror does not rock for long, introducing the characters who are the first to go to the feed of a terrible alien creature. The main characters do not come to the vault immediately, but their scandals and skirmishes immediately give out bright types. Although, you will remember here, even the electric grandfather, and the young worker, and the lady with the dog, thanks to the participation of which you can somehow take the plot out of the confined space of walls and corridors. The love triangle for the sake of a very strange aunt looks, of course, too conditional. Her blonde best friend is much prettier. But the brightest here came out, of course, a half-crazy man with a toothbrush, living directly in the vault.
The monster itself is amazing! Now, when all around in low-budget horror movies monstrous computer graphics or completely fake thrash, we finally got something really creepy and high-quality. Insect-like creature, suitable for opponents of Guyver, even with the use of graphics still looks like a masterpiece of old-school images of monsters with the help of costumes and real natural special effects. Jaws and claws, eerie realistic movements, attacks on people with tearing out hearts or gnawing their faces, the level of violence pleases the full program with its saturation and visual quality!
The British famously issued a microbudget and at the same time the best, scary and intense horror movie of 2012, which surpasses all mainstream novelties in the spirit of Collector-2 and the Casket of the Curse! Warehouse 24 was an atmospheric, old-school and stunning film, with an abalden creature, an abundance of murders and bright characters. The only drawback here is the absence of stars. Although many of the participants managed to appear in various TV series and films that were released in theatrical rental, including here.
Of all the attempts to imitate Alien since the seventies, none came as close in quality and atmosphere to Scott's film as the British have now done here at Warehouse 24. High-quality, almost perfect and almost masterpiece horror film, completely immersing in its thick atmosphere of total suspense and powerful dismemberment! Great quality movie with just a stunning monster!
9 out of 10
I didn’t expect anything from this film – I didn’t get anything. Maybe a little bit of a good mood, maybe. I wanted to see something fantastic from the latter, and the fact that the British – even better.
In the vault, almost in the center of London, where people keep their belongings in private compartments, a group of people gathered, who were brought there by chance. People, frankly, gathered not very pleasant in terms of characters and attitude to each other. A military plane crashes over the vault: among the wreckage is an iron box, the contents of which are soon removed from there and penetrate into the vault - either through sewers or through ventilation. Never mind. There are power outages, the protection system is triggered, the doors are closed... etc., etc.
Then begins the game of cat and mouse between people and the evil creature, which, as it turns out, still alien origin. So they run around this repository from the monster the whole film, along the way willingly dying from the use of “high-class” computer graphics. If you think about it, the alien could finish everyone in five minutes of screen time, but whether he is very dumb, which was repeatedly noticeable during the film, or just decided to stretch the exciting game longer... but in the end he paid for it, stumbling upon a fomka that the characters found in things not other than Gordon Freeman, carefully left for them.
At the beginning of the film, the creators diligently, but not too successfully and skillfully try to pump up suspense and a little even horror. The endless pamper with the lighting of the vault, the sounds of someone crawling through the ventilation, the rare rock of an alien in the dark ... by the way, when he jumped a couple of times for running people along the walls of the corridor, it seemed that someone was holding him on a stick.
And from the middle of the film, the crew, in my opinion, frankly decides to show us a black comedy, which is great. It all starts with a crazy man in a bathrobe and an electric toothbrush. And in that vein, the film is gradually coming to an end. The second part of the film is much more cheerful, I think.
You can sympathize with the film, except that Charlie, who is surrounded by well not very healthy people, but at the same time he behaves quite adequately and, at times, even in a manly brave and dignified way. You can also admire the pretty actress, although she meets all the events in the film with almost the same facial expression.
I was very happy with the very end.