\[.REC\] Review

[.REC] tells the story of a young TV reporter and her cameraman who are taping a real-life late night news programme when things go horribly wrong. What appears to be a routine emergency call quickly turns to hell as the team are trapped inside a building with no means of escape.

by Kim Newman |

Published on03 03 2008

Release Date:

11 Apr 2008

Running Time:

78 minutes

Certificate:

Original Title:

[.REC]

A peppy, bored TV reporter (Velasco) and her loyal camera-guy spend a night with the Barcelona fire department, hoping something will happen. When a call-out spirals into a full-on crisis, they get their wish.

[●REC] is a short, swift, terrifying ride, expertly assembled by up-and-coming Spanish horrormeisters Balagueró and Plaza, but it’s the third film to arrive inside six months to combine George Romero’s zombie rules with the hand-held Blair Witch aesthetic (the others being Zombie Diaries and Romero’s own Diary Of The Dead).

Without competition, it would seem fresher but, even in a crowded field, [●REC] is strong enough to hold its own.

Even thought it's the third such effort to employ handheld camera in a zombie flick, this has more than enough shocks to hold its own.