Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Area 407 (2012, Dale Fabrigar and Everette Wallin)

As I've said before, I have a real fondness for "found footage" horror films, like the Blair Witch Project. Here we have a brand new one with a few twists I've never seen in one of these films. Already released in a limited run to theaters and on VOD, Area 407 will be hitting DVD from IFC Films on August 28th.

Area 407 starts off with a young girl named Trish videotaping her older sister Jessie and the other passengers on the plane she is on. They are returning to Los Angeles from a trip to New York City on New Year's Eve. The plane ride seems to be a standard trip, other than a man who seems to have had too much to drink and is belittling the flight attendants. Suddenly, after some rough turbulence, the plane mysteriously crashes. The survivors, bloodied and terrified, have no idea where they are and can't seem to find anyone else around. Little do they know, that there is something lurking out there and if they knew what it was, they would have wished they died in the crash.

Area 407 has a lot going for it. The opening scene in the plane is very authentic and you feel like you are really there or watching real footage. You also feel like you are really getting to know the characters. After the plane crash, the film gets tense with its frantic hand held shots and suspenseful conclusion. The film really surprised me once we finally see who or what is killing each survivor. By the title, I was actually expecting aliens (I was thinking of Area 51) to be the antagonists but I was wrong. Don't worry, I won't spoil it. Overall, the film was effective and had some nice scares. The characters were likeable and I didn't lose interest at all. Not the best found footage horror film I've seen, but a solid entry in the genre.

RATING: 7/10

Check out this link to find out more on the film.

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