For many audience members, found footage films are just an opportunity to film a horror story on the cheap and don’t bring anything to the table. There are films, however, that work to use the filmmaking style to their advantage in exploring different ways to tell their stories. Sure, it’s a conceit, but if you buy into it, it can make for a fun style of storytelling. Join us – Pete Wright and Andy Nelson — as we begin our Found Footage Series with John Erick Dowdle’s 2008 film “Quarantine.” We talk about the nature of found footage films, what they need, why they’re often horror films, and why it works in this film. We discuss the script of this film and, while still enjoyable, what big problem crops up late in the film that leads to too many questions and, if thought about critically, can really spoil the story. We chat about the original Spanish film, “[REC],” on which this is based, what the differences are, which version works better, and why the original film’s director hates this one so much. We chat about the cast and what they bring to the table in a film largely made up of lengthy shots. And we complain about the marketing images for this film and ponder what could possibly have been their intention when using the film’s final image as the poster design. It’s a fun and frightening horror film that has its problems, but still is effective at creating a claustrophobic horror film. We have a great chat about it. Tune in!
