Extinction
(2015/Sony DVD)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: C+ Film: C+
Extinction
is a pleasant surprise of a Zombie film in the midst of the sea of
washed up garbage that has been coming out lately. The
horror/suspense film stars Matthew Fox, Jeffrey Donovan, Clara Lago,
and Quinn McColgan and takes place in the snow covered mountains of
Harmony where few have come to escape the Zombie outbreak and live
somewhat of a normal life amidst the chaos and destruction.
Sporting
great direction and strong performances with a realistic feel, the
film ends up a nice recommendation for Zombie fans, especially those
who like The Walking Dead or The Strain. The only
thing that may turn some horror fans off is that the film is slow
paced and has a theatrical (play) like quality in areas with a lot of
dialogue but makes up for it with cool special effects and an
effective climax. The digital effects at times show their budget,
especially with shots of the snow drenched run down city that scream
green screen.
From
the thrilling first sequence where a school bus is stopped by Army
Soldiers only to be attacked by fast moving Zombies (similar to 28
Days Later), our two heroines Patrick (Fox) and Jack (Donovan)
fight for survival as they save Jack's baby daughter Lu (McColgan)
from the undead, only to sadly lose her attractive young mother to a
Zombie bite. The first sequence is sharply shot with extreme
close-ups of gore and effective cutting in and out of black to
emphasize the emotions of the fear struck characters.
9
years later and Patrick, Jack, and Lu are living in isolation outside
of the city in a farm where they take snowmobiles into the snow
covered town of Harmony to hunt deer and the occasional canned food
items. The inside home life is much like the Amish: no electricity
and just the basic essentials and things are quiet and much simpler.
That doesn't stop both Patrick and Jack from being efficient killers
as well. Young Lu earns for life on the outside beyond the farm, but
of course is young and naïve and doesn't know what terrors truly
roam the town. But being in isolation for so long has left the group
clueless to the evolution of the Undead... with shocking surprises
that await them.
Presented
in standard definition, the film is presented in an anamorphic
widescreen transfer with a 2.35:1 aspect ratio and a lossy Dolby
Digital 5.1 track. There are also Spanish and Thai 5.1 Dolby Digital
Tracks. Subtitles are in English, English SDH, French, Chinese,
Korean, and Spanish. The film clocks in around 112 minutes.
Special
Features include 8 Behind The Scenes Featurettes including Making
Of, The Apocalypse, The Creatures, Digital Effects (parts 1 and 2),
Matthew Fox and Jeffrey Donovan, Clara Lago and Quinn McColgan, VFX
Breakdowns, and previews
for other Sony Titles. Not bad for a DVD release!
-
James Harland Lockhart V
www.facebook.com/jhl5films
