Mania Grade: B
6 Comments | Add
Rate & Share:
Related Links:
Info:
- DVD: Quarantine 2: Terminal
- Rating: R
- Starring: Mercedes Masöhn, Josh Cooke, Ignacio Serricchio
- Written By: John Pogue
- Directed By: John Pogue
- Distributor: Sony Home Entertainment
- Original Year of Release: 2011
- Extras: None
- Series:
Quarantine 2: Terminal DVD Review
Surprisingly entertaining sequel By
Tim Janson
August 11, 2011
More Virus fun in Quarantine 2: Terminal(2011).
© Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Ok let’s address a quick bit of confusion so that everyone’s scorecards are correct. Quarantine 2: Terminal is a sequel to the 2008 film Quarantine. Quarantine was a remake of the Spanish film [REC]. However Quarantine 2 is NOT a remake of [REC 2] which has also just come out on DVD. Whew! Are we all up to speed on that? Quarantine 2 takes place literally a few hours after the events in the first film which saw a Los Angeles apartment complex quarantined by the CDC to contain a deadly virus that turns victims into rabid killers (think the Rage virus from 28 Days Later).
During a L.A. to Nashville , one passenger becomes violently ill and has to be restrained by several other passengers as the airplane makes an emergency landing at the Las Vegas Airport . Jenny (Masöhn), an inexperienced flight attendant has to take charge of the passengers when her partner Paula is bitten by the infected passenger. While the Captain and co-pilot remain with the plane to keep the sick man restrained, the rest of the passengers enter the terminal only to find the entire facility on lockdown, trapping them all inside. With the aid of a baggage handler named Ed (Serricchio) they traverse the maze-like terminal only to find each exit closed off.
Ed mentions that there is an unfinished part of the building with tunnels leading to the old terminal which will provide an escape route. But when they return to the plane, they find the captain, co-pilot, and the sick passenger all missing. Now the remaining passengers and crew have to make a desperate run to escape the rabid, blood-crazed plague victims.
Quarantine 2 replays the formula from the first film and does it quite well. The cramped, claustrophobic space of the apartment complex of the first film is replaced with the cramped, claustrophobic space of the airplane and terminal and it’s equally effective. The horror of Quarantine 2 is three-fold: first there is the obvious horror of the plague victims who have lost all sense of reason and are just out to kill. Second there is the horror of being locked down and confined without knowing the reason and who is responsible. There’s an encounter with soldiers at one point who explain the connection to the apartment complex in Los Angeles . Finally there is the speculative horror. What really would you do if a passenger on a plane suddenly went nuts? Obviously the pilot crew’s main goal is to keep him out of the cockpit but beyond that it is certainly a very scary situation.
You probably won’t find a name or face you recognize among the cast but that doesn’t stop them from providing strong performances. No one tries to steal the show or chew scenery and thus the performances are believable. Director John Pogue paces the action evenly and builds it up until it becomes a rollercoaster car on a down slope, barely pausing to let you catch your breath. With a budget barely over $3 million dollars he makes a tense and enjoyable horror film with an ending that is satisfying, yet leaves the door open to another sequel. The only question I have is that we find out how the passenger becomes infected but even before this the co-pilot is feeling sick. This is never followed up on however leaving us to wonder if this might be a hint at another sequel or if he merely had an everyday cold and it was all a red herring.
DVD Extras
None!
LOGIN
REGISTER
RSS
HOME
Wow, wasnt going to even bother with this, but your review has convinced me to change my mind Tim. Thanks for the info!!