[REC] 4: APOCALYPSE (2014) Blu-ray review

[Rec] 4: Apocalypse (2014) d. Jaume Balaguero (Spain) (95 min)

Angela (Manuela Velasco), our charming heroine reporter from the initial outbreak documented in [Rec]  (and who also put in a surprise final-reel appearance in its 2009 sequel), is rescued from the besieged apartment block by officer Guzman (Paco Manzanedo) whereupon both are quarantined aboard a repurposed oil tanker in order to contain the demonic virus. More importantly, an antivirus has been developed and is ready for testing, but when the test subject (an infected monkey) escapes its cage and bites the crew’s cook, the stage is set for yet another flurry of hyper-furious flesh-munching zombies decimating everything in sight.

[REC] (2007) Blu-ray Review

[Rec] (2007) d. Jaume Balagueró /Paco Plaza (Spain) (78 min)

As the reality-TV onslaught continued into the late 2000s, it was no surprise that the “found footage” trend of horror filmmaking (originally spawned with Cannibal Holocaust, later reaching the mainstream with The Blair Witch Project, and soon to explode with Paranormal Activity) still had legs. With 2008 already having seen releases of Cloverfield and Diary of the Dead, there should have been little surprising left to see from the first-person, shaky-cam format. However, Spanish filmmakers Balagueró and Plaza’s high-concept, low-budget offering managed to pack more feverish, twitchy energy and legitimate scares into its under-80-minute running time than both of its gringo compatriots combined.