Quarantine Blu-ray delivers stunning video and audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
Television reporter Angela Vidal (Jennifer Carpenter) and her cameraman (Steve Harris) are
assigned to spend the night shift with a Los Angeles Fire Station. After a routine 911 call takes
them to a small apartment building, they find police officers already on the scene in response
to blood curdling screams coming from one of the apartment units. They soon learn that a
woman living in the building has been viciously attacked by something unknown. After a few of
the residents are also attacked, they try to escape with the news crew in tow, only to find that
the CDC has quarantined the building. Phones, internet, televisions and cell phone access have
been cut-off, and officials are not relaying information to those locked inside. When the
quarantine is finally lifted, the only evidence of what took place is the news crew's videotape.
The people trapped here, myself included, cant help but ask, 'why?'
Is Quarantine one of the most unoriginal films ever? Perhaps. On
one hand, it's
a remake of a foreign film; in this case, that film is the 2007 Spanish hit REC. On the
other hand, the film follows in the footsteps of the American smash hit Cloverfield. Both
films were shot entirely on video with a shaky, handheld, first-person perspective. That is, the
cameraman both shoots and participates in the action, with the camera oftentimes rolling,
swaying, shaking, falling, lying dormant, catching the action at cockeyed angles, and presenting
audiences with either a novel, "street level" perspective on the action or a motion-sickness
induced headache.
Quarantine doesn't seem quite as extreme in its herky-jerky camera movements as
Cloverfield, but it may have the same effect on audiences.
From a cinematic perspective, Quarantine is a fun and bloody ride into chaos.
It's far more limited in scope than Cloverfield, and never matches that film's intensity,
but
for what it is, it's a worthwhile experience for Horror fans.
You wouldn't want to get trapped in a quarantined building with your hair out of place, would you?
Los Angeles television reporter Angela Vidal (Jennifer Carpenter, The Exorcism of Emily
Rose) and her cameraman Scott (Steve Harris, Minority Report) find
themselves on assignment, documenting what they believe will be a routine night in the life of a
group of Los Angeles firefighters. Their world is turned upside down when the station's engines
respond to a call at an old apartment building. They discover an elderly resident foaming at the
mouth and displaying aggressive tendencies, punctuated by an unprovoked attack on a police
officer. When firefighter Jake (Jay Hernandez, Hostel) and police
officer Danny Wilensky (Columbus Short, Cadillac Records)
attempt to escort their fallen ally outside for medical treatment, they discover the building has
been cordoned off; Internet, television, and telephone lines cut; and nobody is getting in or out.
As the TV crew, police, firefighters, and panicked residents attempt to figure out what is going on
and find a way out, they come face-to-face a deadly enemy, leaving them to fend off a savage
and relentless foe.
After a rather dull set-up, Quarantine picks up a relentless pace and packs plenty of
bloody
action, thrills, and chills into its short 89 minute runtime. The film offers a little bit of everything,
with emphasis on horror, gore, and mystery. Quarantine isn't really a completely
blood-soaked affair, but there is plenty of it to be seen. It literally covers the camera in one
particularly juicy scene, and the film offers several rather nasty wounds that reveal everything
the minimal detail of the video camera allows, right down to the bone in one or two rather
disturbing shots. Quarantine definitely relies on the story and the style in which it is
presented to sell viewers on the experience, and it puts only secondary emphasis on the blood
and guts. It seems the film has discovered a happy medium that allows the grisly violence to
play into the story, to mesh with the series of events, and it never feels like the movie is an
excuse for the prosthetics, make-up, and special effects departments to have a field day with the
latest and greatest in gory visuals.
The story is punctuated by a series of fine performances that capture both the terror and the
"real
life" feel of the movie nicely. Jay Hernandez and Columbus Short are the two best the film has to
offer. They each personify the "everyman" feel of the movie nicely. While both are in uniform
and are expected to be the heroes by those around them, the pair demonstrate the frailty and
fear of even those from whom the most is expected. They are the strongest characters in the
film, and the most real; their training kicks in when the situation calls for it, but they also share a
humanity and vulnerability that makes them readily identifiable, best captured by a scene
featuring Short's character shooting an individual and subsequently seen questioning his decision
and visibly shaking from the fear, confusion, doubt, and regret of having to perform his duty.
Only the film's star, Jennifer Carpenter, fails to completely sell her character to
audiences. She is, at first, terribly annoying as the female reporter in what is the equivalent of
an all-boy's
clubhouse. As the action progresses, the body count rises, the blood increases, the tension
mounts,
and situation becomes more hopeless, she blends in better and becomes a secondary character of
sorts, playing second fiddle to the true star of the film, which is the camera, and by proxy, the
audience. Quarantine does a fine job of tossing viewers into the midst of the tumult and
making them believe they are struggling to survive while attempting to make sense of the
confusion alongside the
other characters. The movie captures the terror and uncertainty of both the situation and the
jumble of
strangers that find themselves at once both allied and at odds with one another.
Quarantine may not be completely original, but it's good at what it does nonetheless.
Sony delivers Quarantine to Blu-ray with a 1080p, 1.85:1-framed transfer. The film was
shot on high definition video, and as was the case with Cloverfield and 28 Days Later, the
image is less-than-spectacular in terms of visual pizzazz and high definition eye candy, and as
such
will find itself in the crossfire of those who deem the transfer "good" for replicating its intended
look and those who find it unacceptable because it fails to deliver the same visual standards of
something like Saawariya. Because
the transfer does indeed replicate the director-intended look and feel of the picture, a look and
feel that both adds to the tone of the film and helps create the sense of urgency and first-person
perspective of the action, this review will judge it not against slicker, fancier transfers but simply
based on its own merits as it reflects the natural appearance of the film. In the context of its
intended look, Quarantine boasts a fine video transfer. The film features a drab look that
doesn't allow what few bright colors there are to truly stand out, and it also obscures some finer
details. It still allows some to shine through; the bright yellow L.A. firefighter's jackets stand out
nicely against the numerous dark and black backdrops present in the film, and the outer brick
façade or the tile flooring inside the fire station, for example, reveal acceptable levels of detail for
this sort of transfer. Blacks are deep and dark, appearing true in most scenes, perhaps showing a
hint of gray here and there, and most of the noticeable noise over the image occurs over the
darkest corners of the screen. Some of the darkest recesses of the image seem to show some
signs of blocking, but it's never a hindrance to the overall presentation. On the whole,
Quarantine won't be a go-to demo disc on showroom floors, but it's another in a growing
list of transfers that show off Blu-ray at its best, namely its ability to more faithfully replicate the
intended look of a motion picture better than any format before it.
Quarantine sports a healthy and active Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This audio
track is nice and robust, featuring both subtle and aggressive use of the entire soundstage that,
like the video, never fails in placing the listener square in the middle of the action. Ambient
sound is seemingly ever-present, and perhaps more than any other aspect of the soundtrack is
its best asset. An early scene featuring a brief interview in the fire station's mess hall features
the clanking of silverware and voices emanating from all over the room, offering an excellent
example of the more subtle strengths of the track. Likewise, the sounds of a handball court
reverberate throughout the soundstage; the squeaking of the tennis shoes and the thump of the
ball off the racket and wall is another one of the more subtle examples of the track's ability to
almost literally place listeners in the midst of any situation. The rumbling of an idle fire engine
right before the firefighters roll towards the apartment building, followed by the ride over that
offers screaming sirens and rattling gear is, again, fantastic. Once the action gets going, the
track picks up in intensity and maintains the wonderful sense of immersion it hinted at in the
early goings. Inside the building, ambient noise surrounds the listener; helicopters fly around the
outside of the building on a regular basis, and a parade of sirens and motor vehicle traffic seems
to surround the listener at every turn. The sounds of violence, the many screams in particular,
are so convincing that they just might send a shiver up the spine. Dialogue reproduction is also
uniformly fine, though not perfect. In the context of the movie, it's been recorded primarily from
on-the-scene television broadcast microphones, and at times sounds muffled and faded, in stark
contrast to the bass-heavy,
impressive ambience of the rest of the track, which all sounds clear, sharp, and exciting. Still,
Quarantine simply delivers a first-rate surround sound extravaganza.
Quarantine presents viewers with several supplemental features. A commentary track
with
Director John Erick Dowdle and Writer/Producer Drew Dowdle is first. These participants discuss
some running stylistic themes throughout the movie, the touches that lent realism to the
picture,
the quality of the acting, the strengths of various members of the crew, the differences between
working on smaller pictures and Quarantine, and plenty more. This is an
above-average track that delivers an almost nonstop flow of information. Locked In: The
Making of 'Quarantine' (480p, 10:05) is a brief and fluffy piece featuring the cast and crew
discussing the look of the film, the plot, the challenges of acting in this sort of film, the difficulties
of
shooting on video, and several other odds and ends. Dressing the Infected: Robert Hall's
Make-up Design (480p, 7:29) examines the film's grisly special effects. Anatomy of a
Stunt (480p, 3:23) takes a short look at some of the stunt work in the film. Also included
are 1080p trailers (except where otherwise noted) for Passengers, Resident Evil:
Degeneration, Vacancy 2: The First Cut (480p) Lakeview Terrace,
Pineapple Express,
and Hancock. Finally,
this disc is BD-Live (Blu-ray profile 2.0) enabled. Users will find Sony's standard page, with
trailers, a FAQ, and more.
As the credits roll, audiences familiar with Cloverfield will inevitably begin to draw
comparisons between the two films, centered on the eerily similar styles the two share. It's
hard to shake the notion that Quarantine is nothing but a "wannabe" film trying to
capitalize on the success of 2007's smash hit monster movie, and combined with the fact that it's a
remake of a recent foreign film, the deck seems stacked against it. Nevertheless,
Quarantine manages to carve out a nice little existence despite its questionable origins. It's
an
entertaining, fast-paced, and violent romp through a night of seclusion, confusion, and horror. The
film features good acting, a strong atmosphere, and just the right amount of gore and exposition.
The film's final shot is a little too clichéd, but it's effective nonetheless. Sony's Blu-ray release of
Quarantine is solid, but not exceptional. The video quality faithfully duplicates the intended
look of the film, the lossless audio track is fantastic, and the disc sports a few bonus materials.
Quarantine is easily recommended as a rental, and at the right price, a purchase for Horror
fans.
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced four new release and catalog titles coming soon to Blu-ray. For all four releases, video will be presented in 1080p AVC accompanied by a 5.1 Dolby TrueHD soundtrack. Additionally, all titles will be BD-Live ready so ...
All countries
