THE [REC] COLLECTION
That the REC films have been unavailable on Blu-ray here in the U.S. up until now has been a real crime, so it's great to see all four of films in the franchise get a proper boxed set from Scream Factory with this fine-looking release.
[REC] (2007)
Label: Scream Factory
Reion Code: A
Duration: 78 Minutes
Rating: R
Audio: Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD MA with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Director: Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza
Cast: Manuela Velasco, Ferran Terraza, Jorge-Yamam Serrano, Pablo Rosso, David Vert, Vicente Gil, Martha Carbonell, Carlos Vicente, María Teresa Ortega, Manuel Bronchud, Akemi Goto, Kao Chen-Min, Maria Lanau, Claudia Silva, Javier Botet, Ben Temple
The first [REC] opens with Spanish TV reporter Ángela Vidal (Manuela Velasco) and her cameraman Pablo recording a segment for her night TV news program 'While You Were Sleeping', one of those shows that show you what go on in your town after hours. The latest segment has them hanging out at a firehouse when a call comes in for an elderly woman in distress at an apartment building. They tag along on the call, but once inside the apartment the police quarantine the building when it is discovered that a rabies type virus is loose in the building and spreading from person to person. In my opinion REC is probably one of the best found-footage films there is, a film I remember hearing positive word of mouth about so I tracked it down as soon as I could, popping it in the DVD player I floored by how enthralling and scary it was.
The film has a nice build to it, we're introduced to the characters and the tension slowly begins to mount, and then it explodes into savagery with he first rabid attack on one of the first responders. The infection quickly begins to spread via bite and soon we have an apartment building of violent infected out for blood while our reporters and police scramble to avoid infection. The movie has a claustrophobic intensity about it, the attacks are kinetic and savage, and the camerawork isn't too shaky either - which I appreciate it. The action comes fast and furious, with the bloodshot eyed infected attack it is scary and frantic, people running away, trying to defend themselves against the infected - it really is a terrifying film
Manuela Velasco is the standout here as the intrepid TV reporter who tells her cameraman to capture everything, she's way more likable than Jennifer Carpenter as her counterpart in the American remake Quarantine, I enjoy the remake but it just pales in comparison to this Spanish version in almost every way. It's non-stop from the moment they step foot in the apartment building, leading up to a top-floor finale that is creepy and unsettling, making [REC] the cream of the crop in regard to found-footage film, and a fantastic Spanish horror entry. I also love that they keep it under eight-minutes long, I think most found-footage film overstay their welcome, keeping it succinct is wise, it starts strong and end with a whiz-banger.
Special Features:
- Audio Commentary with writers/directors Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza (In Spanish with English Subtitles)
- The Making of REC (41 min)
- Crew Interviews (47 min)
- Extended Scenes (30 min)
- Deleted Scenes (3 min)
- Behind the Scenes Footage (44 min)
- Teaser (2 min)
- Theatrical Trailers (1 min)
- TV Spots (3 min)
- Still Gallery (5 min)
[REC] 2 (2009)
Label: Scream Factory
Region Code: A
Duration: 85 Minutes
Rating: R
Audio: Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD MA with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Director: Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza
Cast: Manuela Velasco, Jonathan Mellor, Oscar Sánchez Zafra, Ariel Casas, Alejandro Casaseca, Pablo Rosso, Claudia Silva
Like Halloween II before it the sequel to [REC] opens literally minutes after the events of the first film, having lost contact with the people in the quarantined apartment building a SWAT-type team is sent into investigate along with Dr. Owen (Jonathan Mellor), an official from the Ministry of Health. The found-footage aesthetic is further enhanced this time around with helmet/body cameras worn by the SWAT team - so we get different POVs throughout, from one to the other as various team members are killed or turned, which keeps things interesting. Also keeping things fresh is the introduction of a demonic possession angle that gives this one a new dynamic, with the Dr. Owen being revealed to be a priest sent by the Vatican, which doesn't sit to well with the SWAT team. Mellor who plays the priest has a certain shady look about him, he doesn't seem all that trustworthy, he an interesting character to watch.
I really do love the demonic possession as contagion elements of this film, with the priest whipping out the rosary and reciting biblical text to ward of the demonic/infected, very cool. The first film held onto it's mystery, but this sequel does definitely get into the nitty gritty of why and how this is happening, including a certain patient zero that's been holed-up in the penthouse apartment, it also brings back reporter Ángela Vidal who you might not expect to see after the end of the first film.
This is the rare sequels that is not only a solid film but manages to match the original film on every level and surpasses it in my opinion. I suggest watching them back-2-back, these truly are two of the best found footage films you will ever watch. The end of the film offers a revisit of the end of the first with a parasitic reveal that gob-smacked me the first time I watched it, as if the demonic possession angle wasn't already cool enough they throw in another multi-faceted shocker that truly stunned me the first go round.
Special Features:
- Audio Commentary with writers/directors Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza (In Spanish with English Subtitles)
- The Making of REC 2 – In An Affected World (118 min)
- Behind the Scenes (56 min)
- Deleted Scenes (4 min)
- Extended Scenes (4 min)
- A Walkthrough of the Set (9 min)
- REC 2 On Tour (9 min)
- Sitges Film Festival Press Conference (11 min)
- Theatrical Trailers (4 min)
- TV Spots (1 min)
- Still Gallery (4 min)
[REC 3: GENESIS (2012)
Label: Scream Factory
Reion Code: A
Duration: 80 Minutes
Rating: R
Audio: Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD MA with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1)
Director: Paco Plaza
Cast: Leticia Dolera, Diego Martín, Ismael Martínez, Àlex Monner, Sr. B, Emilio Mencheta
The first two installments of this franchise were directed by the directing duo of Jaume Balagueró (The Nameless) and Paco Plaza (Romasanta), but the pair decided that Plaza would direct the third installment solo while Balagueró would go onto direct the fourth. The third film takes place on the wedding night of Clara (Leticia Dolera) and Koldo (Diego Martín). This is not a continuation of the first two films but a side story happening at about the same time, maintaining the found-footage aesthetic initially via video caught by the wedding videographer.
Attending the wedding is an uncle who works as a vetrinarian, he was bitten by a dog at the clinic earlier, which is presumably the same dog referenced in the first film. After vomiting he turns into one of the infected and the proverbial shit hits the fan with wedding guests running in every direction as the infected spread throughout the night. This one has a very different tone than the first two film, and I liked it, it's humorous and has a real blood-splattered glee about it, with the bride and groom separated for a large swath of the film, with the cute bride becoming a total Ash-styled bad-ass, wielding a chainsaw and going to town on those who would ruin her special day!
Another big change-up here is that the found-footage aspect of the film is only around for a short while before it is just abandoned in favor of tradition cinema storytelling, a move that I know irked a lot of fans of the series, but I think it's awesome, I can only take found-footage in small doses and I enjoyed the change-up, offering a more visually pleasing movie with loads of color and well-lit gore gags. The ending of this one is sort of a downer but also well-done and awesome, reuniting the bride and groom in an unexpected way.
Special Features:
- REC: Genesis – Preparing A Bloody Wedding (118 min))
- The Making of REC 3 (23 min)
- Deleted Scenes (24 min)
- Outtakes (3 min)
- Theatrical Trailers (5 min)
- TV Spots (2 min)
- Still Gallery (4 min)
[REC] 4: APOCALYPSE (2014)
Region Code: A
Duration: 95 Minutes
Rating: R
Audio: Spanish 5.1 DTS-HD MA with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1)
Director: Jaume Balagueró
Cast: Manuela Velasco, Paco Manzanedo, Hector Colome, Ismael Fritschi, Críspulo Cabezas, Mariano Venancio, María Alfonsa Rosso, Carlos Zabala, Cristian Aquino, Emilio Buale, Paco Obregón, Javier Laorden
The fourth and final film in the series is directed by Jaume Balagueró, and it sort of combines elements of the first two films and the third, taking place on a research ship funded by the Vatican. On it we find Angela from the first 2-films, plus an elderly woman who is revealed to be the lone survivor from the wedding party in the third film. The scientist are looking for a cure for the demonic contagion through an antidote based on a blood sample, it also introduces an infected monkey kept in the lab, which you know is gonna get out and begin the infected cycle all over again!
I didn't care for the setting at sea for this one, but I am a big fan of the return of Manuela Velasco as Angela, she's the best thing about the series as a whole in my opinion, and her return is good news. They even do some interesting - if not wholly unexpected - stuff with her character in regard to a demonic parasite, and I love the initial monkey attack in the kitchen, it's fun stuff, but not as humorous as the third film.
Putting it up against the whole series [REC] 4 is my least favorite of the bunch, the first two films are magic, they revitalized an already tired found-footage cycle, and the third went into a new direction and was blood-splattered fun, but this one is darker and not as fun. It feels restrained, the action is never as frenzied, kinetic or alarming as the previous three entries, but I admire that they at least were still doing something different with the storyline, expanding on it, I just don't love it as much as the first three.
Special Features:
- The Making of REC: APOCALYPSE (28 min)
- Theatrical Trailers (8 min)
- TV Spot (1 min)
- Still Gallery (5 min)
Audio/Video: The[REC] Collection arrives on 4-disc Blu-ray from Scream Factory in 1080p HD widescreen, the first two film are framed in 1.85:1 while the last two are framed in 2.35:1. They are solid transfers and a welcome upgrade from the DVD-only U.S. releases we have had up till now.
None of the extras are listed as new, I didn;t have parts three and four on DVD, but I do believe these are all carry-overs from the previous home video releases. What we do get is several hours of audio commentaries, making-of, behind-the-scenes, deleted and extended scenes, interviews, trailers, TV spots and galleries, most of not all of them in Spanish.
The impressive 4-disc set arrives in rigid slipcase housing four separate Blu-ray keepcases. The keepcases look great in the box with the titles on the spines aligning with a nice symmetry that's pleasing to the eye, my OCD kicks it when the spines of the titles do not align so thank you Scream Factory for not kicking my OCD into overdrive! The slip is very sturdy, thick and heavy, not like the Scream flimsy slips used for their releases of the It's Alive Collection and The Amitvyille Horror Collection, more akin to their Nightbreed edition. The discs themselves share the same key art as the sleeves of artwork.
The [REC] Collection is a solid release for a solid series of films, if you've been holding out for a region-A friendly HD release of all four-films the long wait if finally over with this fine-looking release from Scream Factory.
