Quadrant 9EV9 is about a group of friends who stumble upon an abandoned government bioweapon lab hidden deep in a forest while on vacation. It's definitely a low-budget movie, and that shows. The acting is just okay, the monster masks look cheap and silly, and the plot isn't anything new or original. But despite all that, I was expecting something much worse and was pleasantly surprised - it's actually pretty watchable.
The story mixes romance with horror. The group of five friends includes all the usual characters you'd expect: a nerdy genius who knows all about science, from meteor showers to old military bioweapon experiments; a reckless guy who causes trouble; his trashy wanna-be-girlfriend; and, of course, the two heroes - a nice, handsome guy and his equally nice, beautiful love interest.
In many low-budget monster or zombie movies, the filmmakers spend most of their budget on making scary, realistic creatures. But in Quadrant 9EV9, they clearly saved money on the monster costumes. The masks are obviously cheap, like they came from a discount bin after an elementary school Halloween party. They don't even try to hide this fact, which makes it a bit funny rather than scary.
Despite its flaws, I actually enjoyed the movie for what it is. It's good for its category, though they really should have spent a bit more on the monsters. In the end, it's a fun watch, and while the ending isn't totally original, it did manage to surprise me.
