Island Zero

This movie by all accounts was a good film. I tend to steer clear of indie horror films albeit this film wasn't very scary but it would fall into the horror genre, Usually these films are written horribly and the acting is so below par I can't get through the first 15 minutes but watching "Island Zero" from the beginning was not the case by any means.. The acting and pace of this film was well performed and intelligent. Not rocket science but just enough so that it seemed very believable and witty. The budget clearly was independent level hence the special effects but it was all done in a respectable manner not frivolous. Theres no big names in this film which even gives it a more authentic feel like they really used some locals off the island..

My one gripe is this film could have been 15-20 mins. Shorter but in all honesty I would prefer they took time like they did explaining whats happening instead of some films having no clue and just leaving it up to our imagination to fill in the blanks.. All in All I would say this was a pretty good film to watch and definitely high remarks being on a shoe string budget.. Congrats.

Great concept, but low budget film. Decent acting from the two leads and the "old lady" character actor was great! I was impressed by the story and started to think that this could easily become a cult classic. I also started to imagine what if a big studio picked this up and poured a few million dollars into and remade it with better special effects? Laila Robins is awesome and I would definitely love to see her reprise her role in a big budget remake with a better supporting cast and fleshed out script. Kudos all around... I enjoyed the movie for what it was despite the fact it had the potential to be so much more.

The movie is obviously low-budget, but that doesn't mean it is a bad or badly made movie. You just cannot expect it to be at the same level as some big blockbuster movie. There were some interesting ideas and although the movie needs a new ending, it was interesting enough and I actually enjoyed watching it.

The opening scene of Island Zero was so needless, no senseless I almost turned the film off. I know that type of scene is a common trope of the genre but the way it was done was just plain cruel and seriously damaged the film for me.

Once I got past that I found myself gripped, really gripped in fact! This was a fascinating little film.

It tells the story of a small obscure island and its inhabitants that become concerned when the ferry stops turning up. As they find themselves forced to ration, running out of fuel and unable to reach the mainland the real threat emerges.

I really enjoyed Island Zero it's an example of what can be done with a minimal budget, a few cut away deaths, carefully done sfx and apparently even the costumes came from a local charity shop!

Great character development, a very tense plot and great concept. I genuinely was fascinated by the whole thing but the beginning and end took what should have been something incredible and made it passable.

I would recommend this regardless as the bulk of the film is fantastic on every level.

The featured review at time of writing this refers to the movie as "Liberal Propaganda", another person who doesn't understand the meaning of the word. A film that features global warming is not propaganda, a movie that acknowledges that guns serve the single purpose of killing is not propaganda. Just because it doesn't follow your narrow intellectually limited mindset does not make something propaganda and displays overwhelming ignorance.

Anyway I digress, solid film ruined by marginal stupidity.

The Good:

Excellent plot

Very well crafted

Good character development

The Bad:

Lack of budget shows in places

Opening sequence is beyond cruel

Finale should have been better

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

If you find a bloody unexplained mess, it makes no sense to tell people about it

Goverment officials have super mega powered batteries that last longer than all others

When right wing people are even getting offended by horror movies they need to stop calling others snowflakes

Island Zero is a film with a clever idea that is reasonably original that's constrained by an obviously limited budget.

The story line mixes an aquatic terror concept with issues of climate change that works quite well and is intelligently executed. The acting is mixed but at its best certainly decent and by no means a "reading off score card" moment you see from some films with a limited budget and casting choices.

Regrettably though the lack of funding shows through in the nominal and rather mediocre special/creatures effects. Given the emphasis of this film too decent special effects are important and their absence is sorely missed.

Had this film had more $$ to amp up the horror quotient I think it could have really been quite good. As it stands, moderately watchable but also anti climatic. 5/10 from me.