The Facility

First I'll say that I did enjoy this movie. It had a pretty cool premise, with some promise. And all of these clinical movies where people take experimental drugs, they always have the guy who's been there before and knows everything. This one has that person as well. There are some cliches but it has promise. It doesn't always deliver on that promise though. It never fully explains everything which leaves you wanting more. If you have a couple of hours and it pops up on the TV, it won't waste your time and you'll probably get into it, but you probably won't remember it long after you watch it.

There was a very solid acting group here. Which I think is what draws you in from the beginning. But actors can only work with what they are given. Here it isn't much. You should recognize a familiar face in one of the actors as he just played a very decent agoraphobic father bent on saving his daughter. But there are too many moments in this film that leave you scratching your head and wondering "What? Why did this just happen?" Or worse, "Why didn't this just happen?" Those to questions haunt you through the film until it becomes a race to see if you can stand watching until the end. Honestly it was a good production team coupled with a great acting team wasted on a story that just wasn't there. I guess if you are one of those people that are literally obsessed with medical horror maybe. But even that is a stretch. Avoid this film but check out what else the cast has done. Because I can tell you it is better than this film.

THE FACILITY is another film about a medical trial gone wrong, in which a number of diverse characters are locked inside a medical research institute and tested with some new drugs which have unusual and unexpected side effects. This film has almost exactly the same story and execution as the American-made LAST EXPERIMENT, which was also disappointing.

I think the problem with such films is that they feel very loosely-plotted and predictable. The viewer knows from the very beginning that things are going to go violently wrong so the first half of the story, the set up, is very boring as a result. This film has a cheapness of look that's not helped by the clichéd blue filter used in all of the scenes to make the setting look cold and clinical.

Recognisable cast members are limited to Alex Reid (from THE DESCENT) and that's about it. The characters are thinly-drawn and quite unlikeable and that's even before the story gets going. And once things do kick off, they do so in a predictable way that remains predictable until the end. Sure, there's some gore and bloodshed here, but THE FACILITY is depressing more than anything else and certainly never horrific.

No. We aren't falling for it. This is just a poor retread of 28 Days.

A bunch of people go to a remote facility to become human guinea pigs for some secret, unknown drug. Good premise, right?

Wrong. We are expecting the people on the drug to do some really freaky things.... maybe mutations, maybe hallucinations or visions, right?

No. Nothing like that. Just some short of breath people with skin rashes running around with no indication of what is going on.

The problem is the pacing. The movie moves like molasses. Plus, there isn't even enough molasses to make waiting worth it.

Here's my summary; A diverse group of English get a mystery drug, they run around like a Benny Hill skit, there is a tiny bit of violence and then BOOM, the movie is over and we miss most of the denouement.

Guys, it's a well acted, well produced movie. But those aren't a substitute for a story. Booo! Booo!

In summary, the acting was solid, the story was solid, and there was a lot of tension throughout. I am really surprised by the low rating for this movie. It is not a cheesy gore fest like a lot of movies out there. It uses the unknown and unseen which is often much more frightening. There are a lot of scenes where can only hear what is happening but that creates even more tension. You are along for the ride like the characters in the movie. They don't always see what is happening and you are left to wonder about the horrors of the unknown. Most of the characters are likable and you can feel sympathy for their plight. They don't fight and bicker constantly but spend most of their time trying to figure things out and survive. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and think anyone who prefers good writing to gore will also enjoy it.