Residue

Reviewed by: Dare Devil Kid (DDK)

Rating: 1.5/5 stars

One of the most insipid, lackluster, and soporific horror films of all time - yes it's that bad. Right from the buildup, which was haphazardly presented to the progression of the story, which was monotonously dragged on with little or nothing really happening to the supposedly anticipated, big reveal in the climax, which ended up petering out like a damp squib - just nothing went right for this film.

While the cast tires their level best to elevate proceedings, the hackneyed writing by John Harrison and Alex Garcia Lopez's pretentious direction leave absolutely no scope for redemption.

I'm just about never the one to complain that a movie is 'too slow'. 4 hour silent Russian epic? Sign me up! But this movie got the better of me. I'm fine with slow if there's a purpose. Letting a mood or scene sink in... letting characters establish themselves... but in Residue there were loads of scenes where nothing happened and while it established a good mood/atmosphere early on... after a while it just felt like padding. Stylish and good looking, but padding nonetheless.

No surprise then that this is a pilot for a TV show. That leads me to think it's like one of those overwritten Stephen King novels that weighs in at 500+ pages when it really could have been a short story. As it is, since there is a mystery at the core of this setup it has me thinking Lost... do I really want to keep watching for some trumped up ending that won't satisfy?

Also, the characters. If it weren't a pilot then the main character would have been one of the three main ones here. As it is they're all spread thin and none of them engage. The cop doesn't do much of anything, the photographer just stares at her picture and types in her thoughts, her public relations boyfriend is the most proactive but even he doesn't get much to do.

I came away irritated... lacking good will to continue on with the series. I just expect more drawn out stylish nonsense with no real tale to tell.

I sat through all the 3 TV episodes on Netflix in one sitting over Easter. Being a Game of Thrones fan was enough to get me to watch it plus Mr Lopez always does good stuff like Utopia and Misfits. Thought it was beautifully shot and well cast - the story left you wondering a little what really went on - but its a pilot - so you'll either want more of it or not. Hoping they'll make more. Had me hooked. Bit spooky in places. Reminded me a little of blade runner at times, but not that far in the future. I'm always looking for good new stuff on Netflix and this one did the job. I'd watch this again or the next series if they make more. Right....whats next on netflix for me to watch?

Just wanted to to say to all those reviewers that keep saying things like 'It's ambiguous,' 'It feels like nothing was resolved,' and 'I'm no wiser at the end as to what the explanation was

• That's because this is a pilot!!! As the director says:

"The thing I had envisioned was quite a long story. The movie that I was pitching them was essentially the beginning of the mythology, and with success we would have the opportunity to do more, so television sounded really exciting to me, given how it has evolved over the past several years — the novelization of television. Also, many of the networks are really getting creatively engaged with genre material, which was not always true in the early 2000s and going back."

And:

"It's really only the beginning of the story, according to Walls. "'Residue' Season 1 is really an extended pilot and should be thought of that way," she said. "Netflix don't necessarily do the Amazon- style pilot season. But 'Residue' is really more in that model where these first three chapters are live before the existence of a full season."

So now you can all stop moaning about it and trying to be clever! And get to supporting it so the rest of the story is resolved - with a full series!

http://www.indiewire.com/article/how-to-sell-a-TV-show-to-netflix- 20150401

Overall the idea of this show is fantastic. People unknowingly developing supernatural abilities that cause disaster amongst the city, while a detective and journalist try to solve it is great. The only bad thing about this show is it is only 3 episodes in a single season. It is a total tease, the British always do this, they suck at television. That is why the It Crowd is only like four episodes a season. Learn how to do television seasons right you damn British! I mean the minimum for American television shows is at least eight episodes, some shows push for over twenty season which is freaking incredible. The fact that there are only three episodes in this entire first season is downright stupid. Overall I would give the show at least three more stars if they learned how to not tease the audience and at least did eight episodes per season.