greenberg-paulf

Let's get some background out of the way first... I hate reading reviews.

I despise writing reviews, even more.

....that being said....

I.went into this movie with high expectations, mainly because of the trailer and premise. I mean, come on... how often do you see a retirement community rising up against the local young, and in such a violent manner, at that?

Of course it isn't perfect. Mistakes in plot handling and screenwriting pop up more often than one might like... but that's forgivable, given the outcome and the REAL brains and machinations behind the protagonists' ultimate survival.

It bears being said that I was constantly yelling at the screen, hoping for something to happen EVENTUALLY to a character I started hating, and was rewarded EVENTUALLY.

It's because of that, that I am pushed to give an overly positive review. Some movies have good acting, but terrible plot choices and outcomes that often make absolutely no sense. Other movies have a great premise to work from, but can't pull it together organically because of either the acting, directing, or both.

Is it Oscar-worthy? No.

Is it worth the watch and/or purchase? Definitely.

What makes it worthy? Good acting, a surprisingly entertaining premise, and the results most viewers are looking for, even if they're a bit late.

I can't post the review until I type up at least 150 characters, so I will do the work that should've been done when naming the movie...

Can·ni·bal noun

• an animal that feeds on flesh of its own species.

I deduct one star retroactively, since you can't give 0 stars.

The concept behind the Pulse movies could've been made into something amazing, or even legendary, with the right touch. Sadly, they all fall short of the starting line. I'm happy they never made any sequels to the Japanese version from 2001. Not every movie warrants a sequel, let alone a trilogy (or, if you're like Paul W. S. Anderson and batsh** crazy about making Resident Evil movies).

The story.is a bizarre mish-mash of randomized events. Whoever taught them how to give exposition effectively should be shot repeatedly with a paintball gun until sufficiently bruised all over. So much of the movie is displayed just for the sake of existing in that particular world, not because it's actually organic to the underlying plot (of which, could be generously touted as abysmal).

If that's not bad enough, let's switch to the visual effects in a nutshell: High School-failing AV project for an extracurricular activity. The ridiculous green screen effects shown all throughout the movie completely pull you out of the immersion (if you were even a little immersed in the movie at ALL, anyway...).

I would like to be refunded the time used to watch this movie. I got more of a mental workout writing up this review.