The Belko Experiment

The one thing you can say, is it promises to be gritty, and it is, it is quite literally a bloodbath, watching people put under immense pressure, turning from reasonable individuals, into crazed killers when pushed to extremes.

I loved the beginning, I thought it was so imaginative, and offering so much scope for different directions. That scope was perhaps the downfall, it could have gone anywhere, and just descends into something a little stupid. I loved the tribal instinct, seeing people split and turn, that was well played out, but ultimately it just went a bit stupid.

I would actually recommend it, as on the whole it is worth seeing. 6/10

Eighty American workers in Bogota get locked inside their office building and an announcement over the intercom gives them half an hour to kill any two of the employees. When they don't comply, the rules are amped up, and an American Battle Royale (down to the 'collars') ensues.

The Belko Experiment managed to accomplish the difficult feat of never being boring, not even for a minute. It takes almost no time getting going, and at any given moment it is either action packed, or taking a break from action and descending into dark humour. Both of these were well-executed, with one particularly memorable action piece (the end of round 2, so pretty), and a spattering of interesting side characters, a lot of them hilarious in either attitude or demeanor. With that, it managed to entertain throughout, making it worth seeing.

However, where it fails is originality. The Battle Royale formula has been done time and time again, and here we get the straightest form of it, with zero deviation from the norm and zero unique perspective. Where a movie like Circle tries to infuse some kind of basic examinations of social themes, here there is no higher level to the killings. And for this, the movie never once surprises with a thought or an event. The characters are just shells of people; the bad guys are caricatures of evil, the protagonists of good. There is never ambiguity of character, in a movie where so much moral ambiguity should be present due to the situation. So from minute one you know exactly who will be a villain and who will be a hero, and the end game is obvious from the start. It's a waiting game for the movie to arrive where you know it is going, which makes it very unsatisfying once the action is over.

Stuffed with characters you just don't give a damn about, and smearing the office floor with blood & corpses that keep on piling as plot progresses, The Belko Experiment teases with an interesting idea but it's executed in such an uninteresting fashion that it finishes as yet another forgettable example of its kind.

The Belko Experiment unfolds in a remote office building where all its employees find themselves trapped in the edifice once day and are forced to participate in a sadistic game of "kill or be killed" by an unknown voice on the company's intercom, eventually realising it to be a social experiment they never signed up for.

Written by James Gunn & directed by Greg McLean, the film sets its premise quickly, introducing its relevant characters in a hurried manner, and once bodies begin to go down, it never stops until the very end. The concept, although unoriginal, isn't entirely terrible but its translation on the film canvas is, for nothing about it stands out.

Characters are mere caricatures, a romantic subplot is unnecessarily added, dialogues are terrible, and although it doesn't hold back on violence & gore, it doesn't leave much of an impression in the end, for neither the plot nor the characters are compelling. Performances aren't any good either as the cast has nothing in script to build their work upon.

On an overall scale, The Belko Experiment is an incompetently directed, shoddily written & poorly performed horror, and is never for once intriguing. It is one of those movies that are forgotten the moment they end, and sitting through it isn't a breeze either. Dull, uninspiring & laughable, it is a failed experiment that brings nothing new to the table but may still fascinate those who don't mind the lack of a sturdy plot as long as they get their required dose of on-screen barbarity.

The strongest part of this film is its premise. It's really fantastic. There is so much possibility for this fun, satirical look at what people will do in certain situations. The film is really filled to the brim with brilliant possibilities. But for the most part, they remain just possibilities. I do think this is a really good script. However, I don't think the execution of this screenplay was as good as if could've been. The characters making decisions and breaking off into groups could have been fascinating and riveting, but it didn't reach the level it should have. The actual streaks of killing could have been so cool to watch, but it comes off as kind of dull. Where the action could have been really inventive and insane, in a Kingsman: The Secret Service kind of way, it ends up being rather rudimentary and bland. There isn't nearly as much electricity or excitement in this film as it deserved to have...

You know the story. Heads explode, people are stabbed, sliced, and shot. I'd rather see 'Final Destination' type creativity with this sub- genre.

It's decent enough to watch. Nothing to rush out and see right away, though.

Gore without creativity no longer amuses me. It once did. But I'm a grow ass man, now.

Please hit the "this review was not helpful" button. I love that. I try to give an honest opinion about a film and people are going to hate on it. It is what it is. But, this movie was mediocre at best.