Bloodwork

Two College friends agree to take part in a pharmaceutical trial for a new anti histamine medication, unfortunately the testing trials have a shocking effect on the subjects.

It started so well, the first half an hour or so was really intriguing, offering up several chilling possibilities, you have no idea quite where they're going to take it.

It has a few surprises and a couple of laughs, it's one of those films that's worth checking out if you're at a loose end.

Sadly the direction they take it in, is disappointing, it's so repetitive and predictable, it could have been a real chiller, if they'd stayed within the possibilities of reality, it could have worked,

Eric Roberts is here, but blink and you'll miss him, he's good, but is given minutes of screen time.

5/10.

Super short & sweet w/ no spoilers.

I truly enjoyed the film. While the concept of "voluntary medical test gone wrong" is not a new plot, the story told is a fun trip. No need for a synopsis, as it's covered in other reviews, but even the sentence or two in IMDB is enough to get the gist of what you'll see. So...on to content.

Honestly, there are no glaring issues with the production and quality of work. While there are few things I would change (as a backseat driver), Bloodwork is solid. Direction, production (and post), acting, sound, editing, and cinematography are all professional quality, with some smaller name character actors on the list of participants. One comment I would note - and one I've NEVER made before deals with sound fx & musical score. It's good, but it could have been MORE! And by more, I mean quantity, not quality. So often, horror films use music and sound as the backdrop for intensity or mood, and while it was used in the film, it was used sparingly. I'm not sure if this was intentional, but the inclusion of more "eerie sounds" or mood-setting music score could easily have been utilized in more scenes. This is certainly not problematic, but would have increased my viewing engagement even more.

As with many horror movies, the viewer's gotta take scenarios with a grain of salt. If you look for plot holes or spend time saying "that would never happen," you will find plenty of examples in the film. IF, however, you just sit back, don't ask questions, and take what you're fed, it's a fun watch. I tire of reading reviews filled with this type of feedback, as EVERY movie has issues like this. But quite frankly, that's not what this type of film is about. The goal is to engage the viewer in the story, profile the characters in a way that invests the viewer, then take the viewer on a trip filled with whatever thematic elements are used...in this case, horror. So don't criticize holes or realistic aspects of the flick...'cause none of it is truly based in reality. Just sit back, get your popcorn & beverage, and enjoy. It's definitely worth the watch.

Quick notes on parental content:

• plenty of profanity
• plenty of intense and/or scary situations
• there are two sexual scenes, both of which show female breasts. There are also multiple scenes with shirtless male actors.
• no drug use, although pot is mentioned. Alcohol is used in one scene and visible in two scenes, as well as a cigarette or two. Qualified...there is drug use with respect to the trial drugs.
• a good deal of violent content, blood, fighting, and a little gore. I'm a gorehound, and LOVE movies filled with good ole nastiness, and while this film is not saturated with it, there are a few scenes that include gore as an element...which lent to the horror concept.

A fun watch. Don't believe the bad reviews that highlight the story holes and realistic errors. Just watch and enjoy.

If you are a horror/suspense fan, you'll like this (unless you expect every movie to have EVERYTHING,, budgets are budgets,, ya know).

College students sign up for this 2 week new allergy drug trial, only to find out the side effects are much more than they bargained for.

Just go watch it!

Being a trial patient for a new drug myself, I certainly could relate to the premise. Fortunately - for me! - things didn't get out of hand as it did for these poor guys - or not yet, that is!

The film starts off very realistic and well substantiated. They offer more than enough time for us to get to know and like the characters before the mayhem starts, so we can root for them. It is lighthearted at first, and fast-paced. I enjoyed the different characterizations. There's also an interesting reversal of attitude among the characters.

'Bloodwork' turns uncomfortable real quick and you might want to watch some of the scenes through parted fingers, knees up to the chin! Believe me, it gets under your skin. During the final act, things spin out of control at a rapid pace. There's also a few surprises in store. Be prepared, the film becomes rather brutal, gory and bloody.

The actors does an incredible job and I also found the script very good.

Would I watch it again? Yes.

How on Earth is this a solid effort? Seriously now, I love horror in its many forms but Bloodwork is cheap and acts the same too. The subject is overly used, the actors are OK, the logic in the film is missing, no scares, no tension, just a lot of mediocre moments that lead to a very weak ending.

Bloodwork is a combination of things you've seen a thousand times, trust me, a little bit of The Facility, Insanitarium and so many like those 2 that I'm just gonna stop here. If you are new into horror, maybe this will seem like an interesting thing to watch one lonely, rainy night, but for anyone else, either familiar or just looking for a good scare, it will present itself as a very big disappointment. I was seriously surprised as how bad it was, I waited and waited and at a certain point I did realize that this is all it has to offer.

Therefore I recommend you look elsewhere, no point into watching something that was made long before, not even at the same quality. Bloodwork is a ripoff that failed badly, showed some potential here and there but it didn't work out well. So sad I got fooled by all those positive reviews and quite a good rating too. Well, you live and learn.

Cheers!