Review - [REC]3 Genesis

In 2007 the world was presented with the spine-shatteringly terrifying [REC] from Spanish directors Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza. {REC} was (and still is) easily one of the most terrifying films to be released during the new millennium. After what seemed to be an impossible film to top, in 2009 the duo returned with [REC] ₂, which picked up right where the original left off. [REC] ₂ proved that repeating your successes is possible as long as you stick to what you know while keeping things fresh.

Jump to today, 2012, and the world has been delivered yet another installment in the [REC] saga. This time Plaza is alone at the helm, and things are presented in an all new perspective…namely third-person. [REC]₃ Genesis has been one of my top “must see” films of 2012 since its first announcements in early 2010. Could they do it again? Could they repeat the success of [REC] and knock it out of the park? At first, the idea of a third-person [REC] film sounds like having an episode of The Voice with interpretive dance. It just seems awkward and not at all what the franchise is about. And, unfortunately, that’s pretty much true where [REC]₃ is concerned.[1]

The film centers on the extravagant wedding of groom Koldo (Diego Martin) and the amazingly stunning bride Clara (Leticia Dolera). [REC]₃ Genesis begins in our beloved first-person format as Koldo’s cousin, Adrián (Alex Monner) films the more intimate family moments during the wedding. Adrián proves to be a fairly incompetent camera man as the camera shakes your optical senses to oblivion at every turn…and none of the action has even taken place at this point. Also filming the event is professional wedding photographer Atun (Borla González Santaolalla), a porculent and pretentious cameraman who takes every opportunity to verbally abuse Adrián about his filmmaking skills. In an immediate twist that presents a fresh new approach to the franchise, Atun brings out the steadycam for his HD camera to provide some “cinema verite” to the wedding documentary. The film’s first act shifts between the shaky cam of Adrián and Atun’s “cinema verite”. This new addition feels rather fresh and interesting for the time that it is used. However, early into the proceedings of the day, Koldo and Adrián come across their uncle who was bitten by a dog at his work as a veterinarian. For those familiar with the [REC] storyline, this is clearly a nod to the dog from the first [REC] who was believed to have had “rabies”. As was expected, things take a turn for the worse after Koldo’s uncle succumbs to his “rabies” bite and falls from a balcony during the wedding’s reception party. Oh…and he’s a zombie.  The old man sends the room into a fit of panic and chomps away at his loved ones, causing a massive outbreak in a matter of seconds. During the commotion of the panic, Koldo and Clara are dragged in different directions by their family members, and must find a way to reunite while staying alive. Koldo runs into the kitchen with Atun and Adrián (who continues to film). Koldo, full of rage, takes the camera from Adrián and smashes it to the ground. The scene cuts to a third-person shot of the camera’s record light dying. The title splashes onto the screen and the film truly begins. Sadly, there is where [REC] seems to end.

The rest of the film’s plot is fairly simple: Koldo and Clara must beat the odds to try and reunite with one another and prove that love conquers all, including zombie hordes. Now this in no way deters from the film at all. Both [REC] and [REC]₂ had fairly linear and simple stories and worked extremely well. Also, the idea to bring the franchise into the vast world of third-person is a relatively large step at first, but it becomes easier to digest as the film progresses. Where there were once deafening silences before an unrelenting wave of screams and terror, there is now a swelling film score in an attempt to increase the feeling of suspense once the conga-line of infected pop on screen. Sadly this is a pretty weak attempt as the music does little more than create more noise during a jump scare (and there are tons of them).

Oddly, taking away the first-person perspective did not prove to be as big of a letdown as one might expect. In fact, what truly makes [REC]₃ disappointing is something else that was taken away: the tone. What made the two previous films such rampant successes was the painfully tense feeling of dread they oozed throughout. Just as the original filmmaking duo did to the found footage genre with the first two films, Plaza alone takes tension and makes it his bitch by adding an incredibly dark sense of humor throughout [REC]₃. To be sure there are many moments created with the implicit intention of making you cheer in the cinema (chainsaw to the face, anyone?). Unfortunately, that was never the point of [REC], nor will it ever be, in my opinion.

All-in-all, [REC]₃ is by no means a bad film, it’s just a fairly generic zombie flick and certainly not a [REC] film at heart. The film is a fantastic romp for gore hounds and fans of beautiful women doing awesome things[2]. It’s just unfortunate that for fans of [REC] the film translates as a misguided experiment with many missed opportunities (I’m looking at you “cinema verite”).

Posted by contributor Chandler Bullock

Tags: , Found Footage, REC 3