The “found footage” realm of Horror definitely has its ups and downs. Spanish director Paco Plaza’s [REC] film series has been assuredly one of the highlights of the genre, and I was quite anxious to see what he had in store with this third installment, [REC] 3: Genesis. What followed was definitely unexpected but a welcome change of pace.
The setting for the film is the wedding of Koldo (Diego Martin) and Clara (Leticia Dolera), both gorgeous people who have invited their enormous extended families and friends to their joyous day. The traditional found footage premise is realized through a cousin and the hired cameraman for the wedding. These two not only have some great back and forth banter about how one should film, which is obviously a dig at how good most of these types of films end up looking, it also lends itself well to introducing the viewer to the entire family and really building the love and bond between Clara and Koldo.
Most of the first act is made up of these introductions, snippets of the wedding and the following reception. What often would seem like dead time before the gore hits is actually quite engaging and never feels like it’s dragging. What it does is set an incredibly bright mood for something terrible to come along and ruin and ruin it does.
Once the infection shows itself during the reception, it takes maybe five seconds before absolute chaos ensues as the zombie-esque creatures of the film series begin devouring any living thing they can find. Taking the setting into consideration, this adds a certain amount of weight to the situation, as all of these family members and friends were moments ago enjoying the party, and now they are feasting upon each other.
Amidst the chaos, Koldo and Clara are split apart, trying to reach safety however they can. This leads to the moment that every found footage movie has; questioning the guy filming why he is filming. The cousin gives the common answer that this needs to be filmed and people need to know. Unlike all of those other films where the characters accept that as an answer, Koldo takes it upon himself to destroy said camera, and in that moment the film immediately changes it’s viewpoint.
The visual shift becomes a welcome change of pace, which lends itself well to the way the rest of the film plays out. The film follows Koldo and Clara desperately trying to get back to one another, and it’s unbelievably captivating. It seems odd to praise the romance in a Horror film before any of the gore, but it’s the driving factor of the film and, unlike most zombie films where you can’t wait to see the protagonist’s meet their doom, you find yourself rooting for them to make it.
Don’t worry your pretty hearts, though, gore hounds, because there is indeed gore and plenty of it on display. Everything from gnashing teeth to a chainsaw find themselves tearing into bodies in glorious, stomach churning fashion.
Along with the visual change, the movie itself seems to take on a mood shift of its own. More so than being slow and brooding and genuinely horrifying like it’s two predecessors, [REC] 3 finds a sort of fun in its madness, feeling somewhat like a spiritual cousin to Sam Raimi’s much beloved Army of Darkness. That’s not to say that the film gets slapsticky in any way, it’s just the mood shifts from sheer terror to let’s kill some zombies and survive the night.
This doesn’t necessarily hurt the film, as I found it to be quite refreshing, but does pull it away from the truly scary nature and mood of the first two in the series. With that in mind, I would say that this can be watched completely stand alone if one has never seen the first two, as any real connections they have are loose. Technically, this installment is even meant to be a prequel, although moments within the film would make it seem as though it’s happening alongside the others.
This was Paco Plaza’s first time handling the directing duties by himself (he co-directed the first two), and I think he did an astounding job. To not only change the entire visual that your series is known for and at the same time craft an engaging and romantic story that has masses of Horror fans genuinely caring about the central characters is no small feat. Not to mention anytime one can make elements of the genre seem new or fresh is always a welcome treat.
What really makes the story work, though, is the superb acting of Dolera and Martin. They make the viewer truly believe in their love in a way that never comes off as fake and makes their desire to find each other all the more important. Dolera especially shines when, in one of my favorite moments of the whole film, decides to stop hiding and go find her man.
If you couldn’t tell by now, I loved [REC] 3: Genesis. While different in style than those that came before it, I feel it’s a welcome addition to the series and, honestly, the one that I feel I would watch more than any of them. It features a strong, believable cast, a rich setting, and a wonderful new visual style that feels like a breath of fresh air. The gore and horror finds a nice match with the clear visuals and couples with the darkly comedic moments quite nicely. An overall excellent film and I can’t wait for part 4!
– Matt Hardeman
