Recently remade as the inconsistent Quarantine, we go back to the source with 2007’s Spanish-made [REC]. Both films feature identical stories. [REC] presents a TV news team that follows a fire crew. Reporter Angela Vidal (Manuela Velasco) and cameraman Pablo (Pablo Rosso) concentrate on firefighters Manu (Ferran Terraza) and Alex (David Vert).

After a slow night, they finally get a call for a medical emergency in an apartment building. A Mrs. Izquierdo (Martha Carbonell) has been acting erratically, and her oddness takes a dark turn when she chomps on a cop. This sets a lot of freaky events into play, and the folks in the building end up locked inside by the authorities. We follow the terror that follows as plenty of mayhem ensues.

If you compare that synopses to my write-up of Quarantine, you’ll see they’re virtually the same. That’s because the two movies are virtually identical. Oh, the American version adds a bit more character development; for instance, we get to know the firefighters better. Nonetheless, eliminate the language differences and you’ll essentially have the same movie.

Since I watched Quarantine first, this factor had a negative impact on my enjoyment of [REC]. After all, it’s only been about five months since I watched the remake, so I remembered it well. If I’d waited a few years, my memories might’ve faded enough to allow [REC] to seem fresh, but after a mere five months, I experienced a whole lot of déjà vu.

Which certainly isn’t the fault of those who made [REC]. Indeed, if I’d watched them in the order of their creation/theatrical release, Quarantine would’ve been the redundant one. Obviously the American filmmakers took the original material and essentially just copied it. Yes, they changed some elements, but the fact remains that they didn’t exactly reinvent that particular wheel.

Perhaps this means my comments about Quarantine should apply here. I enjoyed the remake more than the original because of the surprise factor. Like most horror movies, [REC] requires a certain level of shock to work. When you know where the scares will occur, the film loses a lot of its strength.

And since both movies used identical fright tactics – all at virtually the same moments – I was never caught off-guard by [REC]. Again, this isn’t the fault of the [REC] filmmakers; they invented the thing!

But it does mean that the positives I took from Quarantine should also apply to [REC] - if I’d seen it first. I find it hard to judge the original film due to this lack of surprise, but I’m sure it works just as well – if not better – than the remake.

Neither gives us anything particularly unique in the world of zombie flicks. The “on the fly”/semi-real time photography gives the material a moderate spin, though that technique is getting old. I liked it in Cloverfield and think it can work, but it’s becoming a case of diminishing returns; it’s no longer especially creative, and the flaws that come with the format seem more obvious.

One notable problem for some: motion sickness. Though both are handheld, I think [REC] seems even jerkier than Quarantine. While I’m susceptible to motion sickness on the big screen, I’m usually fine at home. However, [REC] gave me a bit of a headache, so if motion sickness is a concern for you, beware.

Objectively, [REC] does offer a pretty good horror experience. The film plays in a reasonably real way, as the actors fill their roles well and keep us in the moment. The super-jerky camerawork becomes a distraction; even in these circumstances, shouldn’t a professional cameraman have better control? Nonetheless, the techniques add some urgency to matters and draw us into the material.

If you like horror flicks and never saw Quarantine, then [REC] is definitely worth a look. If you did already view the remake, though, you probably won’t get much from the original. The two movies are just too similar for both to become enjoyable.

[REC] appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1; the image has been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. Given the nature of the production, I didn’t expect great visuals, but even so, the transfer disappointed.

Sharpness was a definite issue. Close-ups looked reasonably concise, though even those images could be pixelated and blocky. Wider shots looked worse, as they suffered from softness and messiness. Notable edge enhancement appeared at times, and the movie suffered from some jagged edges. No source flaws occurred, though the film took on a grainy appearance due to the filming conditions.

Colors were lackluster, though they weren’t bad given the shooting circumstances. The movie took on a dull brown tone much of the time, and that was an artifact of the video shots and the bland apartment complex setting. The DVD didn’t have many opportunities to demonstrate different hues, so they remained ordinary.

Blacks were also mediocre. Those elements appeared somewhat brown and flat. Shadows were erratic and usually seemed somewhat dense and thick. Again, much of this reflected the shooting conditions, so some of the concerns were inevitable. Nonetheless, the movie remained unattractive and deserved only a “C-“.

Though the DVD also includes a dubbed English version, I went with the film’s original Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. It seemed acceptable for this material. Logically the audio should’ve remained essentially monaural since it’s supposed to come from the source camera. However, as was the case with Quarantine and Cloverfield, the filmmakers decided to take moderate auditory liberties and open up the soundfield.

At least a little, that is. The [REC] soundscape didn’t go nuts in its use of the side and rear speakers. Most of the audio focused on general ambience; the apartment complex setting added a layer of creepiness throughout the film. Some action sequences brought out more prominent sounds, but these remained fairly subdued. There’s not a showy sequence to be found here, and that’s probably the way it should be.

Audio quality seemed good. Speech was natural and concise, and effects showed acceptable range. They weren’t terribly powerful, but again, that makes sense, as really slam-bang effects could feel unnatural. The film lacked music of any sort. This soundtrack was good enough for a “B-“.

By the way, I did occasionally sample the English dub and it left me unimpressed. The lines didn’t match the mouth movements, and the voices didn’t seem right for the parts. I think the original Spanish audio is definitely the way to go.

Don’t expect much in terms of extras. We find a featurette simply called [REC]: Making Of. It runs 18 minutes, 28 seconds and provides comments from directors Paco Plaza and Jaume Balaguero, director of photography/actor Pablo Rosso, sound director Javier Mas, and actor Manuela Velasco. We learn about the project’s origins and story, its structure and filming techniques, sets, cast and performances, makeup effects and technical issues.

The best parts of the featurette come from the behind the scenes footage. We get some good glimpses of the shoot here, and we also find a brief deleted scene as well. The information from the various filmmakers adds some decent material as well, but we don’t learn a ton of good facts. Still, the program offers enough useful tidbits to deserve a look.

A few ads open the disc. We get clips for Blu-ray Disc, Blood: The Last Vampire, and Messengers 2: The Scarecrow. These also appear in the Previews area along with promos for Quarantine, The Informers, The Grudge 3, Boogeyman 3, The Devil’s Tomb, The Fifth Commandment, The Art of War III: Retribution, Assassination of a High School President, Vinyan and Fearnet.com. No trailer for [REC] appears here.

While it doesn’t create a tremendously original and creative horror effort, [REC] does provide a reasonable amount of intrigue and good scares. It’s at least above average for its genre. The DVD offers problematic visuals as well as decent audio and insubstantial extras. Nothing about this disc impresses me, but the movie’s worth a look for horror fans – especially those who didn’t already see Quarantine, a nearly literal remake.