Pontypool

Directed by: Bruce McDonald

Starring: Stephen McHattie, Lisa Houle, Georgina Reilly

Synopsis:

One deep winter morning however, the station begins to receive a series of strange and disturbing call ins from the townsfolk describing incidents of terrifying violence. The calls increase and it becomes clear that something extraordinary and terrifying is starting to happen in Pontypool. The team try to piece together what is happening from the increasingly terrified callers and other news stations, and it soon becomes clear that something is happening to people and that the are turning on each other in acts of extreme violence. But why?



Review:

Okay so it’s going to sound familiar already. Zombies is it? or Alien Body snatchers? Well… In the interests of not writing spoilers, I can’t really clear that up I’m afraid.

I am as I’ve already mentioned sometime a massive fan of both the Zombie and Alien invasion genres and although this film falls into a strange grey area between the two, it would do either one of the proud. And whats more, it adds a genuine originality to the scenario and characters. The beginning of the narrative, the building chaos in the town is all phoned in and commented on by the radio team. We only see it as they perceive it and it really works. Forcing an audience to use it’s imagination to paint an entire scene is a gamble, but when it pays off it can create moments of cinema history. I’m reminded of the scene in Spielberg’s close encounters where the air traffic control guys are on the radio to two pilots who see a UFO. The script and acting are so good that you can “see” the planes the clouds, the alien craft. Without actually seeing them. Well it’s similar here for the first third of the film while the crisis outside the studio office builds.

As already mentioned the actors do a brilliant job of bringing the quirky oddball smalltown types to life. They are all larger than life, granted but seem all the more real for it. Bruce McDonald’s direction is tight and although much of the film is quite static stuff in the sound booth and the production suite the skill is in never allowing this stuff to become dull or repetitive. The violence and shock of an attack by affected townsfolk is a real eye opener, and is also skilfully handled.

The whole thing has a very Art house feel visually. It’s possible to see McDonald trying to develop and evolve things, to bring new angles to the genre and by and large it really works. It impresses on that score in the same way that ‘Signal’ did. And while I’m thinking about it, Stephen King’s ‘Cell’ (A Novel at the moment, hopefully someone will film it one day, please please please).

Put to the back of your mind the obvious budget preserving factor of confining the majority of your shoot to a single building and instead be impressed by the depth and versatility of the shooting which creatively uses every available inch to bring this fascinating story to life. It’s a low budget feature which rarely if ever seems cheap.

In the midst of the razor sharp scripting however there are a few regrettable moments.

The character of Doctor Mendez, who makes an appearance in the second act is charming and very watchable but is lumbered with some very clunky plot exposition to deliver and it’s a shame because it gives the last part a slightly hurried feeling which it shouldn’t have had. I suspect that there were some hasty rewrites to reassure people who felt the audience may have had trouble keeping up, and I feel it was unnecessary.

Verdict:

Pontypool is a really neat addition to the genre in my opinion. A totally original slant on a genre which is increasingly difficult to trailblaze in, and one which kept me thinking for a good long while after I left the screening room. Enjoyable.

7 out of 10 (Sulaco)

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