Customer Reviews

Infestation

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I was fortunate enough to attend the US premiere of Infestation, a nifty science fiction story with just the right amount of comedy, terrific performances by stars new and old, and snappy dialogue. Although it was made on what amounts to a "shoestring" (less than $5 million), you'd never know it from the great cinematography (by Thomas Ackerman of Beetle Juice and Anchorman fame), silky (no pun intended) special effects (from newcomer/phenom Efram Potelle), and a crisp, fast-moving script (by director Kyle Rankin).

Chris Marquette (as main character, Cooper) is by turns endearing and heroic. At times seeming to channel Shia Labeouf (without the "no, no, no, no, no's"), he comes across as both real and genuinely charming, and his transformation from phone rep (today's factory worker) to an against-all-odds hero holds the center of the movie. Ray Wise gets off some great one liners as his dad, Ethan, and Dale Simonton is memorable as a boss who's up to his ears with telemarketing slackers. (Oddly and disappointingly, Simonton's character simply disappears after a dramatic entrance.)

Of course, Infestation isn't perfect. The underlying story has "echoes" from quite a few other films, and sometimes it's hard to distinguish between an "homage" and a copy. For example, there's more than a bit of Alien (and Aliens) in the mix, both in terms of visual imagery and the presentation and organization of the "things" doing the infesting. Yet, Infestation comes across as a charming spoof that incorporates notions from a variety of science fiction films in a playful and knowing nod to serious stuff that's come before it. In addition, the groups' journey from the city to the scene of their final encounter wasn't as suspenseful as it should have been. If it had a bit more of the out-of-control sense of danger in Shaun of the Dead, I think it would have been a better film for it.

I can't review this movie without a nod to the ending. Of all the ways Infestation could have, shall we say, landed, the final scene -- which I won't give away -- is pretty damn perfect. I'll just let you experience it.

A low budget, B-movie blast that ends up being a surprisingly good modern monster movie, Infestation is plenty enjoyable. Chris Marquette (Freddy VS Jason, The Girl Next Door) stars as Cooper, a slacker office drone, who becomes an unlikely hero when mutant alien bugs invade and begin to kill and cocoon everything and everyone in sight. Eventually, Cooper teams up with a handful of survivors (including hottie Brooke Nevin) as they fight off the hordes of giant bugs, with a good amount of tongue in cheek humor filling everything out in between. For a low budget flick, Infestation boasts some pretty good special effects work, and with genre stalwart Ray Wise along for the ride as Cooper's militant father, what's not to like here? All in all, Infestation is definitely something that is worth your time and attention.

This blu ray is a all region blu ray so it's ok to play on a blu ray player anywhere in the world. I can't understand why they didn't put this one out here in the states though because this is alot of fun. The story concerns people waking up and they are cacooned by big bugs and they must fight to survive. The film uses both effective cgi ( computer generated images) and old fashioned style electronically worked bugs , remember ET even used this and it's often better than cgi in some cases. The cgi here is loads above what other low budget b movie sci fi flicks often are stuck with. They aren't a level but mostly they are close! the acting is fine and has the excellent ray wise leading off as the frustrated father of a slacker son. The son is the stories hero which is a twist. The film jumps right into the story and due to this we don't get to the predisaster characterizations of some films: I really didn't mind though as this one is alot of fun. On blu ray , (this one is made in the uk) the picture looks great with no dirt , scratches or softness that older catalog movies can have. However some extra features may not come through because they are region b, which is why I want a all region blu ray player! It's just a romp in some ways and it does have a few extra features. I love b movies and this is close to a A movie in some ways , but like all of these types of movies the regular critic (non b movie lover, might pick this apart in some ways) still this one seems higher budget than it is! unlike lets say some scy fy movies you might enjoy but still effects wise are way behind this. So grab this one if you love bugs on loose movies or even fun ones like "them" (1950's) "mars attacks" or "night of the lepus" ,this is worth owning on blu ray. Even though the ending wasn't my cup of tea it didn't spoil the fun I had watching this film which takes place in colorado but was filmed overseas somewhere.

Surprisingly effective giant bug movie with good effects and a wry sense of humor. Christopher Marquette makes good work of his role as the geeky antihero while Ray Wise is perfect as his military fanatic father. The low budget thriller doesn't look cheap and has a great musical score. I haven't decided about the ending but it's admittedly courageous.
All in all a pleasant surprise.

THIS IS JUST A ALL AROUND FUN MOVIE FROM START TO FINISH.THE COVER SAYS IT ALL, JUST LOOK AT IT BEFORE YOU GIVE THIS FLIK A BAD REVIEW. COMEDY,ACTION,GOOD ACTING,A STORY,GOOD EFFECTS,SOME HORROR,AND GOOP,TO ME MAKES FOR JUST A FUN MOVIE TO WATCH.

Arguably the best creature feature since Tremors Attack Pack (Tremors/ Tremors 2 - Aftershocks/ Tremors 3 - Back to Perfection/ Tremors 4 - The Legend Begins). Other than a bit of gratuitous nudity it should have been rated PG-13. This is just plain fun . Giant Bugs that unlike most recent SyFy fare don't make you cringe at their execution.Another throw back to the days of monsters that weren't slashers disguised as creatures. Highly recommended for genre fans!Bring on the sequels!

Infestation (Kyle Rankin, 2009)

The newest film from Rankin (The Battle of Shaker Heights) would really, really be a bad movie if it didn't come off as a spoof of Sci-Fi Channel Original Movies. That saves it, for the most part, but much of the time I was trying to figure out whether it was meant as a spoof or whether it was actually one of those movies that's just so abominably bad that it ends up with a veneer of greatness because of its incredible ineptitude. Either interpretation is possible. One way or the other, it's not nearly as awful as the usual Sci-Fi (oh, excuse me, Syfy) Channel dreck, and as such you may consider it worth your time.

Cooper (Race to Witch Mountain's Chris Marquette) is a layabout whose insane father (Twin Peaks' Ray Wise) has gotten him a job at what seems to be a telemarketing firm. That, of course, is not going to last long. As he is called inot his boss' office to get fired, however, a loud, high-pitched whine overcomes them both. When Cooper comes to, he's encased in webs. He digs his way out and finds himself confronted with a whole office in webs, and what looks like a very large rhinoceros beetle threatening him. He starts digging out other people, hoping someone will have an explanation (or a way to stop the bugs), but it seems everyone he gets his hands on is even more lackadaisical than he is. Still, they set off for Cooper's father's survivalist mansion in the mountains, hoping the old man will have some ideas.

Infestation walks a very, very thin line between stupid and funny. It never quite manages to stay on one side or the other, as the best movies of this type do, but there's enough of both to satisfy most every taste, as well as some gratuitous nudity, a dash of violence, and some competent special effects. Overall... not horrible. Worth killing a few hours with. ** ½

Giant insectoids invade Earth, wrapping the populace in cocoons. A small band of survivors must try to repel the onslaught. This movie is sort of SHAUN OF THE DEAD w/ bugs instead of zombies, and far less humour. The critters are well-realized, but the story seems rather rushed, especially toward the end. Still, it's not a bad attempt at sci-fi / monster comedy...

I was realy supprised when I saw this in my local free lending library not that they don't have heaps to borrow its just that it was in the post from Amazon and I could have seen it before outlaying the hard earned. To my supprise this was a great little movie a heck of a lot better than some of the big budget crud thats come out of late. I won't spoil the fun but for under $10 you can pass an hour and a half give or take a few mins. without asking yourself why did you waste that time. I won't give anything away but if you liked 8 Legged Freaks then you will love this.
Al Watts

I didn't have so much fun in a long time. The movie is not perfect. The scene where the guy get's bitten in the leg for example. And the problem there was that he walked just fine ''on the next day''. But it shouldn't have happened. He like everybody else forgot that he should walk slow. But that's the only thing. The special effects are outstanding. The only thing I didn't like was the final explosion. The flames looked very cheap. And bugs were looking very great. The main actors are very cool. The story is great. And the point is not to go deep into how it all happened but as what will happen now and then. How to survive it. And that actually was very smart. I loved the humor and there were no such movie about bugs, that was so much fun since ''Tremors''. You must checkout these movies. And for the final mark, all the good movies seem very short.