Colin

For anyone who has ever wondered, thought or perhaps even dreamed what it would be like to die and return as a member of the undead, this movie is for you. Colin is an extraordinary feat in the world of micro budget film making. Not only wrapping the film up with a 75 pound budget ( it was filmed in England ) as director Marc Price has claimed,but bringing us a zombie film structured like no other I have seen .Very cleverly done and well executed, Colin is disturbingly realistic with it's outlook of a young man's deterioration of both his body and soul.

Without an establishment shot, the film begins with a door opening , an injured young man enters. Placing the weapon of choice, a hammer down to attend to the wound on his arm.Like an episode of C.S.I. we see the the inner workings of Colin's blood cells as they are transforming? As this isn't enough he is then attacked by a zombie in the safety of his own kitchen. Reaching for the utensil drawer for some kind of a weapon , Colin pulls out a wooden spoon and raps the zombie over the head with it until the spoon breaks. Finding a knife, he stabs the zombie's head repeatedly, this little scene reminded me of the famous shower scene from Psycho with it's quick editing techniques not nearly as complicated of course but very well done.

Colin's transformation into the undead is handled with the use of strange camera angles and effects such as camera tilts and shots from behind glass objects. Sound is also used to great effect, much of it reminded me of man made noises not unlike that of Alan Splet's work in David Lynch's Eraserhead. Making his way outside, shuffling through the city streets, we can see that the undead have taken over most of the streets. One impressive special effect is shown as a man trying to escape the zombies through an open window, is pulled back in by a horde of of the undead, bending his legs in the most unnatural of ways. At one time Colin stops to to pick up a child's building blocks, an oversize lego, they fall from his hand, losing the motor skills he once had acquired but have now lost. One block falls into a sewer grate, like his life , it too is falling apart and literally going to Hell.

We experience the sights and sounds of one person's journey from life to death to the undead. We see Colin's first taste of flesh, as he rips into an injured man's ear and pulls the man's MP3 player out along with it. Colin looks puzzled as he seems to recognize the music he is hearing. Another time Colin is confused staring at a traffic sign, he recognizes the shape and symbol but at the same time looking very alien to him.

There is a very impressive and prolonged set piece, a group of people are under attack from the undead. It has a very realistic feel to it as there are no real weapons at hand, house hold items are the weapons being used here. Pots and pans,a cordless drill, and umbrellas are all used to create some unique splatter effects, again impressive for such a minuscule budget.This created a very claustrophobic situation and one that I can aspire in a zombie apocalyptic film.

Colin now being a zombie, has been targeted numerous times by a dwindling population of humans. One such time he was even abducted, a potato sack like bag placed over his head, another effective use of the camera was to show Colin's P.O.V. ( point of view ) the camera inside the sack with Colin. Tat, Colin's sister and friends have captured and tied Colin up in hopes of jarring his memory. Showing family pictures only brings animal growls and snarls from the undead sibling's mouth, Colin has become very animalistic. Finally his mother and sister realize that he is not coming back. In a very emotional and somber scene Tat ,a friend and mother are seen arguing, probably about Colin's fate, as he is locked inside stroking the window pane where his family stands on the other side of the glass. The emotional strings are tugged on us again as Colin's mother is shown covering the windows with newspapers, headlines of zombie outbreaks ETC.. are shown. Shutting his little contact with the outside world completely off now.

Escaping from his Mother's house, Colin soon finds the humans have now banded together to take control of the streets and the escalating zombie population. In a battle of survival, which resembles more of a street rumble with pipes, wrenches and sling shots being the weapon of choices. In a twist of irony, Colin is bashed to the head with a hammer( his weapon of choice )and is seen falling to the ground. A chaotic and powerful scene follows. The surviving humans must draw straws and the losers must round up the newly infected, they are then cornered and put to death by bludgeoning, a cruel twist of fate.
Colin who is still with us rises to his feet, looking a little worse for wear thanks to some decent make up effects courtesy of Michelle Webb.Stumbling back to the place where this terrible fate has taken place.

This is an extraordinary little film regardless of the budget.With it's innovative ideas and editing techniques used to give the film a more impressive budget. A realistic look is acheived by having actors  with previous experience mixed in with those actors with none.This is very cleverly done and well executed,but because of the camera's closeness it sometimes feels too tight and difficullt to comprehend the confusion caused by physical confrontations.

My Thoughts: This is the first that I have heard the name of Marc Price, but willing to bet it won't be the last. This young fella will certainly be making big budget features one day. The very least , he will be using his fine talents for editing.

My Rating; 4 Go Go Girls out of 5