The Terror Experiment Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.0

The Terror Experiment Blu-ray Movie Review

Terrifyingly awful.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 3, 2012

They'll label me a terrorist, but I'm a patriot.

The only act of terror in The Terror Experiment is subjecting audiences to such a poor motion picture. Director George Mendeluk's (The Kidnapping of the President) execution is fine -- he crafts the base narrative smoothly and efficiently, a real plus considering what he has to work with -- but the surrounding elements leave much to be desired. In essence, The Terror Experiment plays like a merging of two better films, one excellent (28 Days Later) and the other average (Quarantine). One might assume, then, that The Terror Experiment should reflect the best qualities of those pictures, but it doesn't. Sluggish pacing, no real rhythm, horrendous acting, and the inherent limitations of a small budget keep the film from ever gaining traction.

That'll read straight if you look in the mirror.

The Federal building in Lafayette, Louisiana falls under attack. The explosion releases a dangerous chemical through the ventilation system, a chemical that's heavier than air and that travels only downward, not upward, meaning the people below are likely lost and those above must fight for survival and exit the building without going downstairs. The chemical is an experimental military weapon meant to either enrage or pacify those exposed to it, the goal being enemy combatants slaughtering one another. The building is on lockdown, and the crazed survivors are on the hunt across the lower floors and in the stairwells in search of prey. Cale (Jason London) is a tech support specialist whose ex-wife and daughter have both been caught in the dead zone. He's safely upstairs with a small band of survivors, including one man who's all too familiar with the chemical. As the survivors panic, come to terms with their predicament, and attempt escape, they must fend off crazed coworkers and piece together the mystery before they lose six hours of reserve power and all hell really breaks loose.

For all its good intentions -- there's a decent plot, interesting thematic underpinnings, fair character dynamics -- The Terror Experiment fails to deliver the goods. Something's amiss in pretty much every scene, even if it's just a general sense of cheapness about the production. The film to its credit seems to stretch its every last dollars as far as they will go, including the employment of rather low-grade special effects that are at best a step above the average SyFy/Asylum picture. The film is very limited in scope, not a hindrance considering its story, but the lack of greater dynamics and superior characters means that the picture only closes in further and pushes the audience away. There's also an evident lack of energy and urgency, whether in action scenes, dialogue, setup, or downtime. There's a lot of mulling about and stretches where the plot doesn't advance very far. Even the opening minutes of plot setup that sees characters jump on and off elevators drags on for far too long and, at that point in the film, with no real hint as to why it's important to remember who's where. Worse, the characters are poorly developed from the outset, and every time the picture slows down in an effort to build them up, it only serves to clog the picture further.

Easily the worst thing about The Terror Experiment is the acting. One can't blame the cast for not really giving it a full-on effort, though. Development, as noted, is poor at worst and generic at best, even if one or two characters play around the periphery of "interesting." The script doesn't do any of the characters any favors, and audiences will best remember the characters on appearance alone. Even Judd Nelson absolutely phones in his effort, bringing no trace of life to his role. The poor characters and subpar acting carry over into the action scenes, which are slow and dull. The picture fails at creating a sense of chaos and confusion inside an enclosed structure (see The Divide for one of the finest moments of stairwell chaos ever captured on film). The actors, in turn, bring no sense of urgency or care to their roles; even the stresses of a father concerned over his missing daughter seem uninspired and certainly not from the heart. Worse, the action is often conveyed merely by violently shaking the camera rather than relying on the actors to do their parts in the supposed havoc. Director George Mendeluk does well in telling the story, not necessarily showing it, but then again, the film is packed with weaknesses that no director could likely overcome.

The Terror Experiment Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Terror Experiment's 1080p, 1.78:1-framed transfer reflects the film's budgetary constraints. The image satisfies on a basic level, but the lower-end HD video source appears glossy, flat, and lifeless. Fine detail is acceptable. Close-up shots reveal satisfying facial details such as five o'clock shadows, fine lines, and wrinkles. Clothing textures are solid, particularly evident early on in brighter scenes and before the chaos begins. There's adequate texture to the concrete blocks in the stairwell. Colors are even but relatively flat and uninspired. Flesh tones appear accurate, and black levels don't fare poorly. A little noise, moderate banding, and light aliasing are all evident throughout the movie. This is a working man's sort of transfer. It's nothing special, but it gets the job done.

The Terror Experiment Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Terror Experiment advertises a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack on the menu screen, but the disc outputs a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. It plays with a fair bit of energy, though not always where it counts. The surrounds are used consistently, particularly in any scene featuring chaos in the stairwells. The din of panicked bodies, enraged employees, and scared victims nicely fills the stage with adequate clarity and spacing. Music plays with fair accuracy and enjoys a moderate surround support element. Gunshots are disturbingly puny. Where the other moments of action enjoy good presence and volume, listeners will be challenged to even hear automatic weapons fire -- even in the enclosed stairwell -- let alone feel it. The track does find a fair bit of strength in a helicopter explosion. Dialogue is usually clear, accurate, and focused up the middle, but it gets a little mushy when forced to compete with surrounding elements. This track won't inspire its listeners or transport them to the hell that is the Lafayette Federal Building, but it's adequate for the film.

The Terror Experiment Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Terror Experiment contains only one special feature: an audio commentary with Executive Producer/Director George Mendeluk. Mendeluk discusses the film's plot, political overtones, digital effects, characters, shooting locales, narrative structure, the directing process, and the technical details of the shoot, amongst other things. He also often goes point-by-point over the plot as it plays out. This is a pretty insightful commentary. Mendeluk does a fine job of selling the movie. It's clear that the picture suffers not exclusively from his hand but largely from other elements that drag it down. This disc is worth a rental if only to enjoy this commentary.

The Terror Experiment Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Terror Experiment would-coulda-shoulda been better than this. The basics are in place for a decent Horror/Thriller picture, but the entire production feels cheap, uninspired, incomplete. The plot flows easily enough, butt the action is dull, character development is nil, the acting is atrocious, and the pacing is poor. There are any number of vastly superior pictures of this sort out there; this one is best enjoyed as a warmup to something better. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of The Terror Experiment features adequate video and audio. One supplement is included. Worth a rental for the commentary.