End Of The Line (2007)

Written and directed by Maurice Devereaux, this impressive Canadian horror takes a lot of unoriginal ideas and makes them into something pretty interesting and highly entertaining. I'm not going to say that it feels completely fresh and new because it doesn't, but I will say that it avoids feeling so familiar as to breed any contempt.

Ilona Elkin plays a nurse named Karen who ends a hellish shift with no small amount of relief and sets off on her journey home. While waiting in the subway she is pestered by one major creep (Patrick Wilcock) before being saved by a young man named Mike (Nicolas Wright), who pretends that they're friends and keeps her company for a while. When the train arrives, Karen gets on and thinks that she is now about to get home soon. Wrong. The train stops after a very short while, leaving the passengers stuck there, in a tunnel. Things seem bad, but they get a hell of a lot worse when a group of religious zealots all get a message from their leader that orders them to start killing people as the apocalypse begins. Karen, Mike and other passengers on the train have to get to safety while figuring out just what is going on with the world outwith the subway. IS it the apocalypse or have they just been very unlucky?

The dangers of a subway system at night and the horror that can come from cult members happy to blindly follow orders as they believe themselves to be in the right, these are the two main elements that weave together quite nicely to make up End Of The Line. There are some other ingredients, and some perfectly executed jump scares in the first few scenes, but the main body of the film is taken up with subterranean terror caused by those intent on delivering souls to god as they prepare for an apocalypse.

The writing and direction from Devereaux are fine. This is his fourth movie and, from a brief scan through his resume, he appears to have improved slightly with each outing. There are many moments in which the low budget is pretty obvious, but there are just as many moments that do much better than expected with the limited money and resources available.

Where things fall down slightly is the acting department. Ilona Elkin and Nicolas Wright are likable enough in the main roles, but they're not the most naturalistic performers. Neither are Emily Shelton, Neil Napier, Tim Rozon or Nina Fillis. Patrick Wilcock isn't much better, but he gets a role that allows for a more over the top style and his character at least looks as if he's relishing every opportunity that the horrible situation affords him.

To sum it up then, there's an interesting and fun central premise, a decent amount of blood splattered across the screen and some moments that really manage to get the cloying and dark atmosphere right. Which certainly means that this is worth seeing if you're a horror movie fan.

End Of The Line is showing at The Filmhouse today as part of the run up to the 20th Dead By Dawn so get your tickets here - http://www.filmhousecinema.com/showing/end-of-the-line/ - and enjoy it on the big screen.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/End-Line-Ilona-Elkin/dp/B001T46TAQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1359152638&sr=1-3&keywords=end+of+the+line

More EIFF 2012.

I am trying to be prepared this year, trying to not let this blog get covered and dust and a thin sheen of neglect while I busy myself with the big event in my movie calendar, the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

As this post is being written ahead of time I have no idea just how EIFF 2012 will pan out for me this year but I know that, as I have done for the past two years, I will do my best to see as many movies as possible and to get the reviews up on Flickfeast ASAP. It's a win-win situation for everyone involved. I get to see LOTS of movies for free, the website gets some extra traffic (hopefully) and those involved with the festival get added exposure from us. Hey, we may be a small fish in a big pond but we keep swimming.

It's all too easy to fall in love with a movie or two and to be swept along with the celebrities and the premieres but the main thing to remember is also the main thing that's easiest to forget - the festival works because of so many people making a concerted effort at every level. Those making the films, those selecting the films, those showing the films, those spreading the word on the films, etc, etc. Every year I remember to thank the wonderful staff at The Filmhouse and Cameo cinema who put up with the crowds and the unsociable hours every festival and this year will be no different.

Everyone who knows me knows that when I go to the cinema I like to get "a bit of bang for my buck", as I often put it, but I also do my damnedest to remind people that the smaller cinemas are often the places to go to see something that you just won't get at your local multiplex. The fact that they're often staffed by people with a genuine love of cinema is a huge bonus. Supporting your local cinema really does show them that they're doing the right thing and that not everyone and their uncle wants to rush along to see Harry Potter And The Twilight Of The Transformers (in RealD 3D with smell-o-vision).

Do I go along to these smaller cinemas as often as I should? No, no I don't. But when I do go along I never resent handing my money over (especially at my annual horror overdose that goes by the name of Dead By Dawn) and I always speak highly of these Edinburgh institutions when anyone asks me about them. I hope you have somewhere similiar in your local area. And I really hope that you, even just occasionally, pop along and spend some of your hard earned cash there.