Condemned

I've seen some ridiculously bad movies in the past (some were so bad that they got me pretty angry,) but this isn't one of them. I'm not saying it's good either though. First thing I'd like to mention: I hear a lot of people comparing this movie to 'REC' and its American remake 'Quarantine'. (One reviewer even went as far to say that it was almost as bad as 'The Sand'; a movie I felt was quite charming and at times admittedly nonsensical, but still good. I digress...) I feel 'Condemned' has more in common with David Cronenberg's deeply disturbing 1975 film, 'Shivers'; that and movies like 'The Driller Killer', 'Street Trash', and almost anything from Troma Entertainment. The special effects and makeup weren't bad, and I found the bizarre residents and their eventual changes to be amusing (albeit gross). Other than that, the lighting wasn't that great at times, characters, dialogue and scenes needed some more development, and there needed to be some explanation for some of the stuff that happened. If I could, I'd give this film a 5.5 out of 10. If you're easily squeamish, don't bother watching it. If not and you're into any of the movies I mentioned, you might enjoy seeing it just once.

This movie has a subtle message. Through the grimy pipes, spewing pus and cringing stomachs something stands out. It's not aloof or pretentious but still worthy. "Sapere Aude" says the crimson typeface splattered above the pee stained floor; naivety seeks the all knowing book. Words and thoughts of more than the gruesome torture of the mundane. The grimy existence of outcasts an appealing escape. Stories told through a network of interconnected pipes that echo with the ugliness shown behind closed doors. Teetering on the edge of insanity is the mind left to roam. Running only delays the inevitable. Isolation once sacred becomes helplessness anew. Is not entertainment without art?

I believe that Roger Ebert had it right. Evaluate the movie based on how well they made it fit the genre. As such, this one is okay. You need to see more than REC or Quarantine as progenitors. This one involved some New York type filmmakers/actors. They did a very good job on sets, costumes, lighting,etc. I don't look for total character coherence in a flick in which everyone is going mad. Even, before they went mad, they were marginally mad or disturbed to begin with. The movie was pretty well made for a low budget effort. The only thing that looked fake was some of the CGI blood spatter and one projectile vomiting scene. You can also see Johnny Messner playing against type. I didn't realize it was him until I realized that he had almost the same hairdo that he wore in Tears of the Sun.There were also a bunch of faces that look familiar but whose names always escape you. This movie did not remind me of REC or Quarantine, as much as some say. They were also derivative. Yes, there were many similar elements that appeared in those films and Condemned.But if anything, this story was absolutely most like a New York based film that predated those two. If you liked Condemned then see Mulberry Street (2006), a film with very close themes and development. This connection jumped to mind after the first few minutes or so of watching Condemned. The writer/star of Mulberry St. is Nick Damici who has a small cameo in Condemned. So see Mulberry St. and if you liked that then watch Stakeland, Damici's take on vampires. In it you will see scenes, sets, and situations that although not wholly original, look like they might be one of the proximate inspirations for The Walking Dead.

This movie was a complete waste of a Friday evening. Bad special effects, bad college film on a low budget. Don't waste your downtime watching it. Started out as a pretty promising story, good rich girl, hot boyfriend and nice friends. Went downhill about 25 minutes into the movie. Disgusting scenes which some of you probably will enjoy tho. I would guess that fear the walking dead was an inspiration. And i usually like this kind of movies, but, if you don't have the money to make it good. Then do not make it. Unless you have a really good story. If you still decide to waste your time, make sure to not eat anything during.

The first part of the movie is pretty neat and weird. With it's own dark atmosphere which is great and entertaining, stands out in the crowd. But it goes south really fast. In the half way through the movie and the fun and eerie part becomes collage-grade-bad-special-effects slasher flick in the dorms. What a loss. I don't understand where's the need to do the same thing that everyone in the horror film industry has already done before. If you don't have the budget stick to the story. If you have no story entertain with good effects. They had such a good beginning with pure weirdness that temps you to take a shower after watching this - and that is rare find these days.

Condemned. As you step into the condemned complex, you realize that the building's pipes connect stories, a variety of tales bringing drug related nightmares together in a spirited vortex of slime, sorrow, and scares. A botched batch of contaminated cookies turn an abandoned New York complex into a crazed frenzy of murder, punk paranoia, and more murder, along with puke, punks, Nazi doms and their psychopathic subs, and a brief, yet brilliant turn by indie hero Nick Damici as the building's survivor-in-chief. Dylan "daughter of Sean" Penn's lead as Maya shows expertly how a film debut doesn't have to be a by-the-numbers script read, and a grimy drug-addled triumph by Patty Hearst's (yes, THAT Patty Hearst) daughter Lydia, adds a bit a legacy to an already packed-to-the-gills terror troupe. Comparisons to Troma films are deserved, to a point, yet Condemned takes the pus and gore of Troma and adds a slick legitimacy lacking in current indie creepouts. I was impressed by Eli Gesner's directorial debut, a fun fright flick that can be augmented greatly by being surrounded by like-minded horror fanatics and an ample amount of alcohol.

Maya (Dylan Penn) leaves her unhappy white bread suburban home to live with Dante (Ronen Rubinstein) a long distant boyfriend in NYC. To her dismay, Maya finds out her new home is a condemned apartment building which contain an odd assortment of characters. The drains all seem to run to an open basement, which includes chemicals used for making drugs. Residents have large puss sores that grow and cause hallucinations, turning the building into a cage match of mutants. The characters on the surface are odd and interesting enough, expect for maybe Maya, the main character. In spite of all the excitement and blood, and special effects, I felt board by a plot we have seen under various situations. Supermodel Lydia Hearst, the great-granddaughter of publishing scion William Randolph Hearst plays a junkie. Guide: F-bomb. brief sex. brief butt nudity (Genevieve Hudson-Price).

With every kind of body fluid and some other gross fluids dripping around, this film is a total gross out flick. Very weak story and acting, everything is quite chaotic and little is explained. Definitely cant recommend this sloppy mess unless you love gross films.

Stupid, uninteresting, unfunny with no redeeming values. Just watched it but I can hardly describe it other that about 80 minutes of dumb, retarded characters doing stupid, gross things. The characters are lowlifes squatting in a downtown building and through their own ignorance, become infected into crazy zombie-like creatures. There are no characters with any redeeming traits - they are all shallow, mindless, ignorant fools. And therefore we do not care about them when the whack-a-mole marathon begins. Some dumb horror films are at least entertaining in small way but this film is pure garage. I had to fast forward through the last half to get through it - and no it didn't get any better. Do not waste your time - you been warned.

Johnny Messner killed it. And that's the best thing i can say about the movie. I guess this movie is a vehicle for Sean Penn's daughter, Dylan Penn. Shes a blond with a huge rack. And thats the second best thing i can say about the movie. Dylan plays a spoiled brat from the suburbs that has had enough of her parents domestic arguments. So she takes the train to NY to meet her loser boyfriend who squats with 3 friends in a condemned building that is occupied by 2 junkies, a Chinese meth cook. Johnny Messner (sexualy humiliating a gimp bodybuilder) a crazy black guy, a Jewish pimp and his black transsexual call girl/boy. All of these people get exposed to some bad drugs and begin to get sick and from there everybody loses their minds and begin attacking each other