The Crazies Review

Written by: MistressOf Horror   

A remake of the 1973 George A. Romero film. The new version of The Crazies, which has been made with much more style and plot than the original. .

The film takes place in an Iowa town where strange things are happening to the residents, It seems they are turning murderous. At first, they're just a little spacey. Soon, they're stabbing each other and blasting away with shotguns. Soon the town is quarantined by the military after they learn of the locals bizarre behavior. Initially, the sheriff (Timothy Olyphant), his pregnant doctor wife (Radha Mitchell) and the easygoing deputy (Joe Anderson) try to maintain peace and order.

But once soldiers wearing gas masks swoop in and, without asking questions, start shooting everyone in sight, the remaining survivors( or unaffected ) enter full-on survival mode, and The Crazies becomes a game of every man for himself. Yes, you've seen this movie before. But Eisner makes up for the lack of originality with some truly amazing suspense and terrifying scenes in which the heroes are trapped inside an automated car wash or the scene in which people suspected of being infected are strapped to gurneys inside a tent. A crazy wielding a pitchfork wanders in and starts poking. And poking.

Olyphant, an actor capable of playing  heroes as well as sneering villains, carries the movie with a believable sense of desperation, and the brief film doesn't waste a second on anything that doesn't bear directly on the crisis at hand. The result is a wonderful movie in which the deaths of characters carry a real sting, the gore isnt overused  but enough to give a disturbing effect and the editing has been paced at a speed that allows you to follow the action happening onscreen. Given the current state of the horror genre, these qualities are not to be taken for granted.Its nice to see well made horror.  Overall a nice little gem . A  scary and suspensful horror film that was great to watch.