The Signal (2007/I)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Directors:

David Bruckner
Dan Bush

Writers:

David Bruckner (screenplay) &
Jacob Gentry (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

4 July 2008 (Italy)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Do you have the crazy?

Plot:

A horror film told in three parts, from three perspectives, in which a mysterious transmission that turns people into killers invades every cell phone, radio, and television. |

Plot Keywords:

Cell Phone | Stabbed In The Back | Loss Of Family | Husband Wife Relationship | Death

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Anessa Ramsey	...	Mya Denton
Sahr Ngaujah	...	Rod (as Sahr)
AJ Bowen	...	Lewis Denton
Matthew Stanton	...	Jerry (as Matt Stanton)
Suehyla El-Attar	...	Janice
Justin Welborn	...	Ben Capstone
Cheri Christian	...	Anna
Scott Poythress	...	Clark
Christopher Thomas	...	Ken
Lindsey Garrett	...	Laura
Chad McKnight	...	Jim Parsons (as Chadrian McKnight)
Claire Bronson	...	Sightless Woman
David Bruckner	...	Screaming Man (as Dave Bruckner)
Dan Bush	...	Screaming Man
John Clifton	...	Maintenance Man

MPAA:

Rated R for strong brutal bloody violence throughout, pervasive language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Singapore:M18 | Norway:15 | UK:18 | Australia:R | New Zealand:R18 | Finland:K-18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Company:

POP Films

Trivia:

The entire film was made and filmed in Atlanta, Georgia.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Mya and Rod are driving, the radio is clearly on as you can hear the noise in the background, yet in the shot that shows the radio, the display is blank.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Ben: What was that? That was strange.
Mya Denton: [in bed] Come back.
Ben: The TV turned itself on.
Mya Denton: [reaching out] Come back.
Ben: Okay.

Movie Connections:

References Irréversible (2002)

Refreshing Horror Tale

Maya Denton (Anessa Ramsey) has a love affair with her beloved lover Ben (Justin Welborn) that invites her to leave her husband Lewis (AJ Bowen) and Terminus City, meeting him in the Terminal 13 of the local station. Maya decides to go back home and finds a wounded man and his attacker in the parking area nearby Ben's house. When she arrives at home, she sees Lewis discussing with his friends Jerry (Matt Stanton) and Rod (Sahr Nguajah). When Lewis hits Jerry with a baseball bat on the head, Maya runs to the house of her next door neighbor Janice (Suehyla El-Attar) and realizes that the dwellers of her building have gone paranoid and crazy in an outburst of violence and hallucinations through the transmission and waves of television, cell phones and radios, feeling the need to kill.

"The Signal" is a refreshing horror tale that slightly uses the idea of mass control through television and cellular of "Videodrome" and "Pulse", leaving a message about the brain damage caused by the subtle message of television and excessive use of cellular. The plot is disclosed in three parts: "Transmission I: Crazy in Love", which is scary and the best one; "Transmission II: The Jealousy Monster" that is a boring dark humor comedy that does not work well in the context; and "Transmission III: Escape from Terminus" that returns to the main theme and has a good conclusion. The acting is great and the depressive cinematography gives a special climate to this good story. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available