Pulse is another Americanized rehash of a Japanese horror film that does not match the quality of the original
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I will say this about Jim Sonzero´s horror film "Pulse" – it is original. The premise behind the film is about as far reaching as I´ve seen in quite some time and the film could be loosely classified as either a zombie film or a virus film. Essentially, a computer virus of sorts turns people into zombies for a brief while. However, that is a very poor description of the events of the film, but in a certain point of view, it is quite valid. I did not hate "Pulse." I did not love "Pulse." I´m not sure I even liked it. With a little bit of research, you can quickly learn that the film currently sits with an incredibly low rating of 4.0 on the Internet Movie Database. On Rotten Tomatoes, it does not fare much better. The film scares up a very rotten score of 13% on the Tomatometer. The critics and the general public have not been very impressed. I have to admit though; I really wanted to like "Pulse" for its originality and unusual take on the horror and zombie genres.
The very lovely Kristen Bell and "Lost´s" Ian Somerhalder are the films stars. Shot in Romania, "Pulse" was filmed for an estimated twenty million dollars. The cast lacks any real starpower and with a low budget, expectations were quite low for the film. The film was released theatrically with a PG-13 rating (as per the studio´s wishes). This HD-DVD release in the ´Unrated´ version of the film. There were three moments of gore added to the release, three suicides that were not able to be seen theatrically. No gratuitous nudity. No obscene language. Just good old fashioned gore. I´ve always thought it a bit odd when horror films are released with a "PG-13" rating. You have to tone down the violence to secure this audience-friendly tag from the MPAA. I´m not advocating cursing and nudity, as you don´t need it fore a successful horror film, but a PG-13 rating does hurt the scare factor some. "Pulse" is one of the better suspenseful films with this rating, but it does feel watered down in the long run.
Originally a Wes Craven film, "Pulse" finds Maddy Webber (Kristen Bell) wondering what has happened to her boyfriend. He has disappeared and nobody has heard a word from him. He drops in his ratty apartment and finds unusual black markings on his skin and acts very unusually – up until the moment he commits suicide. Suddenly, Maddy finds that everybody around her seems to be committing hairy carry and it is spreading like a disease. She goes looking for her boyfriend´s computer and find it has been sold to Dexter McCarthy (Ian Somershalder), who finds some very disturbing footage on the machine. The world is getting more insane and people are starting to turn into ash in thin air as the black markings take over their bodies. The mysterious disease apparently travels through cellular and network communications and the informational infrastructure of our society is the artery that is going to feed a disease that threatens to wipe us all out.
The plot is far fetched. It is original and it is unique, but certainly farfetched. Kristen Bell and Ian Somerhalder try their best to bring credibility to the film and Kristen is a sweetheart that might go places in the industry. Ian seems a bit wooden in his limited screentime, but I´ve always felt he was the same as Boone on "Lost." The supporting cast is decent enough, but they are meant to portray the typical teenagers that plague nearly every horror film released. I think it is about time that some older people start dying. I´m not complaining, as I´m not much older than the actors in the film, at least Somerhalder. However, with as much originality as the film touts and strives for, hasn´t the idea of using a high school or college as a key location in a horror movie been abused and used more times than Paris Hilton?
"Pulse" can entertain and there are times when it will frighten you. The apocalyptic imagery of the films final moments are actually quite good and though they do not create the "astonishing surprise ending" advertised on the packaging, more of them would have made for a better film. In fact, had Ian and Kristen been sent on their voyage about halfway through the film and the director threw in some zombie survival clichés and other staples of horror films, this could have been a far better film. If the film does entertain you, it will not overwhelm you with its story. The college kids and surroundings has been used too much. The token funny black friend that gets killed is in almost every movie. Did I mention that "Pulse" was a remake of a Japanese film? I didn´t. However, that too is starting to get old in Hollywood. Just release the original with subtitles and stop remaking everything. Okay?
Video:
The world of "Pulse" is an ugly, ugly world. There are so many greens, blues and blacks, that other colors are almost forgotten. Everything has a slight green or blue tint to it. Oh yeah, there is a red element to the film and only one specific item in the film delivers the majority of the reds and an M. Night Shyamalan vibe is felt. Not only is the chilly color scheme depressing, but so are the locations used in the film. Every location visited by Kristen Bell and friends is either frightening or scary looking as hell. There just doesn´t seem to be a clean and happy place to be found. There is also an element of MTV style editing with jumpy scenes and other devices to simulate the ´dead´ people moving about the world via our communication channels. The transfer itself is a nice 2.35:1 release that is encoded in AVC MPEG-4, as are other releases by Genius Products and the Weinstein Company. The film is very dark and murky and the shadow detail and black levels hold up throughout the release. The print has a little digital noise present throughout, but on mostly acceptable levels. Otherwise, it is very clean looking and both ugly and edgy, in a manner fully intended by the filmmakers.
Average user rating (1-5):
[release]20424[/release]