The Hive (2015)

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Better Late Then Never

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

The Hive: Adam wakes, confused, suffering from amnesia. He has some infection but his girlfriend, Katie, is in a far worse state. Ala Memento he finds cryptic information written on walls. Through flashbacks he remembers how he, Katie, Jess and Clark (summer camp counselors) saw a plane crash.. Reaching the scene they are attack by a zombiesque survivor.Fleeing their car crashes and Jess is infected by the survivor (he vomits a black liquid on her). She speaks in other voices, appears to have multiple personalities. Adam also has flashbacks of being in other bodies, of participating in Soviet mind science experiments carried out through viral infection of unwilling human subjects, then of similar US experiments.Telepathy, Dybbuks, Zombies and Mengelesque human experimentation meld in this harrowing SF/Horror thriller. 7/10

I wasn't sure what to expect from this film, as there's been a spate of 'Virus' horror/thrillers of late. To be fair, it was a lot more engaging than I anticipated with 'Memento' styled flashbacks and some great acting. The characters start out being typical teenage horror fodder but develop into interesting and well rounded people that as a viewer, it's difficult not to like and feel sympathy for. The action does jump around a lot and at times you're not sure where in the time-line the characters are currently, but this is a minor annoyance. Despite being a bit lost during the first 10-15 minutes, as the plot unfolds everything comes together and tells a fascinating tale, warning of the foolishness and greed of humanity. Honestly, this movie is the best and most engaging I've seen in a while and doesn't just rely on special effects and/or make-up, but actually tells an interesting and gripping story.

Checked this movie out after a buddy told me about it and I'm glad I did. Went in thinking it was going to be a horror movie and got a lot more than that. For an indie movie the acting was actually pretty good, there were only a couple times were the acting took me out of it but all in all they did good. The pacing was perfect and kept me engaged and the plot was great. I love sitting through a movie trying to peace things together up until the final moment. The love story that develops throughout the movie was great, at the beginning you could really feel some chemistry between the two. However, at about halfway through the movie it feels like it skipped a lot of character development between the two which I felt was a little weird. I wish we could have seen more interaction between the two in the middle of the movie. All in all, this is a great movie that probably not many will see that more people should see.

I was lucky enough to see this film during its one-night Fathom event and couldn't be happier that I got a chance to experience it on the big screen. This is the type of film that benefits from having large, booming speakers to enhance its awesome visuals. The Hive is the reason people love low-budget horror, proving again and again that talent is more important than a large budget. I will not review any plot details as I think this is the type of film that benefits from the viewer going in blind. If you are looking for a film that both honors the horror/zombie genre but isn't afraid to throw out some new ideas, this is pure, adrenaline-pumping ecstasy. Bloody, gruesome, and often slightly silly, this little film will give genre fans happy little nightmares.Awesome! Check it out!