Alex Garland In The Zone!

Rating: 9/10 (27 November 2019)

(*Note*: Viewed on DVD -possibly edited for media release?- on a relatively small screen; would be better served in theatres due to many fine visual details.)
What do you get if you blend 'Solaris' (1972 & 2002), 'Stalker' (1979), 'Southern Comfort' (1981), a dash of 'Tomb Raider III' video game (1998) and a hefty slug of HP Lovecraft's 'The Colour Out of Space' (1927)? Apparently, this. But rather than a mish-mash of ingredients and loose ends, this is actually very good. Alex Garland directs at a smooth, measured pace that suits the story well, it is beautifully filmed, does not demand a lot from the viewer, and is worth a good look.
There is no need to re-hash the simple plot here. There are some gruesome bits, some effective shocks, and a somewhat duff 'wave of the hand' climax, and performances are (as military teams in survival movies are prone to say) 'by the numbers'. Sciencey Stuff is kept to a minimum; a nod to Hox Genes is about all there is, and all that is needed in this context.
Please drive through if you're looking for 2 hours of heavily armed Space Marines zapping bugs, a genre-defining (or -redefining) epiphany, or have difficulty spelling your name. But if a persuasive slice of slow-burning Survival (or Annihilation?) Horror appeals to you as a late night treat, grab a couch and a cat, sit back and enjoy.