A strange signal broadcast over the TV and phones makes most people in the world go crazy; a woman tries to survive so she can reunite with the man she has been having an affair with.

CRITIQUE

The Signal is one of the trippiest movies I have seen in a while, a low-budget, violent near-future horror-thriller that has a lot of dark fun with its premise in which people driven nuts by a signal basically keep attacking each other.  Writer/directors David Bruckner, Jacob Gentry and Dan Bush do a good job keeping this gripping by just focusing on a handful of characters, and though tonally this is a bit uneven, and the visuals are sometimes rather cheap-looking, this is a memorable tale that is likely to stick with me longer than I’d want it to.

The main characters here are Mya and Ben; Mya is married to Lewis, but Ben is trying to get her to run off with him.  The first third of the film is told from Mya’s point-of-view, as the world descends into chaos, and it is fairly-chilling stuff; the directors do a good job giving an unpredictable, you-are-there feel to it all, as Mya tries to escape the madness around her.

The second part is through Lewis’ eyes, and here it turns into brutal dark comedy-horror, set largely in an apartment Lewis wanders into while looking for his wife; the third part, told from the POV of Ben, turns back into more of a horror tale.  Aiding in all of this is the fact that the premise here allows for most of the characters to be unsure to one extent or another about what is going on, which enables the filmmakers to play with the idea that we’re never quite sure what is real and what is not.

The no-name cast does a good job here, while whoever was in charge of fake blood put in a lot of overtime.  The result isn’t for everyone, but if you have a taste for offbeat, violent, knowing horror, there is a lot here that works pretty well.

THE VIDEO

The Signal is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen.  The look is occasionally cheap-looking, though sometimes this is to the film’s benefit.

THE AUDIO

The Signal is presented in English 5.1 and 2.0 Dolby Digital.  Dialogue, music and sound effects come through clear.  There are Spanish subtitles.

THE EXTRAS

There is a Commentary featuring the three directors, though they do an interesting thing here; since each directed a third of the movie, the director of each segment leaves the room during that part, and the other two talk about it.  The result is amiable and knowing.

There are a couple of very short Deleted Scenes, with introductions by co-director Dan Bush about why they were cut.

Inside Terminus: The Making of the Signal is a solid 15-minute making-of featurette in which the directors and the cast talk about the making of the film.

There are three Transmissions, short 3-4 minute films done for the Internet (each directed by one of the directors), basically brief tales of other characters experiencing the chaos coming from the film’s premise.  Chilling and something darkly-amusing.

Signal Breakdown is a 4-minute featurette in which the directors and some of the actors talk about the film.

Signal is a 10-minute chunk of the annoying signal and its dizzying images that often shows up in the movie; it’s hard to watch for more than a few seconds.

The Hap Hapgood Story is a 10-minute movie directed by Jacob Gentry in 2003 for a 48-hour film festival, a two-minute chunk of which serves as the opening of The Signal; it’s a brutal horror movie done in ‘70s style.

There’s also a Trailer for the film.

FINAL THOUGHT

Bloody and often very darkly-comic; not for all tastes, but those who are in the mood will likely enjoy this.