2016-01-09

20160109: SciFi Review--Bloodworx





Name: Bloodworx (2012)
IMDb: link to IMDb

Genres: SciFi, Horror   Country of Origin: USA.

Cast: Tricia Helfer as Dr Wilcox, Eric Roberts as 'man in suit', Travis van Winkle as Greg, John Bregar as Rob Jeffries, Mircea Monroe as Stacey, Stephen Bogaert as Ira, Albert Chung as Huy, Tamara Feldman as Linnea, Anna Ferguson as Maggie, Yanna McIntosh as Patricia, Rik Young as Nigel Denton.

Directed by: Eric Wostenberg.  Written by: David Nahmod.


The Three Acts:

The initial tableaux: The opening titles show biological experimentation as the credits go by.  We shift to Greg and Rob, two college drones looking for effortless money, being interviewed at Ravexin Pharmaceuticals by Dr Wilcox.  The test was for 14 days; the money was over 3000 USD.  They get to the testing facility and meet the other test subjects for the first round.

Delineation of conflicts:  Initially, the test subjects want to get through the 14 days and collect their cash.  Later, the subjects just want to get out alive.  The company wants to observe results.

Aberrant behaviour and random health problems start manifesting after just a couple of days, and the first dose.  The staff want to keep things calm, while the test subjects want to return to normal.

As the doses continue, the weirdness increases.  Greg finds that Ravexin (RXZ-19) is not about allergies.  Also, it has more side effects.

Resolution: Out of control clinical trial ends badly.

One line summary:  Surviving clinical trials.

Statistics:
  a. Cinematography: 8/10 Clear images, well-shot, well-lit.

  b. Sound: 8/10 There was a good portion of eerie background music.  I could hear dialog clearly.  The sounds paired with loose bowel movements I could have done without, but I guess that was part of the gig.

  c. Acting: 7/10 Tricia Helfer was fine.  Travis van Winkle and John Bregar were better than I expected at first.  None of the actors were particularly bad.

  d. Screenplay: 3/10 The collapse into cliche toward the end of the movie was a huge disappointment.

Final rating: 6/10


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