Green Room (2015) Reviews

• This Review is going to be Short and Sweet

  moviewizguy2015-10-01

  Don't let ANYONE spoil you ANYTHING about the film. Don't see the trailer when it comes out. Avoid clips and any promo materials they may release in the future. Go in knowing as little as possible. Just know that watching Green Room is like getting a shot of adrenaline that doesn't let up until the very end. It's fantastic, tense, and entertaining. Take my word for it. But also... Don't get too caught up in the hype. See the film when it comes out. You'll be glad you did. P.S. Jeremy Saulnier is definitely someone to look out for.

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• White Knuckle filmmaking at its best

  Deimos-remus2016-07-12

  First off, want to say R.I.P Anton Yelchin. Such a tragedy for someone so young and promising to pass. He was incredible in this, I felt he was really coming into his own as an actor. --- After watching Saulnier's excellent and understated Blue Ruin, the director immediately became one to watch out for. A director that knows how to direct characters with subtlety and nuance, but with intensity and brutality as well. Green Room is perhaps the most stressed out I've ever been watching a film, and if I'm not clear, that's actually a good thing. Few films ever get such a visceral reaction out of me, but Green Room managed to do that, and then some, delivering on many fronts as a contender for my favorite film of the year. Since the beginning of the year, A24 has been unstoppable, putting out some of the most unique and incredible genre movies to be released in quite some time. Green Room is certainly violent and grim. Its sense of dread and brutality is unending and relentless, yet never overstays its welcome or becomes cartoonish or fetishistic. It could've very easily gone into Saw, Hostel or Martyrs territory, letting the bloodshed become the most memorable aspect of the experience, but it did something much more. Not only does the brutality feel real and impactful, unlike the aforementioned films, the characters feel totally believable and genuine, completely immersed in their roles. The protagonists are naive and brash, yet fresh and relatable delinquents. The antagonists are subdued, quiet and strategic, yet animalistic and complex. From a character standpoint, it is such a welcome and ultimately more human change of pace. For a movie so steeped in violence, it's a very humanistic movie, filled with rich and complex characters that feel like they're apart of something completely real and also very intimate and small-scale. The story is not a black and white 'good vs evil' kind of thing, all characters have their own shortcomings and sympathetic sides, making for an incredibly dynamic cast. It's a debilitatingly horrifying film, yet done with the same amount of care and understatement as Blue Ruin. It's a white knuckle thrillfest, and one that pits a lump in your stomach from the intensity witnessed on screen.

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• Violence at its most chilling and effective!

  WalterSoprano2016-05-01

  I have seen some crazy violent films from cannibal holocaust to a Serbian film but no other film that comes to mind executes violence as un settling as this. For me I mean this in a positive way for others the violence could be the very thing to turn them off to it and possibly ruin the movie. May this be a forewarning for some and a recommendation for those who might be interested. To start with the usual things to look at as far as acting and writing I would say this film does an excellent job. The acting from all is believable and extremely convincing. The writing is good with some humor and plenty of good dialogue. What the film masters completely is tension. Jeremy has truly shown his talent as a director with this one. The tension and situations that spawn violence are all very believable and realistic only adding to the tension and overall tone. Speaking of tone they set it incredibly well with one of the first acts of violence which will stick with me for a long long time. Funny thing about this movie is that it's considered a thriller. What I mean by funny is that as a thriller (which it really is) it is more chilling and horrifying than most if not all the other horror movies I've seen recently. There are jump scares but they're done properly. This isn't a scary due to monsters and ghouls though, it's scary because of how realistic and effective the violence is to where it really sticks with you. As you probably already know this is a film best going in knowing little to nothing to get the full experience, personally I went in knowing more than I should have, however, it didn't matter. I was on the edge of my seat with sweaty palms due to how tense and unpredictable it is. There is a lot to talk about with this film but a lot of it cant be discussed without spoilers so all I can say is see it yourself. If you can't handle violence then I am strongly telling you to avoid this film. On the other hand this is among the best films I've seen this year no doubt. As a display of well executed violence and tension this film will definitely make a name for itself. I hope this is useful thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the movie.

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• Extremely violent, gory but wildly exhilarating from beginning to end

  Screen_Blitz2016-09-26

  Director Jeremy Saulnier exercises high pressure suspense and astonishing realism in this white-knuckle thriller following his surprising success with the ultra-violent 'Blue Ruins'. Though it doesn't fall deep in the category of originality or even groundbreaking in any sense, the intriguing fashion in which Saulnier executes this film and the immersive cinematography by Sean Porter used to capture the harrowing intensity and gloomy visuals result in a highly effective slasher treat; and even labeling the results effective feels like an understatement. While the shocking level of bloody violence and gore more than not make this tough sit-through, especially for the weak stomach; Saulnier pervades a true sense of realism in a way in which the film never feels exploitative, but wildly authentic. So this film follows a punk rock band consisting of twenty-something year olds including lead singer Tiger (played by Callum Turner), guitarist Sam (played by Alia Shawkat), bassist Pat (played by Anton Yelchin), and drummer Reece (played by Joe Cole). When the band is offered a gig by a radio host named Tad, they find themselves performing at nowhere other than an old bar run by neo-Nazi skinheads. After a successful performance, the band and their friend Amber (played by Imogen Poots) rushes out to their green room where they witness a murder by the hands of a sadistic skinhead. In fear of being held responsible for the murders, skinhead leader Darcy Banker (played by Patrick Stewart) arrives an orders his gangs to eliminate the witnesses, leading the band to a bloody fight for survival. Jeremy Saulnier grants this intensely violent thriller with a gift to not only leave viewers shocked and squirming in their seats, but present an atmosphere so visceral to the point of giving viewers the feeling of not watching a gruesome slasher, but a real-life event unfolding on camera; and the scariest aspect of this film how brutally realistic it turns out on screen. Saulnier does such an amazing job on capturing the brutal intensity of each moment as the characters desperately battle their way through a violent bloodbath against a gang of white supremacists that threaten their young lives, and the camera work done by Sean Porter makes for great use to capture these dreadful moments. At various moments, the film intensifies to the point where you may constantly remind have to yourself you are not trapped inside the bar with the characters. While Saulnier's execution and Sean Porter's cinematography do justice, they only make up the half of the equation. The latter half is successfully achieved by Saulnier's screenplay. Instead of relying on the usual slasher horror stereotypes like the jock, the pot smoker, or the hot chick, Saulnier populated the film with characters that feel very believable and the dialogue these characters deliver more often than not feels typical to real-life college kids, thus adding to the insane realism. While the performances the actors are decent, the biggest stand out by far is Patrick Stewart, suiting the role of the main antagonist. Stewart gives a truly haunting performance as what is a major departure from his usual typecast. Though his character is limited to do nothing but giving orders, the portrayal Stewart lands as this character truly hits hard. Green Room is an exhilarating slasher-horror thriller with a constant sense of fright and thrills, making it one of the most spine-chilling horror films to be released in recent years. Though the extreme violent and realistic depiction of gore can may make this one a difficult sit-through, it is a must-see for all horror fans.

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• 7.5/10

  James_De_Bello2016-07-13

  A punk rock band is brought into playing at skinhead club. After their set, whilst hey are leaving the club, by mistake they end up in the wrong room and witness a murder. Tension rises between the club managers and the band who are forced into a room and trapped in there whilst Darcy (Patrick Stewart), the head of the skinhead fellowship as well as the owner of the club, tries to put together a plan before things go too south. Written and directed by one of the most promising rising directors of this time, Jeremy Saulnier, "Green Room" is one of those perfectly packaged thrillers, with originality of premise and style, perfect pacing and tight well-knit editing and whilst it may be a little chaotic it never looses the investment in character. One of the big surprises of 2016, after all the buzz I simply couldn't wait to check this movie out, its intriguing premise and unique cast were fascinating and I can confidently say that the film delivers on both. Whilst we have had many thrillers in the past where people get locked into a room and have to find a way to escape, we haven't yet had one with this unique voice behind it. Saulnier manages to spin around with the premise and deliver a thriller that is stylish without being noisy or overdone. The catalyst of the whole plot works perfectly and the characters who are set up brilliantly in the first ten minutes work wonderfully in this environment. The instant world building the director manages to convey through visuals is absorbing, it places the viewer right in the middle of the chaos and manages to never loose the geography of the setting. The cinematography of the film early on delivers some beautiful and insightful shots that perfectly serve the story and set up, but once sh*t starts hitting the fan the editing of the film comes majorly into play and does a superb job. The tense atmosphere conveyed through color and pace never leaves the screen and pervades the audience in every second of the movie until the end. Just as deserving is definitely the make up department which has a couple of really key moments that hit the viewer like a brick and contribute in giving a sense of anxiety and fear that once again is appended to the audience for the whole duration. Ultimately it also comes down to the three central performances by Yelchin, Poots and Stewart, whom are all remarkably great, the highlight definitely being Poots for me who manages to totally disappear in the role to the point that I didn't know she was in the film until I read the cast list. I have been a big supporter of her and can't wait to see what she gives us in the future. Where the movie slightly looses its flow is in clarity of motivations and the logistical movements where I found myself repeatedly uncertain. As I said before, you never loose the thrill nor the location and empathy for the characters, you are always behind them and want them to get the fu*k out of that hell. The problem resides in the fact that too many times I was unclear on why what was happening was happening, why were the skinheads acting the way they were and why were they going batsh*t crazy. This also takes something away from Stewart's performance which on its own stands as great, yet never really plays into the big picture because of the chaos which ensues not being ever understandable by the audience. "Green Room" still remains a more than worthy effort, a great thriller, a fantastic lesson in editing and a magnificent does of anxiety and adrenaline.

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