User reviews

A group of mercenaries are sent on a mission to get something important from an underground research facility in Eastern Europe.

Scintilla is a film that shares some common ground with last year's Frankenstein's Army. After all, it is about a group of soldiers infiltrating a grungy underground bunker and discovering strange experiments therein. But it lacks the sheer imagination of that film unfortunately. It has some interesting ideas though, but most of the best threads are never developed very much, such as the skeleton faced biker or the bubble headed underground defenders of the laboratory or even the man with the mutating arm. All of these ideas show great promise but not much is made of them. Not only that but when we do discover the nature of the Scintilla project it is a little underwhelming. So there are areas where this movie fell a little short and others where it didn't build on its own good ideas. Having said all that, it's not really a bad film either. 'Corridors underground' sci-fi/horror films are notorious for being awfully tedious, on account of the limited sets and action. Scintilla at least tries to make its limited set-up a little interesting and it never really gets boring. It doesn't really add up to anything particularly great but it's entertaining enough and does have some memorable moments, even if it ultimately doesn't make the most of its potential.

Watching this film, brings back memories of movies like The Wild Geese (1978), Alien (1979), Scanners (1981), all of them building up slowly, and precise to get to the point of the story, diversifying without giving more than the necessary, leaving behind characters, to bring them up later, when absolutely necessary, twisting the plot to the convenience of the viewer.

And all of this to my satisfaction: to shut the mouth of a a dumb guy who posted on youtube "Leave movie making to America, please."

I just watched "The Hybrid" and even when it falls a little short on what it could be your expectations, its worth of your time, its in part, like those old 70's flicks, with the real craving for the popcorn, while you lean towards the screen for the next twist of the story, and as "The Terminator" (1984) became an "original" concept, I wouldn't discard "The Hybrid" for a sequel or a Hollywood remake, because it has the proper elements for it.

And is worth to mention of the detail, the producers managed in some of the scenes, I won't spoiled much for anyone, just be observant for heads on plastic bags and skull mask.

Definitively, I will recommend this to those who can make a difference between "Transformers" and a good, "Low budget" science fiction movie!

This movie appeal was the large amount of layers it has.

The movie poster makes you believe it's just about a group of mercenaries hired to take down a Russian Weapon experiment in gene splicing, but I got so much more.

This possibly had a lot to do with the Depth of some of the characters who story lines got to be played out though out the movie. You don't see that in horror movies (cause you really don't need it)

The movie goes from action to horror to Sci-Fi and a few more genres as the main plot unfolds.

This was so much more than what was expected and that made it something great to watch.

This film is not anywhere nearly as bad as the IMDb score would suggest. I almost did not watch this film purely because the score was so bad. It has helped me to re-evaluate what I accept as a decent score on IMDb.

In the past, I used to avoid any films that scored less than 5.0 on IMDb. However, I have watched a few films under 5.0 (including The Hybrid) that are ridiculously under-rated.

No, The Hybrid is not have a spectacularly original plot, but the plot is engaging nonetheless and the acting is solid and effects are good.

In general, it is an entertaining film. There is no need to drop it to such a low rating, I have seen so much worse at a higher rating.

The ridiculously low rating of this film has made me distrustful of IMDb's user rating system. Although, to be fair, anything I've seen under a 4.5 has genuinely been awful.

My advice would be (if you're reading this) is to go check the numerous critic opinions before accepting user opinions, since, in my experience, they seem to be more objective (and true).

This is a good film with good acting, decent (if not entirely original) plot and believable effects.

I've given it a 10 purely because I believe other have under-rated it excessively. I feel I should try to bring the bar up. My real feelings are that it's a 6.

Sent to a remote military facility, a team of mercenaries expecting an easy extraction operation instead find themselves the target of a deadly mission involving human/alien hybrids stalking them which compounds their escape attempts through the local militia.

This here was a highly flawed effort overall. One of it's few good qualities here is the creepiness of the mission and what they're trying to accomplish since the facility looks quite dingy and dirty. The general concept of the group sneaking into that place under those orders gives this a nice enough base to start with, and the fact that the place is quite creepy in how they work that out is a rather enjoyable enough aspect in this one. As well, the few action scenes here, from the shootouts in the bunker to the rather strong and frantic escape and the ensuing gunfights with the soldiers on the surface allow for some rather nice energetic sequences throughout here, and with that comes some nice gore along the way with the practical effects really providing some strong parts to this one. While these here work nicely, it does have a few major flaws. One of the main issues is the film's incredibly slow pacing that drags this one out and makes it feel quite bland. The opening of the film, with all their infiltration tactics and sneaking past security that manages to be quite bland overall, not really generating any kind of horror thrills at all and just concentrating on their endless exploration of the base which takes forever to utilize any kind of idea what's going on. That it shows this going through every step of the way as they slowly make their way down the various floors and into the different sections of the bunker in a step-by-step walk-through which is seemingly endless that merely serves to highlight how low the budget for this one really is. That factor also makes itself known in the utterly laughable alien hybrids that are at the center of this one, which is just normal humans with awful CGI for multiple orbiting eyeballs or decked out in hilarious giant bug-headed masks and S&M-styled leather outfits which are just laugh-inducing more than frightening. Since the rampage through the facility is supposed to hinge on them being in contact with these supposedly frightening beings, the ending of this one is ruined highly because of the laughably non-threatening main creatures lowering this highly. As well, the nonsensical motivations and questioning for everyone here during the revelation about what they're supposed to be there for doesn't make any sense at all since it does is provide useless reasoning for double-crosses during the time they're supposed to be battling the main alien so that tends to cause those scenes to be reduced in power overall. Coupled with a truly ridiculous finale that has an incredibly ridiculous finale twist to it, this one here really had a lot to dislike about it.

Rated R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.

Some spoilers included, if it is possible to spoil this trash.

I thought this flick might be something at least decent, but after 30 minutes, I just jumped forward to the end.

Acting is bad even for B-movies. Camera is also bad. Script is non- existent, looks like somebody tried to mix Mad Max with current Washington politics. Driving a Toyota with machine gun is out of place for many reasons, and "brave" protagonist of the movie are using East German Wartburg (or it was Trabant).

Everything is out of place, including land mines, weapons, languages etc.

The idea is so stupid it does not deserve "Sci" in sci-fi. It could be placed in "St-fi" genre for it is stupid-fiction.

It is obvious somebody needed this kind of trash to depict pro-Russian militia as criminals and murderers. That is Washington part of the mix.

Total garbage, find something else.

I knew nothing of this movie, hadn't even heard of it before watching, therefore I had few expectation and to be honest didn't expect to last more than 10 - 15 mins. And I almost gave up during the first act - I'm not a fan of Dirty Dozen vs The Alien type action movies. But I'm so glad I kept watching. Superb.

Something about the setting, the atmosphere and the alien just got under my skin. I found it truly disturbing - in a good way if that's possible. It unnerved me in a way big budget mainstream sci-fi / horror movies usually fail to. In my opinion it is a Prometheus on a small budget - creepy and uncomfortable but beautiful in it's simplicity.

So glad I watched - this will stay with me for weeks ... those eyes!!!

Well Done All.

I grabbed this off Netflix as a random, but was pleasantly surprised.

This is a film split into two halves. The first half is quite a tense and gritty war flick. A bunch of mercenaries have to infiltrate the stronghold of a eastern European warlord. The characters are quickly defined and interesting.

The second half of the film has a definite Scifi tilt. The objective of the mercenaries is a creepy underground laboratory where the guy from the DVD cover is lurking.

The action is hard hitting and the setting is atmospheric and interesting. The makers have stayed within the budget for the special effects and haven't been lured in by cheap, distracting cgi.

I can't quite decide how I feel about the ending, but that in itself is probably a good thing.

I found this to be an enjoyable, gritty romp. I wouldn't have paid to see this at the cinema but as a Netflix movie this is way above the average on offer.

Think...Astro Zombies, only without any of the hideous B movie, campy charm. This movie is yet another example of how the producer, the director and anyone else who put money into the thing begged their parents and siblings to write a positive review about it, thus tricking us into believing it is some kind of avant-garde, grindfest miracle. I am actually speechless as I try to describe the vacuous banality of this awful...thing. I can't even call it a movie, as that would be giving it too much credit. I do not have any technical, academic or practical expertise in script writing, directing, casting etc., but must say, I am convinced, with about a few hundred grande, I could make a far superior movie, with no training, going on intuition alone. That's how bad this movie is. And you don't even have to be original to make it watchable. Just copy Alien, The Thing, The Bourne Identity and 24, and abracadabra, a watchable sci-fi horror is born, making way more money and notoriety than something so bogged down by utter incompetence. I'd rewatch Astro Zombies anyday.

So many times here on IMDb you will see good reviews for absolute garbage of a movie. Obviously people involved with the production were very active to provide good reviews because it benefits them only. I don't know what can be done to avoid this, but IMDb has to come up with some kind of safeguard, otherwise reviews and scoring will become totally irrelevant.

That is the case for this piece of s. When you read these reviews after watching the movie it just makes you laugh and be angry at the same time because of obvious manipulation. Don't waste your time on this turd!

Confused storytelling or bad editing. Not sure which, but there is so much wrong with this film. Nothing is really explained, nor is the viewer given much to go on. A waste of time. "Classic Stuff" crows the DVD cover, but it is not even bad in the classic manner of B movies, just very poor.

I really didn't have a problem with the basic premise of this movie, even if it has been done to a degree many times before in other movies. What I did object to, however, was how poorly done this particular version was. For starters, the movie moves at a glacial pace. Now, I am not one of those yahoo moviegoers who demands every movie move at a rapid pace from beginning to end; I realize that you do have to take time in a movie to set up the situations and characters. But the movie's first half all the same is way too slow, taking about double the time that another movie would take. Eventually I was asking the movie to simply get on with it.

Actually, despite the slow pace of the first half of the movie, there are some parts of the story where the movie does NOT take its time. There are some very important plot points where desperately needed explanation is needed, but never happened. Whether the script was originally like this, or some important footage got left on the cutting room floor, I can't say for sure. All I can say is that the first half of the movie is extremely confusing.

The second half of the movie is somewhat of an improvement over the first half. The pacing picks up, there is some action, and there is some plot explanation. But is it worth slogging through the first half of the movie? I say no. The movie still fails to engage the viewer, and you'll be counting the minutes before the movie finally ends. I say skip the entire package.

7.8 of 10. Not to be confused with the purely horrible Hybrid from 2007 or the at least enjoyable Super Hybrid of 2010, this is a quality film using reality-based horror built on sci-fi, war, and genetic experimentation.

While the misinformed, weak science sci-fi films still fantasize and fill in gaps of traveling massive distances through variations on frozen sleep, this eliminates the distance problem completely by avoiding space travel to or from the planet. Instead, it takes advantage of well known, everyday scientific events, modern conflicts around Russia, secret government operations, and genetic experimentation to build a surprisingly plausible story with a smooth, though a little too obvious, setup for a sequel.

Given early reviews, the non-stereotypical look of the alien probably is a little too much for status quo critics to handle. It doesn't feel or look under-budgeted. The only thing hard science fiction fans can criticize involves telepathy and telekinesis. Such, however, is often the ouch with alien sci-fi - writers going complete fantasy on alien abilities.

23 May 2015. There are just too many logical flaws and incoherent and odd plot designs or omissions to really call this effort at quality horror film making great or even above average. The first two-thirds of the movie might qualify as an above average and decent effort at a thoughtful and riveting, well photographed and executed horror film with a few serious logical weaknesses that detract from the emotionally exciting flow of the movie. This presentation of an elite mercenary squad never really gels from the beginning as compared to Aliens (1986) or Predator (1987). Some of the elite squad members just don't perform like elite members. Two especially distracting scenes include leaving one man behind and another is a delayed reaction time that leads to deadly consequences.

What makes this movie rather unique, is the directorial efforts at set design, photography, and cinematography that creates an ominous mood and has the potential to set this horror movie apart from most others. Unfortunately the unraveling plot during the last third of the movie destroys much of the potential of this movie. Unlike the much more convincing Cuba Good Jr. vehicle, The Devil's Tomb (2009), the plot direction just doesn't seem to make much sense nor audience appeal. Most of the characters in The Hybrid are pretty wretched and there's not much to like in this one of the most un-elite squad on screen. This movie ends more like some unintentional mysterious mind-crazing gas had taken over the screen-writer.

Instead, for mystery action thrills there's The Numbers Station (2013) or for sci fi horror there's Splice (2009).

6 minutes and 33 seconds into the movie and I found my hand reaching over to the end table to grab my .45 and blow my brains out and release me from this torture.

This had everything I want from a lower budget, idea driven video. I did not want to kill-off the main characters, which is not a given.

The concept was developed and delivered quite well. Primarily it was easy to watch, no irritating aspects.

Notwithstanding the fact it did not hit all the demographic pulling requirements nor the pop-culture mandates such as the ubiquitous LGBT genuflecting.

If you can live without the aforementioned and like the genre, give this a try. I am accustomed to low-end budget movies that show it, primarily in the lack of story. This is not one of those. It lacked some heart but it did pull you in, suspend your disbelief....escaped for a bit.

I love these bunker corridor shooter type movies where you are searching for the enigmatic truth that turns out to be far more problematic and puzzling that you originally hoped for.

Billy O'Brien shows that he was not just a flash in the pan with his superbly creepy Isolation being an amazing starting point. Hybrid/Scintilla is the type of movie that should be showing at your local multiplex, reaping the rewards for the British film industry. Of course rather than seeing it on the big screen it is getting a DVD release and a Digital down load release. That is a real shame as this is a movie that deserves to be seen by a wider audience.

Also worth noting that the sound track contains a hybrid of Saxon (Biff Byford) and Balance of power. It is a great song (s) and this shows how forward thinking the film company were in trans-media. It is just such a shame that there is no game as well.

Overall a superb movie that deserves to be watched by all. Looked down my review list and see I like the good stuff.