The Killing Room

To repeat what I read in a previous review-- what did he say? The dialogue consists of a lot of whispering with cuts to much louder sound effects and screaming, forcing you to keep the volume remote in hand. Or, in my case, leading to apologies to the neighbors for the intermittent screaming last night.

More to the point, what did the movie say? It's a suspense/thriller, which keeps you waiting and really hoping that the ending pays you back for the time invested. This movie doesn't. The ending forces the viewer to realize how implausible the whole premise is.

I won't spoil the ending except to say that the ending is spoiled by the time you get to it.

Watching "The Killing Room" is sort of a frustrating experience, because there seems to be a missed opportunity behind every corner. You just know there's a good movie in there somewhere, at times even several good movies, but whatever great material is buried in the mix just can't find a way to get to the surface. For instance: this film really had a fighting chance to be a dark, gripping, claustrophobic masterpiece. The four characters in the titular room are all well-written and competently acted (even by the surprisingly good Nick Cannon), their disputes are believable, their mysteries are interesting enough, but whatever atmosphere their scenes create is completely neutralised by the ridiculous number of scenes set outside the room. These are just so bland, so needlessly explanatory, one tends to wonder why they're even there. Why not just set the entire movie in just that one room, would have been way more effective and mysterious. "The Killing Room" is like this compelling magical illusion that the magician starts explaining while he's still performing it. It's not like this suddenly makes the illusion any less great, but it doesn't matter, it sucks out all the fun anyway. Furthermore, the twist ending is just kinda silly, if not just moronic. It's a thing you don't see coming, but when it does come it's still pretty "meh". This movie didn't work for me at all.

FIRST: Let us FOCUS on the Title's Content and Context: Perhaps the TITLE may sound gruesome... But Let me set the record straight regarding KILLING ROOM's AUDIO! Many reviewers complain about the sound. "Couldn't understand!", "Needed Captions!", they protest! Believe me, as an amateur expert, everything "Audio" here is exquisite; it just doesn't get any better! Is the dialog hard to follow? You bet it is! And this is EXACTLY what 32 year-old South African Director Jonathan Liebesman (Darkness Falls/Rings) wanted! Stress/Tension levels tend to go through the roof when you're under constant duress about having missed something crucial. Don't worry! I guarantee You won't!

KILLING ROOM does have similarities to most of the films it's compared to here. However, IMO it bears, by far, the greatest similitude to Spain's La HABITACION De FERMAT (FERMAT's ROOM). FOUR nothing-in-common strangers have responded to a Want Ad for "Test Subjects".

And, From the get-go, they're told that "They will be given $250 each, for their participation/ co-operation. One by one they will be eliminated from the experiment. However, they ALL will receive $250, irrespective of the order of their elimination!" What someone SHOULD have requested was: "Define ELIMINATION"!

Surprisingly well done ensemble acting, with Timothy Hutton, Chloe Sevigny and Peter Storemare the most noteworthy examples. If KILLING ROOM had not lost its iron grip on me for a few minutes about 3/4 through, I would have rewarded it with 10*...A real shame, that! Part Psychological Drama/Suspense, part Mystery/Thriller, part Dark Morality Play, and the fourth component is what makes KILLING ROOM totally unique, makes it stand out head and shoulders above the pack! Unfortunately, the simple act of revealing it would serve as a definite SPOILER!... So you'll just have to see KILLING ROOM for yourselves, won't you? 8*STARS*

..... ENJOY! / DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en ESPAÑOL, are most welcome!

This movie is so good, and was one if the first "trapped" or "game play" horror films that really stuck with me. Very underrated but more than worth watching.

I have to say, for a lower budget/independent psychological horror film, this one was probably one of the better ones I've seen. It's about four people who answer an ad to do some paid research. They are sent into a room, asked to fill out a questionnaire, and then greeted by the man running the 'test.' Without going into any detail, as soon as he explains what's going on, things change and begin to spiral out of control. Very intense and fascinating to watch. Nick Cannon isn't the greatest actor, but I thought he played his part very well in this. I also thought Chloe Sevigny was fantastic in her part, as well. This one is definitely worth a go. Rent it if you have a Netflix/Blockbuster Online account.