Reverb (2008) User Reviews

Another 90 mins of life lost...

[tfun6 · 3/10 · 29 July 2007]

First, this movie had a great idea. But they drew it out so long and boring and I agree, I didn't care about the characters. Good actors but no substance.

And it does the one thing I hate in any horror movie: weapons, weapons everywhere and the character doesn't grab one. Even the knife she used to cut herself free!

And of course, the old, "hey, something bad is going on. Stop it." "Ok, i'll get them out of here." "I'll stay here alone in this room while you go off alone in the building, even though I know supernatural stuff is happening."

It starts out promising but leads nowhere fast and has a total lack of suspense. And I didn't care about anyone who died. They were lucky to get out early.

If a waking coma is your thing, enjoy!

Horror in the music studio - unfortunately unsatisfying.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 5/10 · 7 July 2007]

A rock band prepare to record their comeback album by locking themselves in a recording studio overnight.They sample an old recording which turns out to hide a mysterious voice that opens a gateway to Hell."Reverb" was currently released in Poland on DVD,so naturally I wanted to give it a look.Unfortunately the film left me disappointed.The premise of "Reverb" is actually pretty interesting,but its execution is unsatisfying and rather dull.There is no suspense,just a lot of quick cuts,even the amount of grue is minimal.Overall,I didn't enjoy this film as much as I wanted.Still if you have enough time to kill give it a chance.5 out of 10.

What's that behind you? Oh, it's just another smash cut.

[valis666 · 4/10 · 29 July 2014]

Struggling musician gets some cheap studio time over the weekend to produce a track for his big break on a compilation album, his female friend (with benefits)/co-musician starts picking up on some weird background sounds in the studio, it all leads back to some obscure late 60s druggie/occult musician who used the same studio for evil purposes back then.

If that sounds like a good plot for a quickie horror movie, I very much agree! As well, both the acting and camera-work is competent for a micro- budget, straight-to-video production. But oh, watch and marvel at how they *absolutely ruin* what might have been an OK movie by inserting shrieky, screamy, pointless smash cuts (look it up) every few minutes to try to add an element of dread to a film that basically takes place in two or three tiny studio rooms. Someone sitting at the console mixing board? Well, that's boring, so let's smash cut to someone bloody and shrieking with "crazy guy" writing all over his body. Or, hell, let's just smash cut to shadowy figures lurking in the background, although that doesn't make a bit of sense in our story.

In the never-ending race for which modern horror editing trick annoys me more -- found footage shaky-cam or random, shrieky smash cuts -- the latter just took the lead by a few lengths after having to sit through an hour and a half of them.

Horrible, horrible movie!!!

[elcio5485 · 1/10 · 21 September 2007]

The movie is just awful, the entire movie runs on the same scenes, from beginning to end, I dozed off many times when I woke up it seemed that I was exactly on the same scene. No too mention the darkness of the movie seems impossible to understand what is going on. I know I need 10 lines to send this subject but the movie is too bad to have 10 lines of review. All I can do is adding bad and more bad review. The story seemed to be done by someone who was drunk or high. I am not a movie reviewer but anyone who watch this thing can't not give anything less than 1 Therefore, lighten up Mr. Director. Invest your money in something more useful

there is terrible

[khunia · 1/10 · 6 July 2007]

and then a movie such as this comes along, please do yourself a favour and do not watch this movie, by doing so you will in the process do a favour for the entire world and encourage these people to NOT make anymore movies, EVER again. The rating for this movie was 8.3, which i surmise is from those involved with this debacle of a film. The acting is terrible, well EVERYTHING is terrible, problem is, this movie has quite a good storyline behind, however i would have found more enjoyment reading the book. It isn't very often that I want to throw something through my own television, well I now know how far I can be pushed and I hope to god i never ever revisit that place ever again. After getting halfway through this farce i turned it off and thought to myself "What The?", so my recommendation stay away from this movie like it has the black plague.

They wasted a lot of studio time

[nelsonyoung-742-419225 · 1/10 · 18 July 2013]

This movie was terrible. What the hell were they even doing in a studio. They all sucked at whatever they were doing. I never understood what she was doing when she "processed" the audio. Adjusting the equalizer like that doesn't make the creepy voices come out. Whatever she was doing, she should have done the opposite.

I just can't believe the time they wasted in that studio. What's up with the red lights in the studio? clearly one of the guys in Mark Griffin. After 20 minutes, if you don't like it, turn it off. Never understood why the oscilloscope was always on. This movie really sucked. Sorry I really don't know what else to say.

I'm blood i'm sin.... i'm the mistake of the year Yes i'm Reverb

[man4evci · 2/10 · 19 February 2008]

I'm giving it two because it started interesting but in the first 20 minutes i understand that i will fall asleep. The only reason that i didn't fall asleep was that the sound was really annoying. oh and that song, i don't wanna here it anymore. I think it was the stupid song ever. When you watch movie of these character you have to like the leading actors, well i was wishing the actress in the leading role to be killed from the beginning. And what was that ridiculous end. And the love scene was i don't know why it was even in the film. I don't have anymore words to express my feelings.

Overral i must say it was very bad and boring don't waste your time.

You will need an aspirin after watching this

[chrichtonsworld · 3/10 · 15 July 2007]

When I read the plot outline on IMDb I was expecting a creepier version of Blow Out starring John Travolta. Which was an excellent thriller made by Brian De Palma in case you never heard of that title. The first half hour looked like it was heading that direction and had my psyched. But then the story went where it should not have gone and made the mistake going over the top. No subtle scenes. Very annoying cuts and use of sound that will make your eyes and ears hurt. The what appeared to be clever thriller becomes a ridiculous horror that asks too much of your imagination. I understood what they were trying to do. To create a new horror icon that lives on through his music. And yes if you think about it that does sound like a cool idea if done right. But the way they executed it damaged the movie considerably. The actors weren't that bad so I won't blame them. But the guy who edited this flick should be punished. Naturally he must have gotten the OK from director Eitan Arrusi whoever that is. (Has not done anything in the moviebizz after this film.) With an idea they had they could have created a brilliant thriller / horror. But this movie proves that a good idea alone isn't enough. You need someone who is able to make it work on the screen. And Eitan Arrusi clearly wasn't up to the task.

high production values,.. garbage

[Rob-O-Cop · 2/10 · 29 August 2007]

Well that was a waste of time. maybe it was the directors skite reel to show how good a horror movie he could make if he had a decent idea to do it around. This was so clichéd and derivative it was almost embarrassing. The editing, the story the camera work, all been done exactly the same in the many previous movies this one copies, so clichéd it's a cliché of a cliché.

That said they all did a really good copy of much bigger budgeted works, it looked and sounded really good, but that good was ultimately dull because you couldn't help but think how unoriginal every trick was.

I'm a sound engineer and the details about recording and sound were riddled with faults. that whole garbage about processing a piece of sound to remove the basic track and reveal evil screams, utter crap, and the bit where she "matches" her voice to the bit she recorded in the bloodroom. completely impossible unless the version she did in her house was an exact match delivery wise of the one she did in the future in the bloodroom.

and lets not pick holes in the story cos its a waste of time, and cliché ridden too. "This ones gonna be the one that breaks it for me", Channeling evil to make a killer song, yawn,.... come up with something that's original and truly scary next time..... please!!!

Please Kill Me

[geminate7 · 3/10 · 8 January 2008]

Take a dead musician that wandered far into the occult, a cheap music studio, a camera and some crummy actors and you have garbage.

Everything repeats in this movie, if you are too stupid to get the plot laid out before you once, they will spend the rest of the movie pounding it into your thick skull. By the time you watch the whole thing you swear you saw it three times - for those of us that do have a brain and are up and fully functional.

You know it's bad when everybody dies, including the audience. Instead of moaning 'please help me' you will be screaming 'please kill me too'. The ending was one of those ultra-crappy ones, where they just have to jab you in the ribs one last time, so you have to run right out and vomit this thing out of you mind. If you have talent you might be able to forget what you saw in under 24 hours.

I really can't imagine any section of movie goers actually liking this trash, so I would say that no one of any age will like this film. Not only should you not see this but you also shouldn't mention or remember that you ever heard of it.

Loved it.

[xxhawaiianbreezexx · 8/10 · 10 July 2007]

This movie started out slow which is why I only rated it an 8 out of 10. Most movies aren't like this these days. Most movies are either rip offs of older movies or are completely cliché and dull. This movie was well worth my time. I'm glad I took the time to watch it. I realize this movie got some bad reviews but not everyone agrees. If we did, wouldn't life be rather dull? Once it got going it kept me on the edge of my seat. I actually jumped and shrieked a few times through it. And the ending, wow, SURPRISE! I would recommend this movie. This movie would be even better as a book. If you like psychological thrillers, horror, and supernatural genres, this is the movie for you. But don't take my word on it. Watch!!!

No Masterpiece,But Fun None The Less.

[wandersoul73 · 7/10 · 7 July 2007]

Wow,this movie really blew me away. I had never heard of it upon viewing it. But I was rather happy with the way it turned out. I was not at all familiar with its director Eitan Arrusi either,but now I shall keep my eyes peeled for anything new from him in the future.

There was a pretty steady feeling of eerie chills through-out this film. Not to so that it is a masterpiece or anything. But it was worth 84 minutes of my Saturday.

And I really enjoyed the pitch look to everything. But what else would you expect from a horror flick. And you never know this guy might even be the next Master of Horror,or something.

fantastic title but disappointed in the film

[azizanicole · 3/10 · 13 July 2007]

I am a really big fan of British movies, i think they have a slight edge over our American counterparts in the fact its all about the imagination and what is not there.

However, with Reverb; i was disappointed and didn't feel anything for the characters at all. Not much going on about the music or the reason behind all the crazy actions, it just is. I like a little history to why it all began in what i watch, it gives me a sense of understanding.

All in all it is an okay flick, for an hour and 23 minutes you could find your mind wondering as slowly chaos takes over. The pace is a little slow for my liking although the acting is good but i feel that something was still slightly missing from it all.

It is no Deathwatch or 28 days later but still an okay movie.

Good potential. Poor execution.

[ten-thousand-marbles · 3/10 · 25 March 2020]

Apparently, the evil spirits have Sharpie markers. The premise of evil in a recording is decent, and hasn't been done to death. The acting and production aren't awful. The script and execution destroy this movie. Completely flat and boring, relying heavily on imagery. I couldn't wait for it to be over.

That rare thing, a great British horror film!

[davidbjgilhooly · 10/10 · 11 July 2007]

I saw the first screening of Reverb at Bafta a few months back and you could really feel its effect on the audience as the tension mounted. These days most horror films rely on gore to try and make the audience feel something, and while this film does have its fair share of the red stuff it expertly uses old fashioned suspense to make you squirm. It also manages to make you care about the characters which really adds to the suspense. Visually the film is very different to most British horrors I've seen (and American ones come to that) and manages to go beyond its Far Eastern influences to create a hybrid I haven't seen before. The central idea behind the film is really strong and never once makes you question the reality of what is happening on screen. The performances are strong too, especially Eva Birthistle (who we last saw in State of Play) and Leo Gregory of Stoned fame. Go and see this when you get the chance, you won't be disappointed.

It started with an oldie but goodie

[michaelRokeefe · 7/10 · 9 November 2020]

Struggling musician Alex (Leo Gregory) locks his band in a studio to lay down some new tracks in hopes of jump starting a new career for the band. The group starts sampling some oldies and discovers a hidden voice. Some mysterious events start happening. Turn up the sound, remix the reverb...what in the hell is the true meaning of the discovered evil message. Is this the beginning of paranormal rock 'n' roll? A slow starter than you can wrap your head around.

Also featured are Eva Birthistle, Margo Stilley, Luke de Woolfson, Neil Newborn and Adam Lannon.

What a thrill!

[redsaga · 8/10 · 6 July 2007]

I love good movie thrills but haven't been able to get one in a long time. There are many movies out there, newly released, that I watched with pretty high expectations. After a number of those - and always ending up being totally disappointed I learned not to expect too much before I sat down to watch Reverb.

From the very first minute the suspense and discomfort starts to build up with flashes of weird and dark pictures show up on the screen along with shrieks and loud sounds that I imagine will make many people jump. Although I'm not a huge fan of jumpers I have to admit that the director managed to do this one good.

The movie keeps the viewer in discomfort until the end, much thanks to sound and image. Reverb is far from perfect but with little expectations I was definitely pleasantly surprised.

***POSSIBLE SPOILERS BELOW***

Alex is a musician who together with Maddy, a friend and band member, locks himself in a studio in hopes of getting a boost in his career. They discover unpleasant voices and crying in an old song that Alex wants to sample.

As time goes and more weird stuff happens Maddy gets more and more convinced that something bad happened while that old song was recorded and decides to find out what happened while desperately trying to stop what she thinks is about to happen.

Very good for the extremely low budget.

[marsdensj · 7/10 · 2 May 2022]

I'm a sucker for recording haunting stuff. You need to be as well, or into recording, or into the haunting convention of things repeating across time, to think this is a very good movie. That said, solid performances by all, and I think the extremly low rating is just folks who didn't know what they were in for. No bad performances. A slow script, but in the nature of the genre.

Atmospheric horror

[lucretius3659 · 8/10 · 8 July 2007]

Okay, so I love a good horror movie. And I don't mind a few clichés. But what I hate more than death or taxes is goofiness. American horror too often goes for the goofy or the gross-out, and a lot of whatever genuine creepy you might get out of the concept is dissipated by the Beavis & Butthead-level jokes.

Reverb has none of that in it. What it does have is a somewhat standard horror trope--think _Cigarette_Burns_, if you've seen it--played absolutely straight for all the chills it can muster. There's a good performance by the female lead, who I hope to see more of. There's also some fine camera work (the lighting of the studio is a natural) and a nuanced bunch of cheap audio jump-thrills.

Now there are some plot holes. For instance, who might have been holding the camera in a pivotal bit of video (nobody mentioned could). There's also an awful lot of yelling at the screen, 'Just get out! No, dude. Just get out!' But I'll forgive a lot for a genuine chill or two, and I got them.

I don't know what movie the last reviewer saw, but this one's a pretty effective and moderately original bit of Brit-horror. 8/10, because frankly, low-budget horror has a pretty low bar.

Wait, what..?

[momster64 · 7/10 · 13 December 2020]

I had no preconceived thoughts on this movie, found it randomly on YouTube. I liked so much of it; the acting was good, spooky original concept, creepy atmosphere. YouTube left me with crummy sound and no subtitles which didn't help. I was left not understanding a fair amount of what was going on, plus three of the male actors looked so similar I found it hard to figure who was who much of the time. Maybe I'll find a decent explanation at some point.

Very Intense

[brad-765 · 9/10 · 25 July 2007]

I'm not usually a big fan of horror movies but i was dragged along by my braver wife of all people. This movie really scared me,I'm not familiar with Eitan Arrussi's work - although I saw Harry on the Boat and remembered it as comedy, though i feel he's more comfortable with horror. I found the plot very compelling and original I was really absorbed in the story-line. It gets really intense at times and the soundtrack was superb especially as it's a low budget movie. It reminded me of The Shining and will hopefully become the British cult equivalent. The best British movie i've seen in a long time - would have given it a 10 but i never do that.

original and creepy -- brilliant

[cutter1199 · 10/10 · 17 July 2007]

I love music and thought this film really played with those ideas well, the idea of a ghost sound in a record is a really cool idea.

Don't know about the other reviews but I thought it was scary and had an amazing atmosphere. It really sucked me in. I thought the actors were great.

Most of the stuff you see just tries to shock you with gore, but this film really made you feel unsettled and creepy, I thought it was really tense and suspenseful something I haven't seen in many horror films lately. It reminded me of The Shinning, one of my favourites, as well as Polansky films like The Tennant. If you like that type you'll like this.

Great stuff

[lukiemould · 8/10 · 22 November 2007]

Great film. First genuinely scary horror film I've watched in a long time. The pacing kept me on the edge of my seat, and the final confrontation was quick and exciting, rather than drawn out as it seems to be in most horror films nowadays. The ending was brilliant, although maybe slightly predictable. The cast were uniformly excellent as well, although I thought it a shame that more wasn't done with Stephen Lord's character. Eva Birthwistle and Leo Gregory were both brilliant as well, and Eva's character was particularly likable and believable.It seems to be the sort of film that people will either completely love, or completely hate, but I, for one, really loved it Scary Stuff...

genuinely tense British horror

[charlie_freak-1 · 9/10 · 13 November 2008]

This was a really pleasant surprise I was expecting action/slash but got a tense and stylishly bloody movie driven by a rocking soundtrack. The pacing had me on the edge of my seat with some genuine suspenseful moments and a cracking ending.

In terms of references there's a possession theme which reminded me of The Shining and a style/look and soundtrack that made me think of Dario Argento.

I gave it 9/10 because the combination of music and visual style work for me and because its not just another dumb slash-by-numbers movie. Well worth seeing.

Very original, with terrible "music"

[BigBobFoonman · 9 April 2013]

The plot summary on this website for this film is a bit off--a struggling rock musician does NOT head into a studio with his band--he heads into the studio with 2 hot blondes after scoring, in a non-musical way, with both of them.

Great showcase of pre-digital studio reverb processes, as the focus of the film was on a tiled room that was actually used very effectively back in the day to put reverberation on a track. The technical details of the tiled room, and the digital processes of recording shown in the film may have left an audience a bit in the lurch as far as understanding what was going on in the film. However, two hot, leggy blondes, gasping sex on a couch, gallons of blood and evil voices panned left and right on the soundtrack probably would carry the day.....

Very original filmstory, and I liked that....sadly, as is typical of much new millennium music, the "songs" featured in the film really sucked....