GL84 When a mysterious TV broadcast signal suddenly starts making the viewers go into psychotic violent rampages, a group of survivors try to find a way of stopping both the broadcast from turning more into blood-crazed killers and the source of the signal.This is an incredibly maddening and very flawed effort. The main part that really hurts this one is the fact that it's presented as an inter- connected anthology, which really makes no sense. By choosing on several individuals that aren't all that interesting this one just doesn't stay exciting during this time. The second story, with the party being thrown by those under the influence is the greatest example of this since the people portrayed are raving maniacs which just makes it clueless why we're there around them for so long as this party without learning anything or even being given a scary or exciting scene as what's portrayed isn't scary, thrilling or suspenseful. These scenes are just boring, and as the longest segment just drags the film on endlessly. The first one is slightly better as it contains some nice scenes of the affected going crazy and killing each other, but once we get off that nothing is all that interesting or engaging with the scenes of everyone trying to figure out what's going on. While the finale offers some explanations it's just too late to really care here since we've been given an anthology effort that tells one continuous story for no reason. The only thing worthwhile in the film is the blood and gore, which gets off some decent splatter gags of spiked baseball bats being shoved into different body parts or hacked up with knives, but otherwise not a whole lot here really works.Rated R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence and Brief Nudity.

warlikesavant Is it an original idea? No. But in this day and age how often do we see an original idea. Everything made these days is a remake or a mesh of various films or characters. Maybe I've seen to many movies. But when I watch new movies now, I can't help but trace the plot or situation back to another movie. That being said. I enjoyed watching this movie. I never questioned the characters or there motives. They had purpose, even though it was lunacy. And of course it's not your typical ending, but that's what I loved about it. Who wants to watch the same cookie cutter endings? I'm tired of the norm. This movie made an effort and I was entertained.

Ted Cunn There's a decent, if not original, idea at the heart of this movie, but the film makers are trying too hard to be arty and clever for it to ever really work.Telling the story in three parts is a terrible idea. It's such a basic story that's being told that it feels more like a way to extend it to feature length than a worthwhile method of story telling. Part 1 is dark and brooding, part 2 is like a comedy and part 3 tries - but fails - to tie the whole thing together.I liked part 1. It had a great atmosphere and such a feeling of dread that's it's the only part of this 'horror' movie that even approached being scary. It's also getting somewhere when it cuts to part 2, which is so tonally different that it's like a different movie. Don't get me wrong, I liked part 2, but it would have been better on it's own rather than lodged haphazardly between the far more similar parts 1 and 3.Part 3 struggled to do something and provide a satisfying conclusion. The trouble was that this movie went from the madness caused by the signal turning people into homicidal maniacs into people who talk at random and don't know what's happening. Add the misplaced cutaways and editing tricks and it just becomes a confusing mess. The end just fizzles out and its unsatisfying, muddled and dull nature just about sums up the movie.Having these three parts as three separate stories would have made for a better experience overall. The main story could have easily been told in Part 1, Part 2 (with a few tweaks) could have stayed the same and then Part 3 could have been a proper finale rather then the delay of something that could have happened an hour beforehand.The best part of this movie can be found much better elsewhere. The acting was all over the place, with some pretty bad examples on show (unfortunately including a character who appears predominantly in all 3 parts)I really did want to like this film, but I just can't do it. A nice effort, but just not a very good result.

craigjpay-146-379244 Had heard good things about this movie before I watched, with comparisons made to Romero's underrated classic 'The Crazies', and while to some degree they are indeed very similar, this movie is a whole different beast and to fresh and original to ever be considered just a re-hash of Romero's film.First thing you should know is that the first couple of minutes are no indication of what's to come, the cheap looking 'Last house on the left' cloned is simply a film within the film, a cheeky red herring before we pull out if the film, into a young couples bedroom, as the film is replaced by the movie's eponymous 'Signal'.From this point on the film is divided into three chapters. The first reveals that one half of the aforementioned couple is in fact married, and as she leaves her lover to go home to her husband the beginnings of the signal's effect on the other members of the public who have seen or heard it become clear. This signal is driving people mad, not just odd behaviour, but homicidal. This starts subtley enough, confused conversations, mild panic, distant cries, but upon reaching her home it becomes apparent that people's behaviour is becoming more and more erratic and dangerous. After a quietly hostile 'interogation' by her husband it becomes clear that her husband is infected, thus begins z desperate escape from her apartment block, with her husband and neighbours all seemingly infected and out to kill anyone they can get their hands on. This is all done in a very authentic, realistic fashion, while being reminiscent of '28 days later' and it's sequel. As the players in this central love triangle collide we are shown events from variou perspectives, the three protagonists story lines interweaving in a very intriguing fashion. The second chapter is very different from the first in terms of atmosphere and purpose, as, while maintaining the same cast as the first chapter, it becomes a jet black comedy, a sort of comedy of errors with an ever escalating supply of corpses, madness and misunderstandings that inevitably result in gruesome violence. I felt that this chapterwas perhaps the strongest of the three, it's gallows humour a terrific juxtaposition to the intensity of the previous part, with each performer showing great comic touches and bizarre characters emerging from the woodwork at the most inopportune moments ( it had to be said that AJ Bowen, playing the husband, is the clear standout in the movie and acquits himself brilliantly in this section).Chapter three takes much the same approach as the first, llurching back into straight, frightening and suspenseful horror as various characters seek each other out to exact revenge or rescue loved ones, culminatingin a wonderfully acted confrontation in a desolate bus station.The most impressive aspect of this movie was it's vivid depiction of madness and the descent into it. Whilst some movies are content to simply show characters as nad by making them rant and behave violently, thus movie takes great pains to try and immerse the viewer in the chaos and confusion, swapping out actors and roles to create a truly believable and authentic take on how it might feel to lose your mind.Overall I was incredibly impressed by the quality if every aspect of 'The Signal', from it's terrific performances, taut direction and original takes on stale genre themes, very, very highly recommended