Divide, The (2011) [Blu-ray]
Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline: The lucky ones died in the blast

Prepare yourself for the unrated movie experience that critics are calling one of the most graphic and extreme end-of-the-world shockers of our time. As nuclear warheads rain down on Manhattan, nine strangers including Lauren German (Hostel: Part II), Michael Biehn (Aliens, Tombstone), Milo Ventimiglia (Heroes, Courtney B. Vance (Law & Order: Criminal Intent), Ivan Gonzalez, Michael Eklund (Hunt To Kill), Ashton Holmes (Revenge) and Rosanna Arquette (Pulp Fiction) - barricade themselves in their apartment building's bunker-like basement controlled by the unhinged superintendent. But within days, supplies dwindle, tempers flare and the trapped survivors find themselves overcome by treachery, madness, sexual torment and savage violence. What follows is intense. It is raw. And it is brutally, horrifyingly real. This is The Divide.

Editor's Note: Simply stated, The Divide will frighten most every audience that gazes its way. The picture is endlessly brutal and absolutely unforgiving. It wreaks havoc on the mind more so than the body as its characters turn a safe zone into a living nightmare worse than anything that may be the realities of the world that nuclear holocaust suddenly and forcibly made them leave behind. If nothing else, The Divide may awaken figuratively sleeping audiences into the need to at least consider their world and look deep within themselves and decide how far they may fall or how tall they may stand in the face of absolute chaos, disaster, and despair. The film isn't for anyone without an iron will to see it through, but those audiences will be rewarded with an almost one-of-a-kind experience.

User Comment: Snaggletooth . from United Kingdom, 28 March 2012 • Im not sure why some people here have given The Divide one star. One person even called it torture porn (Im not sure how many movies this reviewer has seen but I reckon he certainly doesn't know what the torture porn genre looks like). I cant say it was an "art" movie either which has been indicated (by some) for some reason. The Divide is an apocalyptic tale based on the aftermath of the destruction of NYC by nuclear attack and how a few survivors, sheltering in a basement of a building, slowly fall apart as their grim situation becomes apparent. As already stated, the acting is quite good for the most part, and as the movie develops some scenes will be a little unsettling for some but its all in the vein of the story. I enjoyed it immensely, all the more so for not hearing of the movie anywhere in the media. At the beginning it seemed as if it would just be another load of emotional drama loosely attached to the apocalyptic situation above (something which plagues TV series like The Walking Dead (just not enough zombies for me, and far too much chitty chat) but it soon became apparent that this was not the case. The Divide descends into a dark hell of humanities worse attributes and two characters in particular cause the viewer to cringe as they play out their terrible roles. All in all, The Divide was excellent, and any mockers here really should stick to movies with Adam Sandler in - I think thats where they belong. This ones recommended by me.

Summary: A surprise for me.

User Comment: yourpaldan from United States, 27 March 2012 • I found this film by chance, without having heard anything about it, so I went in with no expectations. But I love me a good apocalyptic flick, even though most are very predictable. This one is not predictable. And even though the setting is after the apocalypse, the story is really about human nature, a la Lord of the Flies.

The peoples reactions to the events, and to each other, are extreme, yet believable. The acting is very good, among the best i've seen lately in a sci-fi picture. Yet it was the writing that truly took me in. The story is paced very evenly, and proceeds towards it's inevitable conclusion without pause or remorse.

I have to say that this movie is not for children or even most adults. There are strong elements of violence and sexuality that are far beyond what most people can stomach. With this in mind, however, I found the psychological elements to be far more disturbing than the graphic scenes. We don't like to think that people are capable of certain things, but in extreme conditions people can be pushed to do the unimaginable.

This is the the important point of the film, rather than the storyline, or "how the world ends". It's about how we can self destruct, as individuals.

While I will be disturbed by the imagery for a few days, I really still loved this movie, and recommend it to anyone with a strong stomach.

Summary: Surprisingly well written, yet not for everyone.

User Comment: *** This review may contain spoilers *** elaine-105 from United Kingdom, 23 June 2011 • John Paul Sartre hadn't seen The Divide when he declared that 'Hell is other people', but believe me, the film would do nothing to dispel his belief. It begins predictably enough: as a nuclear explosion ravages New York, the residents of an apartment block take refuge in the bunker-like basement, which also happens to be the home of survivalist janitor Mickey (Michael Biehn).

From the start, the combination of characters is not a happy one: quiet, determined Eva and her weak husband Sam (Lauren German and Iván González), shell-shocked mother Marilyn (Rosanna Arquette) and her young daughter Mary, short-tempered Delvin (Courtney B Vance), arrogant bully boys Bobby (Michael Eklund) and Josh (Milo Ventimiglia) and Josh's sensitive brother Adrien (Ashton Holmes).

Of course they immediately start bitching, bickering and ganging up on each other, but when armed, biohazard suited soldiers burst in to the bunker, snatch Wendy then, after a surreal, aborted sortie by Josh, weld the iron door shut, the trouble really starts. What follows is a powerful, disturbing, down right nasty depiction of the mental and physical deterioration of a band of desperate, disparate people suffering from cabin fever, radiation sickness and, eventually, full blown certifiable lunacy.

The performances in the film are of a calibre rarely seen in this kind of genre picture. In particular, Milo Ventimiglia (from Gilmore Girls!!) descent from regular guy to Lord of the Flies-style underground overlord is horrifically chilling, but even he is outshone by little known actor Michael Eklund's extraordinary turn as the psychotic, sexually depraved Bobby, whose sordid treatment of Marilyn is nasty in the extreme. (Poor Rosanna Arquette – what did she do to deserve this?)

The Divide is seriously not for the faint-hearted – with some scenes you'll really need your mental floss handy. But it's a stunning achievement for director Xavier Gens (whose last output was the creaky action flick Hit-man, which even Timothy Olyphant couldn't save) and a must for any self-respecting horror fan.

Just don't expect to come out of this bleak drama smiling: as the nuclear ash falls silently across a desolate New York City, we are left with the feeling that, to misquote Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds, there is nothing worth fighting for in the spirit of man.

Summary: Hell is other people...

[CSW] -3.8- Even though I really liked this movie it this is definitely a once-is-enough movie and I will not be adding it to my collection. I do want to mention early on that there was a small bit of poorly explained Sci-Fi seemingly thrown in and never fully explained but it didn't detract from the overall movie. The R rated version was rated R for disturbing strong violence and sexuality, and for pervasive language. This is the "Unrated" version and it has all of those in spades. If you have no idea what can happen to the mind in prolonged confinement with the almost certain knowledge that you won't survive and without any controls, you need to watch this film. There is a bit of The Lord of the Flies in it as some of the people reverted back to their animal instincts and be forewarned that that can really happen. The seemingly bizarre way that most of the breakdowns occurred has a lot to do with group dynamics which can be very unpredictable. Cruelty, power, lust, sex, hatred, and even love can affect the group in different ways. This was an excellent study in one of the ways that this situation could have played out. For the thinking person, it will keep you totally engaged from beginning to end. Don't believe me? Then I dare you to watch it.
[V4.0-A4.0] MPEG-4 AVC - No D-Box.

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