Review of The Belko Experiment (2017) by Kevin P — 16 Apr 2018

Strengths: This movie jumped out to be me because of the premise. Seeing how everyday people deal with the situation at hand is gripping and remained that was for most of what I sat through. There was a good amount of action and the right amount of gore without going overboard with it. There are some talented people on the cast list like John C. McGinley (Wendell), Melonie Diaz (Dany), Tony Goldwyn (Barry), who all do very well. Michael Rooker (Bud) is great in a small role.

Weaknesses: The protagonist is the biggest problem here. John Gallagher Jr. (Mike) is bland, but inoffensive in the role. The issue is the character. He's whiny, stubborn to a fault, unlikable, and doesn't grow at all throughout the movie. He's nowhere near as well rounded as your main character should be. When he wins at the end, you groan instead of cheer. There are problems with other characters, too. We focus a lot on Dany, who is honestly a highlight of the film. Then, after everything she goes through, she dies with no resolution to her story. It just gets cut short. Adria Arjona (Leandra) also gets a character that is unlikable and she's one of the good guys. In fact, most of the good guys just go around making stupid decisions. Their idea to hang a banner off the building was one of the dumbest things I've ever seen and completely felt like a waste of time.

Overall: Such a great idea. Such poor execution. There were some fine moments and the action was mostly well done. The characters were just completely dense. I had no reason to cheer for any good guy and they all just keep making decisions that baffled me. This idea was done way better in Mayhem, another 2017 film.