This is definitely an average foreign, horror film with English speaking actors. We've seen all the storyline line before. A group of scientists gets together and tries to unravel what happens in the afterlife. To achieve this goal they all inject themselves with a crude hallucinogenic serum. That, of course, gives them more than they wished more. The researchers discover a shape-shifting "bogey-man" that eats people. Previously this creature had killed two children that belonged to two different people in the group. Now that they all had special serum in their bodies the monster could see them as before it could only see young kids. As predictable as any bland horror movie, the shape-shifting creature (done fairly well) then proceeds to slaughter everyone until the last remaining girl somehow kills it with a shovel. She says aloud, "I wonder if that's the only one?". Then the obligatory final scene shows a hilltop with dozens of the "bogey-men" shape-shifting creatures spawning on it. Setting up a possible sequel but I wouldn't bet on it. Like I said, watch at your own discretion and only if you're bored.
32 Reviews
I've seen worse
heatherlyinn-630-33875726 October 2019
Fleshless soul hunting
TheLittleSongbird22 October 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Did like the concept a fair bit, even if it was a familiar one and has been very variably. The title 'Discarnate' (if the title was indeed 'Shapeshifter', as generic it may sound, it would have been a much better title and would have given a much better indication of what to expect) was a head-scratcher and personally wasn't sure what to make of the trailer, which indicated a quite well done monster but also very familiar ground and not being particularly scary.
So wasn't expecting very much really from 'Discarnate' but watched it anyway when it appeared as oddly enough an IMDb recommendation. Watching 'Discarnate', it is not a complete waste, is a little better than what has been said in the reviews (though do agree with a lot with what has been said) and has its moments but was more the less what was expected and indicated from the trailer and is not a particularly good film.
Beginning with the good, 'Discarnate' looks reasonably good, have seen far worse and cheaper production values recently and not only those of films made on a very low budget but also ones made on a similar one or even a bigger one. The monster surprisingly does not look bad, could actually see the effort and it looks creepy in alternative to cheap. The monster is also the component that makes the film by default, there is no unintentional humour here and there is a creepiness about it.
There were parts where the acting was okay, where the actors looked like they knew what they were doing and were giving it all they had. Josh Stewart is the best of the bunch. The music is suitably eerie.
Moving onto the too many things that were not done well, and not just a little but not at all, most of the time the acting was poor with a very stiff and disengaged lead actress. The characters are thinly sketched and there are too many instances of stupid and sometimes illogical behaviour and decision making that makes one endear to them even less. The script is as flabby as a damp squib with a lot of clunky script that never flows like silk.
Had no trouble following the story, a pretty simple one in a way, but nothing new was done with such an over-familiar premise and instead of thrills, tension or suspense (far too little of all three) there are just far too many dead stretches and plot contrivances. Making it a hopelessly bland and forced film, capped off by running badly out of steam at the end, which is nonsensical and anti-climactic.
In conclusion, not awful but very lacklustre. 4/10
So wasn't expecting very much really from 'Discarnate' but watched it anyway when it appeared as oddly enough an IMDb recommendation. Watching 'Discarnate', it is not a complete waste, is a little better than what has been said in the reviews (though do agree with a lot with what has been said) and has its moments but was more the less what was expected and indicated from the trailer and is not a particularly good film.
Beginning with the good, 'Discarnate' looks reasonably good, have seen far worse and cheaper production values recently and not only those of films made on a very low budget but also ones made on a similar one or even a bigger one. The monster surprisingly does not look bad, could actually see the effort and it looks creepy in alternative to cheap. The monster is also the component that makes the film by default, there is no unintentional humour here and there is a creepiness about it.
There were parts where the acting was okay, where the actors looked like they knew what they were doing and were giving it all they had. Josh Stewart is the best of the bunch. The music is suitably eerie.
Moving onto the too many things that were not done well, and not just a little but not at all, most of the time the acting was poor with a very stiff and disengaged lead actress. The characters are thinly sketched and there are too many instances of stupid and sometimes illogical behaviour and decision making that makes one endear to them even less. The script is as flabby as a damp squib with a lot of clunky script that never flows like silk.
Had no trouble following the story, a pretty simple one in a way, but nothing new was done with such an over-familiar premise and instead of thrills, tension or suspense (far too little of all three) there are just far too many dead stretches and plot contrivances. Making it a hopelessly bland and forced film, capped off by running badly out of steam at the end, which is nonsensical and anti-climactic.
In conclusion, not awful but very lacklustre. 4/10
Not that bad
smoke017 April 2019
This is rated and reviewed as if it were just another throwaway horror film, and it really isn't, so I had to jump in and give my two cents.
Right from the start, the film looks and feels professional and interesting, so with the production values and actors who are, with one exception, engaging and believable, it's easy enough to suspend disbelief and overlook some leaps in logic, small plot holes, and the aforementioned badly miscast actress, and just sit back and enjoy the ride.
There isn't enough gore for diehards, but there is a decent amount of creepy creature features (and a lot of vomiting for no particular reason), so give it a try, it's still much better than it should have been.
Right from the start, the film looks and feels professional and interesting, so with the production values and actors who are, with one exception, engaging and believable, it's easy enough to suspend disbelief and overlook some leaps in logic, small plot holes, and the aforementioned badly miscast actress, and just sit back and enjoy the ride.
There isn't enough gore for diehards, but there is a decent amount of creepy creature features (and a lot of vomiting for no particular reason), so give it a try, it's still much better than it should have been.
How NOT to make a movie!!
pediatricgrime13 February 2019
This is one of the absolute worst movies I've seen.
People doing an experiment travel to an isolated house. They each take the drug that is developed and then goes off doing their own thing. Very scientific!! The only known actress is scantily clad to lure in that demographic...
So many things wrong here!! Avoid!!
Mediocre at best
Stevieboy66618 November 2019
Horror movie about a scientific experiment in an abandoned house using a drug that opens a doorway to another dimension.
No shortage of cheap scares here, every few minutes we're seeing ghosts or other horrific images. Some of these are ok, others aren't. In fact we see so much that it becomes boring and predictable after a while. Visually it is ok, sadly let down by a plot that becomes difficult to follow, or even remain interested in. Nadine Velázquez looks pretty hot throughout!
My phone was more entertaining
depwilkerson11 May 2019
I don't really like to look at my phone during movies but here I am, trying to find anything to find interesting about this film. I will say the special affects are good. I guess some of the actors are ok. But god was I bored out of my mind. I felt like I was watching flatliners mixed with a goosebumps story. I don't normally say "don't watch" but seriously, don't watch.
Nope!
the_nephilim711 April 2019
Disjointed, Forced Plot. Terrible Dialogue. Still Somewhat Interesting.
velexia30 May 2019
Everything that happens is forced and contrived.
Important lead up scenes don't exist.
The dialogue is very cringe inducing, similarly forced and unnatural like the plot.
Subpar acting by the lead.
The overall theme is fairly interesting.
Bad directing, bad writing, but interesting story idea, which is the only thing that kept me watching.
Uses all of the horror tropes in the worst ways possible.
In the end my reaction was "bleh". Was going to rate it 5 stars, but nothing really made it worth watching overall. Don't watch this film, just watch the trailer and let your imagination create a better story.
Bad directing, bad writing, but interesting story idea, which is the only thing that kept me watching.
Uses all of the horror tropes in the worst ways possible.
In the end my reaction was "bleh". Was going to rate it 5 stars, but nothing really made it worth watching overall. Don't watch this film, just watch the trailer and let your imagination create a better story.
Nothing truly original, but still worth a watch...
tankfreak11 October 2019
I don't usually write reviews unless I feel very strongly about the movie or I feel the other reviews are mostly nonsense from people who either didn't actually watch, pay attention, or understand the movie. Consider this the latter.
Discarnate was not at all difficult to follow or confusing in any way. If you actually pay attention, as another reviewer pointed out, the characters explain everything that they've set out to do as well as everything happening. Personally I thought the creature was very cool and creepy, however minimalist the overall look was, it was still effective.
The production values were fine. Obviously they didn't have a huge Hollywood budget, but it's far from B/low budget, mostly what you'd expect from an independent film. The cast, many of which are familiar faces to the horror genre, including Bex Taylor-Klaus, Josh Stewart, Thomas Kretschmann, and Chris Coy, all did a fine job with their roles. So while, yes, like 95% of horror films in existence, there were some clichés, tropes, and a stretch in believability from time to time, overall Discarnate was a pretty decent horror flick.
My advice, as with every movie, ignore all the reviews (including mine), watch for yourself, and form your own opinion.
Discarnate was not at all difficult to follow or confusing in any way. If you actually pay attention, as another reviewer pointed out, the characters explain everything that they've set out to do as well as everything happening. Personally I thought the creature was very cool and creepy, however minimalist the overall look was, it was still effective.
The production values were fine. Obviously they didn't have a huge Hollywood budget, but it's far from B/low budget, mostly what you'd expect from an independent film. The cast, many of which are familiar faces to the horror genre, including Bex Taylor-Klaus, Josh Stewart, Thomas Kretschmann, and Chris Coy, all did a fine job with their roles. So while, yes, like 95% of horror films in existence, there were some clichés, tropes, and a stretch in believability from time to time, overall Discarnate was a pretty decent horror flick.
My advice, as with every movie, ignore all the reviews (including mine), watch for yourself, and form your own opinion.
Painfully boring
rudygerst16 April 2019
I stopped watching after 30 mns, because I knew I would regret this wasted time of my life if I continued to watch. This movie is horrendous. Horrible science (yeah, we are scientists, let's all gather in a house and have all of us take the drugs".
Terrible acting. Nothing happens except for stupid jumpscares. This story has been done hundreds of time. Don't waste your time watching this one. It's totally not worth it, unless you want to die from boredom.
extremely well made
ops-5253511 February 2019
If you like horror films including an experiment, 6 people enclosed in a remote located house, playing with psykedelics and a shapeshifting monster, then this must be your choice. the only thing i feel flaws this flick are the screenplay, with empty dialouges, and a bit too much vomiting , but thats about it!!!
when i saw this film, chosen on random i didnt expect what came.there are barely one minute without something goosebumping, jawclenching and shock-jolting happenings taking place. there are lots of movement and motion, screaming, hiding,seekin,peepin and shiftin, so i was pretty exhausted when the film was over. it is so very well acted and ploted that i started to wonder if this was a story based on real experiments on some new psykedelic compound, so the ''reel-feel'' factor had the henchmans grip on me.
technical production are amazing,music are always a booster on good horror movies, and the score of discarnate really hits the target. the cinematography are brilliant, the use of focus, the twisting use of light and sound,and the special effects are overwhelming. there are not many location ,but the one chosen here are magnificent and fullfilled the purpose of the message and strengthens the story.
so dont fuzz around with psycoactive drugs or any drug that aint prescribed for the better being of your health, but do have valium at hand for the aftermath, so see the doctor first and view later. i will for sure test this film on my wife, she is a live electrical shock- test specimen and jump jolts just saying the word HORROR. so the grumpy old man can sign on the resolution that this is a good film and may everyone rest in pieces.
when i saw this film, chosen on random i didnt expect what came.there are barely one minute without something goosebumping, jawclenching and shock-jolting happenings taking place. there are lots of movement and motion, screaming, hiding,seekin,peepin and shiftin, so i was pretty exhausted when the film was over. it is so very well acted and ploted that i started to wonder if this was a story based on real experiments on some new psykedelic compound, so the ''reel-feel'' factor had the henchmans grip on me.
technical production are amazing,music are always a booster on good horror movies, and the score of discarnate really hits the target. the cinematography are brilliant, the use of focus, the twisting use of light and sound,and the special effects are overwhelming. there are not many location ,but the one chosen here are magnificent and fullfilled the purpose of the message and strengthens the story.
so dont fuzz around with psycoactive drugs or any drug that aint prescribed for the better being of your health, but do have valium at hand for the aftermath, so see the doctor first and view later. i will for sure test this film on my wife, she is a live electrical shock- test specimen and jump jolts just saying the word HORROR. so the grumpy old man can sign on the resolution that this is a good film and may everyone rest in pieces.
Fails, But For All The Right Reasons
silvio-mitsubishi3 November 2020
There is an outstanding idea at the heart of this film, and somebody gave it considerable thought. The creature itself is well realised and makes more sense than most, although the human characters less so. Supposed scientists undertake an experiment in the least appropriate place possible, with far too many variables - human and rat subjects simultaneously, inconsistent dosage, possible magnetic forces giving false results.
The characters themselves are stereotypes: the head scientist with a tragic past; the hipster female assistant with flawed beliefs (Norse mythology as from an 'isolated culture', when Norse travellers had found Canada half a millennium before anyone else, so knew more of the planet than anybody else); the beautiful but otherworldly spiritualist; the chalk and cheese brothers. I only knew three of the actors. Two were in Hostel 3, the other I recognised but had to look him up - he was the guy from The Collector / Collection.
The story is largely told through dream logic, a mixture of reality and fantasy. There are distorted perspectives, warped timescales, paranoia, shadows and light. The director of photography deserves a paragraph of their own, so here goes.
The camerawork is outstanding for a film with this budget. Terrific use of backlighting to place characters in silhouette, a superb use of colour in various scenes, and believable nighttime activity. Many scenes are almost monochrome but far from black and white. I vividly recall a scene all in brown but for the blue shirt of a character, another vista in a blue wash but for the blood on a victims face. I watched the film at night and was impressed at how much I could see in the darker episodes, but even rewatching by day with the curtains open it was clear the lighting picked out everything relevant but added deep shadows to blur the irrelevant backgrounds and create menace. I have not researched it but I imagine the cinematographer grew up in music videos or making commercials. In one scene close to the end, backlighting makes a male character seem perhaps more excited than he should be, but overall the lighting and camerawork is outstanding, far better than the film deserves.
The makers credit the viewer with intelligence. Hitchcock' definition of suspense was when the audience knows things they desperately want the characters to realise, and this is brave enough to show us the history of the house from the opening scene, although the researchers do not find out until very late. Echoes of The Thing when everyone knows they are dealing with a creature that can appear as one of them; the paranoia is palpable.
The flaws are in the lack of a coherent plot. One brother looks for another, questioning why he would go into a greenhouse when there is absolutely nothing to indicate he has. The other brother then looks for the first brother in the same outbuilding. The ridiculous lack of science shown by scientists is an almost insurmountable disappointment but don't let that put you off. There is so much to praise about this film, right up to the credits rolling, that it would be a shame to dismiss it. Done right, this could easily have been an all-time great.
The characters themselves are stereotypes: the head scientist with a tragic past; the hipster female assistant with flawed beliefs (Norse mythology as from an 'isolated culture', when Norse travellers had found Canada half a millennium before anyone else, so knew more of the planet than anybody else); the beautiful but otherworldly spiritualist; the chalk and cheese brothers. I only knew three of the actors. Two were in Hostel 3, the other I recognised but had to look him up - he was the guy from The Collector / Collection.
The story is largely told through dream logic, a mixture of reality and fantasy. There are distorted perspectives, warped timescales, paranoia, shadows and light. The director of photography deserves a paragraph of their own, so here goes.
The camerawork is outstanding for a film with this budget. Terrific use of backlighting to place characters in silhouette, a superb use of colour in various scenes, and believable nighttime activity. Many scenes are almost monochrome but far from black and white. I vividly recall a scene all in brown but for the blue shirt of a character, another vista in a blue wash but for the blood on a victims face. I watched the film at night and was impressed at how much I could see in the darker episodes, but even rewatching by day with the curtains open it was clear the lighting picked out everything relevant but added deep shadows to blur the irrelevant backgrounds and create menace. I have not researched it but I imagine the cinematographer grew up in music videos or making commercials. In one scene close to the end, backlighting makes a male character seem perhaps more excited than he should be, but overall the lighting and camerawork is outstanding, far better than the film deserves.
The makers credit the viewer with intelligence. Hitchcock' definition of suspense was when the audience knows things they desperately want the characters to realise, and this is brave enough to show us the history of the house from the opening scene, although the researchers do not find out until very late. Echoes of The Thing when everyone knows they are dealing with a creature that can appear as one of them; the paranoia is palpable.
The flaws are in the lack of a coherent plot. One brother looks for another, questioning why he would go into a greenhouse when there is absolutely nothing to indicate he has. The other brother then looks for the first brother in the same outbuilding. The ridiculous lack of science shown by scientists is an almost insurmountable disappointment but don't let that put you off. There is so much to praise about this film, right up to the credits rolling, that it would be a shame to dismiss it. Done right, this could easily have been an all-time great.
The Cover Was the Scariest Part
westsideschl23 June 2020
The most interestingly scary part of this movie is the cover photo; downhill from there. The story makes almost zero sense. Inject some drug & you are either/both hallucinating or for some unexplained and unintelligible reason connecting w/nasty creatures with no faces (but huge piranha teeth to munch on you, of course). The supposed reason for munching? It's makes them more mortal human like. A group of poorly acted, sort-of-science type, investigators (made worse w/dumb dialogue) meet in: (The following are time worn hooks.). An abandoned house located in the middle of nowhere. Where else to put shadowy figures; creaking windows; storm blown branches; fog with something rising out of the ground; images in mirrors/window; a mysterious rocking rocking-chair; mysterious out-of-nowhere foot & hand prints on the floor; creepies able to use mysterious force to toss people & things about. The hyper-flexible creepies w/heavy make-up were more laughable than scary.
Lacked any direction
pacman-8112 December 2019
The first thing I look for is the cast.... seen Josh Stewart of The Collector, The Collection and The Neighbor which was good start. The synopsis looked very interesting but then I pressed play. The story was all over the place, the characters back stories were barely touched and the reveal was a let down like the movie unfortunately.
Nothing stands out in this movie and not scary at all.
pjscafe17 October 2019
Oh dear...
fairlesssam25 February 2020
How can a cast with at least four solid experienced quality actors fail to make an interesting successful movie?! I am quite shocked at how bad, disappointing and messy this film actually is.
A group of people are together with a serum that they inject to allow them to access the afterlife. The main characters son was taken and fed upon by some kind of creature that is somehow able to come through to our reality.
Some of the effects in this film are superb and the potential was there but the execution turned out to be pretty darn terrible. It made a cast of talented actors look amateur.
A group of people are together with a serum that they inject to allow them to access the afterlife. The main characters son was taken and fed upon by some kind of creature that is somehow able to come through to our reality.
Some of the effects in this film are superb and the potential was there but the execution turned out to be pretty darn terrible. It made a cast of talented actors look amateur.
Weak for a a horror
SunnySonnie7 February 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I'm not sure what was this movie. It was a horror, I sign that, but very weak of its kind. To be honest I haven't seen a really good horror for a long time. I love horror movies, and I think I've seen all of the good ones already, but I'm not giving up to find one wich I find amusing. I'm trying to be frightened or at least enjoy what I've got left from the list of millions of horror movies, but I have to tell you, this is not one of the good ones. The monsters looks good and frightening, and you got a very few creepy scenes, and the story could grow up to a good line, but at the end, it was just a movie you will forget very soon.
fake reviews
pvskqr24 April 2019
Solid horror movie
terrencepatrix12 February 2019
This movie was a lot better than what I was expecting from the trailer. It has a lower budget but it's by no means "low budget" and there's some really awesome monster effects here. In fact one of the best most original looking monsters I've seen in awhile.
This movie centers around an experiment into the supernatural. In the first several minutes of the film a mans son is suddenly abducted right from his arms by an unseen force and vanishes into the woods. Time jump several years forward and the father is now part of a team exploring the supernatural. He encounters a woman who has a recipe for a tea passed down to her by her grandmother that allows people to see into this supernatural realm through their dreams. They manage to refine this tea into an inject-able serum with far stronger and unforeseen affects. The walls between our dimension and the supernatural begin to fall down exposing the team to all manner of otherworldly events and dangers.
Anything more than that would be a spoiler. Unlike the one of the other reviewers I didn't find this film confusing at all, in fact there are several moments where the events are being very clearly explained and the movie does come to a logical conclusion.
Overall a movie that kept my attention the entire way through, had very decent special effects, strong cast, good camera work, and while not an entirely original story a well fleshed out one. For the horror genre I'd give it a 7.
Edited: I think the people hating on this movie so hard must be too stupid to follow a basic plot. They literally explain what's going on through specific reveals as the movie unfolds. This wasn't a complicated movie, but the people saying this is the worst movie ever or that these are fake reviews are morons.
This movie centers around an experiment into the supernatural. In the first several minutes of the film a mans son is suddenly abducted right from his arms by an unseen force and vanishes into the woods. Time jump several years forward and the father is now part of a team exploring the supernatural. He encounters a woman who has a recipe for a tea passed down to her by her grandmother that allows people to see into this supernatural realm through their dreams. They manage to refine this tea into an inject-able serum with far stronger and unforeseen affects. The walls between our dimension and the supernatural begin to fall down exposing the team to all manner of otherworldly events and dangers.
Anything more than that would be a spoiler. Unlike the one of the other reviewers I didn't find this film confusing at all, in fact there are several moments where the events are being very clearly explained and the movie does come to a logical conclusion.
Overall a movie that kept my attention the entire way through, had very decent special effects, strong cast, good camera work, and while not an entirely original story a well fleshed out one. For the horror genre I'd give it a 7.
Edited: I think the people hating on this movie so hard must be too stupid to follow a basic plot. They literally explain what's going on through specific reveals as the movie unfolds. This wasn't a complicated movie, but the people saying this is the worst movie ever or that these are fake reviews are morons.
Shambolic mess
Coffee_in_the_Clink14 June 2020
While appearing to hold some semblance of integrity, "Discarnate" strives to be, but ultimately fails, to be something original and effective in the special effects department and something other than a confusing mess that tries to do so much and, ironically, achieves so little. What is most interesting, and what is undoubtedly what attracts viewers, is the leading role taken by seasoned German actor Thomas Kretchsmann of "Das Boot" and "Stalingrad" fame. He must have been stuck for a few quid, because how any experienced actor couldn't see this for the poor effort the screenplay offered is beyond me. The rather flamboyant and unusual way the special effects and horror sequences are done here demonstrate director Mario Sorrentino's photography and fashion industry background and his inexperience in the film industry. Some just have it and pull it off. Sorrentino doesn't.
How can the reviews be fake and as for bad acting it has a great cast
sooziebobs7 July 2020
Was skeptical to watch after looking at the reviews, but enjoyed it, has a great cast of actors, with the guy from the collector, the woman from scream and the woman from my name is Earl. The monster in it is scary and it has a few jumps.
OK Horror
Pairic3 November 2019
Discarnate: A team of researchers try out a serum to try to get to the other side, beyond death. At first they wonder if they are hallucinating but then the world around them is affected. Poltergeist effects. They seedeceased relatives, the leader of the team believes that he lost his son to a supernatural entity a decade ago but he sees and converses with a girl wearing an animal mask. Strange monstrously morphing creatures then start to appear. something has crossed over. It's been done before but the monsters are freaky and the colonial style ranch they use ax a base adds to the weirdness. Good effects and the acting is ok , the film has a shaky start due to eccentric editing but i's a sold If unoriginal) horror film. Written and Directed by Mario Sorrenti in his feature debut. 6/10.
Tired predictability
Leofwine_draca19 February 2020
Warning: Spoilers
DISCARNATE is another lame and cheap digital horror movie that shares a cookie-cutter feel with most other genre productions these days. It's overly dark, greyed out, featuring naturalistic performances which verge on the boring throughout. Thomas Kretschmann leads a team of researchers taking experimental drug injections that open them up to a netherworld where they're pursued by the usual CGI monster. There's really nothing much to see here other than the expected jump scares and kill scenes, and an air of tired predictability hangs over the entire proceedings.
Mostly drivel
hlebov16 October 2019
With an interesting and not entirely unoriginal premise, I thought this movie had potential. Evidently, any potential that might have been present was quickly squandered by shoddy acting and even shoddier writing.
The one redeeming quality about this one was that the creature was actually pretty freaky looking, and wasn't insultingly cheap. It's backstory, however, was as cheap as it gets and went completely unexplained.
The rest of the film was muddled drivel and hardly worth the paper it was written on - it certainly is not worth your time. Look elsewhere.
The one redeeming quality about this one was that the creature was actually pretty freaky looking, and wasn't insultingly cheap. It's backstory, however, was as cheap as it gets and went completely unexplained.
The rest of the film was muddled drivel and hardly worth the paper it was written on - it certainly is not worth your time. Look elsewhere.
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