Isolation: Delicious Camp-Free Horror

I must have taken roughly one-thousand-five-hundred-forty-one laps around Blockbuster Video before greeting the clerk with this yum-yum, honey bun! This is long before I had a Netflix account. I went to BB so much I had a cot set up in the horror section and the employees fed me grapes and coupons! Panic was making a stew out of me as my choices for a potential rent were dwindling mercilessly! I finally picked this one up, but was a little uncertain as to how I felt about it. It was either that or go home defeated and watch the how they salt crackers channel( or softcore porn). I approached the check-out counter with great reticence but unbeknownst to me, walked out of the exit with one of the best camp-free, organic-horror films I've seen in a long, long time! I believe it's the films you have no clue about that really surprise and titillate you. But how can a film about genetically modified mutant cows not be campy? Let me introduce you to Billy O'Brien's film, which is damn good! Think old Cronenberg but on a desolate farm in rural Ireland. A lonely farmer named Dan, with not much but lint in his pockets rents his farm out to a scientist who is researching genetic modifications of cattle to increase fertilization. While helping with the delivery of one cow, the veterinarian helping Dan is bitten and believes something went terribly wrong with the experiment. Meanwhile, a couple is camping out near the entrance to Dan's property and Dan asks the boyfriend to help with the delivery. After the delivery some crazy cronenbergesque hybrids begin running around causing chaos. The farm is then quarantined to prevent the infection of humans. This film milked the dreary mood established from the get-go. It takes itself serious but never once treads on campy territory. O'Brien keeps it simple and moody while grounding the elements in reality. This was absolutely a surprise and won my heart with only on viewing. If you're a fan of Cronenberg and serious horror/thrillers, you're going to love it!