Chrysalis (2014)

I thought it was extremely well done. The beginning was a little slow, but because the film was rich in characterization, that's gonna happen. To me, character development is a plus, because then you actually care about the characters. I have to say that if you're looking for a movie with zombies, zombies everywhere, this isn't it. This has zombies, walkers, biters, infected, whatever you want to call them, but the main focus is the character development.For low budget - according to IMDb.com, it cost $35,000, they did a great job on making the sets look like they are from an apocalypse. I've seen movies with much bigger budgets that had much worse results, so give this one a try. There wasn't a weak link in the acting, writing or directing IMO, except the one sex scene, which was kinda out of place and unnecessary, but the girl did have nice breasts. lol. The people were in such a hurry to get out of that area, but as soon as Abira leaves to find some water, Josh and Penelope share a verbally intimate moment, and then a sexual one. lol. It's not that the scene was badly done, it wasn't. Just that it took away the feeling of urgency that they had for getting out of that place.The actors all looked like the world sat on them and kicked them to the side of the road, and that's how they should appear since it's an apocalyptic situation. It went through the dire need to find food. When Abira was asked if she'd eaten, her response was "Today?" Showing that eating every day was not a usual event for these characters.Towards the end, Abira tells Josh and Penelope that the zombies are chasing them because of her. I didn't see that coming, and I thought it was rather unique. However, I don't know why the zombies wanted her over anyone else. That needed a bit more explaining.And no, I had nothing to do with this movie other than being an audience member.Many zombie movies are done in an action-adventure way, like Dawn of the Dead. If that's your speed for zombie movies, then this probably won't be for you. However, if you like movies that - again - are rich in character development, along with some zombie moments that are scary, you should give this a try. Personally, I thought this was much better than that Brad Pitt behemoth, World War Z. I don't think anything touches The Walking Dead in the zombie genre, another that does great character development, but this doesn't try to. They simply had a story to tell, and I think they did a great job telling it.As an indie-movie maker wannabe, I have a ton of respect for those who have a story, are willing to chase their dreams, and do what they can to bring those dreams to life on film. Bravo to everyone involved in this production. I've given this an 5-star rating. One thing I didn't like about the film was the title. I understand what they were getting at, because I assume they named it after the Chrysalis butterfly, but they should've given it a catchier name that has to do with zombies or an apocalypse. But hey, if the movie's title is the biggest problem, you'd have to agree that the movie makers did a pretty good job.

I don't know why the hate for this movie I thought it was quite good. I suspect spamming by insiders and their minions who don't want creative new blood interfering with their gravy train of big budget Hollywood garbage films. Some elements of The Road and Blair Witch project but with the best post apocalyptic scenes I think I have even seen in a movie. OK, the zombie thing is getting stale as of 2014 but with Ebola going around this movie is also timely. I thought acting was good or at least good enough to put you into the scenes with the actors. Gary Indiana was a great location to film. Soundtrack was really good also. Hopefully we will see more from this group in the future.

A friend highly recommended Chrysalis to me and based on the trailers I had extremely high expectations (especially since I'm a fan of The Walking Dead and pretty much all zombie movies), but I was not disappointed! I didn't even make it two minutes into the movie before I had to rewind and re-watch the opening scene again because it was just so cool. No spoilers, but it made me cry, for real. And of course it made me jump (it wouldn't be a zombie movie without at least a few of those good scares). About halfway through I accurately predicted part of the ending, but not all of it. The characters were interesting and I felt sympathy for them (and angry at them) at different points throughout. The actor who plays Josh was fantastic. I'd love to see more of his movies.But the best part of Chrysalis was absolutely the look of it. The abandoned buildings it was shot in and the darkness of some of the shots, with nothing but a flashlight or single lantern illuminating them… it was seriously incredible. Didn't seem like a low-budget indie film at all with all the different shots and the way they were cut together. I remember one shot of some hanging icicles that was particularly beautiful. The whole movie has a really beautiful, artistic feel to it, especially a point near the end that I won't spoil here, but that you'll definitely know when you see. I felt transported into the mind of one of the characters, like I could see exactly what they were seeing and feel what they were feeling in that moment. So good!! I watched it on my laptop and can't wait to get my hands on a DVD so I can enjoy it again on a much bigger screen.

I really enjoyed this film, I was pleasantly surprised.If you are after gratuitous gore, and amazing special effects, then maybe it's not for you.The acting is fairly solid, with a few cringe worthy moments, but over all pretty convincing. It's a horror flick done right, I was heavily invested in the characters, and felt anxious when they were faced with dangers.This is by far one of the better low budget, apocalyptic films made in recent times, beautifully shot, brooding score, and likable characters.If you liked films like The Road, or Stake land, I think you will enjoy this.