(2005)
Directed by Billy O’Brien
Starring: Essie Davis, Sean Harris, Marcel Lures, Crispin Letts, John Lynch, Ruth Negga

Find this movie.  Watch it.  Simple as that.

Years ago, while paging through an issue of Fangoria magazine, there was a little spotlight on this movie called Isolation, that they seemed to give a high rating. I didn’t know anything about it, nor did I read any of the review, other than it had something to do with some quarantine on a farm, and figured it might be ‘inspired’ by the 28 Days Later theme. So I put it in my Netflix queue and later discovered just how wrong I was.

It’s really hard to go into any details about the story without giving anything away, and that really is the best part, of going into this, like I did, completely blind. If you want to know a little bit, then you can continue reading this paragraph. Otherwise, skip to the next. The story takes place on a cow farm in Ireland, where they are being used in some sort of experimental testing by a drug company. A cow gives birth and things get weird.

Okay… no spoilers.

One of the real beauties of this film is that there are only 5 people in the main cast, and they all knock it out of the park with their performances. John Lynch plays the farmer and gives an outstanding portrayal of this down on his luck farmer. He’s done his share of work over the years, but I’ve always remembered him from Richard Stanley’s Hardware (1990). Essie Davis plays the local vet who gets caught up in the mess. While she would go on to make a big splash in Jennifer Kent’s debut, The Babadook, making us feel every raw nerve in her body. In this film, close to a decade before, she showed us that she is not afraid to submerge herself in her character. Sean Harris and Ruth Negga play a couple on the run from their families that find themselves in something much worse. Romania actor Marcel Iures plays the man behind all the experiments and is the one that realizes what has gone wrong.

While the movie does have a few nods to a couple of other movies, which we can’t mention without giving any hints away, it still has enough originality to keep you interested as the story unfolds. The film has a dark and cold, and even wet mood to it, making you feel the atmosphere as it sinks into your bones. With the brilliant acting, a pretty original story, and one that will have you on the edge of your seat, I would highly recommend you seeking it out.

Directed by Billy O’Brien, who also wrote the film, based a lot of the life on the farm stuff on his own childhood. With a bleak look, feel, and even sound to it, he is able to make you feel as if you are really on the farm, feeling the cold and damp air blow around you. I can’t say enough about this film other than to please seek it out. O’Brien is a talented craftsman and needs to have more recognition.