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WZ
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Wikipedia article
'WZ' (pronounced 'double-u delta zed') is a 2007 British crime horror thriller film directed by Tom Shankland and starring Stellan Skarsgrd, Melissa George, Selma Blair and Tom Hardy. The film was released in the United States with the title 'The Killing Gene'.
Plot
A pair of detectives attempt to solve a series of grisly murders in a dark rain soaked New York in which each victim has the Price equation (wz = Cov (w,z) = wzVz) carved into their chests .
Detective Eddie Argo (Skarsgard) and his new partner Helen Westcott (George) decipher the strange equation and realize each victim must make a heinous choice: kill your loved ones or be killed. Soon, it is clear that the perpetrator has suffered a similar fate and is now coping by attempting to solve this philosophical quandary.
Cast
* Stellan Skarsgrd as Eddie Argo
* Melissa George as Helen Westcott
* Selma Blair as Jean Lerner
* Tom Hardy as Pierre Jackson
* Ashley Walters as Daniel Leone
* Paul Kaye as Gelb
* Michael Wildman as O'Hare
* Sally Hawkins as Elly Carpenter
* Michael Liebman as Wesley Smith
* John Sharian as Jack Corelli
* Alibe Parsons as Miss Allaway
* Sean Brian Chipango as Jamal Osman / Khaled Osman
* Barbara Adair as Alice Jackson
* Lauren Hood as Sharon Williams
* Sheila Kerr as Alison Lerner
* Joshua O'Gorman as Dominic Carpenter
* Robert Phillips as Captain Maclean
* Marcus Valentine as Hassan Harbi
* Peter Ballance as Trucker
* Igor Smiljevic as SWAT leader
* Larry Cowan as Junkie
* Laurence Doherty as NY Detective
* Roy McManus as Paramedic
Release and reception
The film received generally positive reviews. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 71% based on reviews from 14 critics.
'CHUD.com' wrote of the film, "Director Tom Shankland paints a grimy portrait that fits well with the Clive Bradley script. It is a great debut for both filmmakers who created a movie that works on almost every level."
'DVD Talk' wrote, "But let's not kid ourselves: This is a nasty horror thriller that has a 'Class of 1984' feel to it, although it has the most in common with the 'Saw' series (even the line "Oh yes, there will be blood!" is morphed into "But there will be pain!"). It's not quite as outlandishly brutal, but it's still pretty mean."
'Fortean Times' wrote, "While the plot twists rarely come as a surprise, the film's grimy feel and effective pacing, and a gripping if occasionally rather over-exaggerated central performance by Skarsgrd, make this a genuinely thrilling venture into 'Se7en' territory, despite the unfortunate silliness of the title."
See also
* Price equation
* Social commentary
* Psychological torture
* Modus operandi
References
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