Spoilers warning: there aren't huge spoilers in this review but it does contain some. Should you like your viewing experience totally untainted, please scroll to the very bottom of the review for the final score.
Green Room is a brutal film - in the same way that Hostel is brutal. It starts off with some relatively light exposition, showing a punk band doing a gig for a very small amount of money and ending up stealing some gas whilst on the road. Clearly they are down on their luck despite the backstory indicating that they have some talent.
The band end up at a skinhead bar for a gig, but after their set they come across a murder scene. The locals are desperate to keep the event from law enforcement - to the point of even murdering the witnesses. Now, being in a few bands in my time I wanted to like this film, I really did. But it was tough going. Here's why: style over substance.
It was never actually clear what the hell the murder was really about. I don't care if you have Patrick Stewart (a legend by the way) doing his best to appear extremely menacing. He simply will never be a neo-Nazi for me. More to the point though is why he felt he had to cover up a murder committed by some random at the venue? Perhaps I missed this entirely but it seemed like this was glossed over.
The acting was generally okay in this film. There were some moments of genuine high tension but Stewart and Anton Yelchin (God rest his soul) were clearly where the money went. That's not to say that the other performances were poor, but simply that they were present and delivered... with little more.
If you are having a chill and there's nothing else on, there are certainly worse films to watch. There are, however, undoubtedly better things to catch either in your DVD collection or on YouTube. Green Room may show some shock injuries (such as dogs ripping throats out) and have some suspense, but most of what you see has been done elsewhere to a better standard.
2/5 - Mr Butterscotch
