ThiefHott Too much of everything

FeistyUpper If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Kayden This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Burn The Witch This is the best comical UK zombie movie in a long time! When reading the storyline, I wondered how a film could be shot entirely in the vicinity of the toilets? It was extremely well thought out, and I was pleasantly surprised how this was executed. All the cast and crew deserve a major big "thumbs up" with sprinkles on! I thoroughly enjoyed how the story started to unfold, dishing out dilemma's round every corner. There were intense moments which me jump through the roof and then nearly wet myself with laughter. I was transfixed with the superbly written script, visuals and SFX. There were belly laughs throughout every scene and many highlights! It promises to entertain from beginning to end - Definitely a must watch!!!

Lauren Donis I heard about this film whilst preparing for my first FrightFest and the concept of a zombie apocalypse taking place in a toilet instantly excited me. Not only are zombie films my favourite type of films, I also love films set in a limited location. I desperately wanted to see it, but I figured it was either going to be awesome or terrible. Thankfully, it was the former.Unlike many films that trick you with an interesting and original concept which is barely utilised, it fully explores the thing that draws you in. The majority of the film takes place in the stall, and the rest of it within the bathroom (mostly), so there are no unnecessary filler scenes.It is more or less a one-man show, with Dan Palmer taking on the job of carrying the entire film on his shoulders. Playing to his strengths, he manages to create a likable and sympathetic hero in WC, as well as delivering his lines perfectly and just being damn hilarious. I knew I was going to love it as soon as soon as he uttered, "There's zombies in your toilet!".A secondary character, who we never see, is introduced later on and she is one of the few faults I find with the film. She's an interesting character with some funny lines, but also feels a little distant and occasionally forced - which may be especially jarring as she's playing against Palmer, who is much more natural. That's not to say I didn't sympathize with her either; it's just she felt a little out of place.It is very much a film that focuses on its characters and their situation, rather than being a slasher-zombie film. The zombies themselves look good and they, and the gory stuff, are used sparingly and to effect.It is a near-perfect film with only a few weak spots; the 'Evie' character, a bit of the overly sentimental dialogue and a couple of too-silly jokes, but after having seen it three times, it's definitely solidified itself as an all-time favourite for me, and I'm sure it'll be held up as one of the best zombie films in recent years for others as well.

brodiebruce_405 I was lucky enough to see this based on the fact I was a huge fan of the team's first feature, FREAK OUT, also written by and starring Dan Palmer and directed by Christian James. This is not quite more of the same - Freak Out was a handmade, home-made movie taking years to film and has confident-low-budget-feel that comes from that kind of production and the somewhat leisurely pace of it. By virtue of it's setting and plotting, STALLED lacks the scope of FREAK OUT which, in the long tradition of horror/monster movies, functioned almost as a travelogue for small towns in general, but it gains in every other area because it is clearly a more professional production, shot on a tight schedule (almost all of it on one set), with more of a cohesive whole. The writing is a lot more confident - if Freak Out was driven by an infectious craziness - a low-budget British attempt at an early Joe Dante film - this is more like Joss Whedon's writing. There's a heavy emphasis on character, a lot of fun with words and clichés, gratuitous pop culture references (including some very important ones to "Jingle All the Way") and a sweet natured affection throughout. Palmer has called it a cross between "Career Opportunities", a much maligned and neglected John Hughes production about coming of age (it was sort of a riff on both "The Breakfast Club" and "Home Alone", but with a love relationship at the core) and George A. Romero's original "Day of the Dead". The latter influence is almost exclusively on the (extremely) confined environment and the zombie presence - none of that film's ugly nihilism is really present, but much of the former's charm is present and in this day and age, that's more impressive to me. Anyone can now fill the screen with zombies and gore, but how many can actually make you care about the characters, especially when there are really only two of them that matter? With an ensemble cast, peripheral characters can alienate us - with only two characters (one of whom is barely seen, more on that in a sec) the audience is potentially stuck with people they hate - the film pulls this off completely.Our main character is W.C. (that's an abbreviation of "Water Closet", a term for a toilet in case you missed it...it's a throwaway joke, the film is funnier than that) played by Palmer. I don't want to spoil the movie but he's basically a crook with some reasons - selfish, immature but understandable ones. This movie doesn't really want to be "Attack the Block" (which is fine with me, I hated it) and make some bold social statement, but it does use the underlying tension of that for some neat character business. Think more along the lines of Dante's infidelity in "Clerks" than interpreting the zombies as the supernatural guilt manifestations as in an Edgar Allen Poe story.The other character is "Evie", and I'm somewhat limited about what I can say about her without spoiling the film. Some of the film she functions as an avatar for W.C. to speak to sight-unseen (think "Wilson" in "Castaway"), and in other scenes has a more profound interaction with W.C. (now think "Wilson" in "Home Improvement", barely glimpsed over the fence). She has an arc of her own that it's not fair to spoil, but let it be said it does get you in the heart and speaks to a pretty neglected section of society. In a sea of "Strippers VS Zombies", "Strippers VS Vampires", "Vampire Zombie Strippers" and "Strippers VS Hookers", this stands apart from the noisy soft-core "dvd premiere" zombie toilet.There are some problems in the film - the movie was shot digital and has a bit of a synthetic look to it, but the story and writing worked well enough that I didn't mind. The set's convincing, the music fantastic (a Tangerine Dream/Mark Isham's score for the original "The Hitcher" feel) and the zombies serviceable. There is a moment where I have to wonder why the zombies all exclaim "Brains" in one key scene, not in evidence in the rest of the picture, in the manner of the "Return of the Living Dead" zombies (and every zombie parody from 1985-2000, including The Simpsons and South Park). I do also think the ending, which most people liked, could've stood to lose the last 20 seconds or so. There's a phone call which wraps up the plot quite neatly and nothing more needed to be done, I have to say I thought it was a development too far, but I'm probably in the minority there. My feeling is simply that when the movie was over, what stayed with me wasn't the brilliance of the concept (epic apocalypse, most mundane and awful seat to watch from) but the writing and characterisation wrung out of such a limited situation and cast. To have that final image felt incongruous with the, yes, journey I went on with the characters. In other words, those final few moments ruined the entire film for me and retroactively made me hate their first film...JUST KIDDING.

abbydirects I saw Stalled at the Film Four Fright Fest in Leicester Square this past Summer and it was most deffo in my number two (haha) of the weekend, after Big Bad Wolves and before Curse of Chucky. Myself and the people I saw the film with went in thinking we had 'had it' with zombie films ..we were dead wrong.This film is charming from beginning to end with a lovably unlovable lead in Dan Palmer who makes you root for him even though he does some pretty low things and often messes up. But I think what really made this film for me was the razor sharp dialogue and the very clever way they came up with ways to battle or defend themselves from the zombies (now and again it reminded me of MacGuyver ...or MacGroober!!). Don't listen to the few nay-sayers on this board, everyone in that screening loved the film and if you look at most of the reviews from real critics it has got AMAZING reviews. WHich I agree with!It has been compared to Sean of the Dead but it only has vague similarities, I think it is more comparable to Brain Dead or Jack Brooks with a bit of Evil Dead thrown in. The character of WC could be a new nerdy ASH - maybe he could fight werewolves next?! Cannot wait for the sequel!!