Director Aaron Longstreth really has an epic story on his hands, and he manages to depict so many themes and expository shots in a short time frame quite brilliantly. I really want a sequel. Or somewhere down the line a feature film continuation, because Longstreth is at the top of his game here and delivers a quality apocalyptic horror film that will appeal to audiences that love fodder like “The Walking Dead” and “28 Days Later.” Speaking as a fan of both, I loved “Shelter 5.” I watched it twice.
Set during an apparent zombie apocalypse, a police officer and a soldier flee from the carnage outside and retreat in to a public building hoping to find a bomb shelter to hide out in. Meanwhile, a man has barricaded himself in a room, fending off zombies outside the door. He’s bitten, is turning, and worst of all his daughter and baby boy are hiding only a few foot steps away. The question “Shelter 5” is primarily built around is if the soldier and officer will eventually make it to their destination and find the dad before he viciously murders his two helpless children, and it’s definitely tense.
Director Longstreth centers the short in one setting, but delivers on the promise of gore and zombie carnage, while also depicting very tragic human characters with very little dialogue at hand. What dialogue there is, is mostly inaudible, used as a means of disrupting the stealth journey in to the bowels of the building as the scene becomes ever more harrowing and terrifying. I’d love to see this world fleshed out more as it really develops a great narrative along with unique but creepy monsters, in the process. “Shelter 5” is a great and entertaining genre entry for anyone in the mood for short but sweet apocalyptic entertainment.
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