The Belko Experiment was marketed as Office Space meets Battle Royale. In reality, the film fails to live up to either of those, but manages to offer enough to make it tolerable. Written by James Gunn and directed by Greg McLean, the film looked like it could be an hour and a half blood brawl or a dark comedy that attempts to off social commentary on the corporate workplace. Yet, it only manages to give a little of both before plummeting into an unsatisfying climax.
The Belko Experiment doesn’t quite deliver on it’s promises
Belko Industries is located in beautiful Bogotá, Colombia and employs several Americans. This day there are new security guards posted and things seem more intense than normal with several native employees being sent away at the gates. It’s not long into the work day that a voice comes over the intercom insisting that the employees kill each other and the game begins.
There are some good actors in this ensemble cast including John Gallagher Jr., Tony Goldwyn, Adria Arjona, John C. McGinley, Melonie Diaz, and Michael Rooker along with some other familiar faces. The character development is rushed to get to the action, which isn’t a problem for a movie like this if the action and suspense pays off. However, it never completely delivers what the audience is expecting. There are several things introduced that either don’t pay off or payoff insufficiently. One is an early relationship between Leandra (Adria Arjona) and Wendell Dukes (John C. McGinley) that feels unnecessary by the end. It’s a solid example of one of the issues with the characters backstories that kind of feel to shallow.
It’s not to say there is no suspense, but when compared to films like Green Room from last year it never quite gets to that level. As noted earlier, it’s also not as crazy violent as Battle Royale or as funny as Office Space. It’s got some of all of the above, but not at a level that makes the film memorable. There are some surprises in the film and the practical effects get pretty brutal.
Final thoughts…
The Belko Experiment didn’t quite deliver what was expected. It’s not bad, but it definitely is missing something. It’s impossible to discuss one of the biggest issues of the film without getting into spoilers, but just know it doesn’t satisfy what people are expecting. The Belko Experiment earns the Decent Watch rating.
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