The pacing is uneven, leading to a bumpy road where laughter and gore sometimes complement each other and sometimes are at odds. This makes Severance more of a mixed bag than an unqualified success.
Severance (2007)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:84
Fresh:55
Rotten:29
Average Rating:6.1/10
Consensus: A twisted and bloody spoof on office life, Severance nicely balances comedy and nasty horror.
Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Theatrical Release:Apr 20, 2007 Limited
Box Office: $66,719
Synopsis: A team-building exercise goes horribly wrong in this horror comedy, where HOSTEL meets OFFICE SPACE. A group of Brits (and a single, sexy American blonde played by Laura Harris of DEAD LIKE ME)... A team-building exercise goes horribly wrong in this horror comedy, where HOSTEL meets OFFICE SPACE. A group of Brits (and a single, sexy American blonde played by Laura Harris of DEAD LIKE ME) travels through the forests of Hungary to a remote lodge in order to mix business with pleasure. Led by their manager, Richard (Tim McInnerny, BLACKADDER), the co-workers soon realize that their trip is less about trust falls and rope courses than it is about death and destruction. Someone has targeted the team, and begins to take down the cubemates one by one. SEVERANCE is savvy and sly, but it never lets the comedy override the onscreen horror. Humor may temper the disturbing visuals, but this British comedy isn't SHAUN OF THE DEAD. It's far less flashy and a good deal darker, but it all works to great effect. This film is more in the spirit of DOG SOLDIERS, a movie with bleak gallows humor amid its blood and gore. In addition to its smart satire of office culture, SEVERANCE features stomach-churning scenes that rival the violence in films from the SAW trilogy. This film doesn't rely on A-list stars, with McInnerny vying with Harris and Toby Stephens (DIE ANOTHER DAY) for the position of most recognizable actor. But regardless of its lack of marquee talent, SEVERANCE ably mixes guts and giggles to create an entertaining and gruesome film. [More]
Starring: Danny Dyer, Laura Harris, Tim McInnerny, Toby Stephens
Starring: Danny Dyer, Laura Harris, Tim McInnerny, Toby Stephens, Claudie Blakely, David Gilliam, Andy Nyman, Babou Ceesay
Director: Christopher Smith
Director: Christopher Smith
Screenwriter: James Moran, Christopher Smith
Producer: Jason Newmark
Studio: Magnolia Pictures
Get This Movie
Reviews for Severance
The chintzy characters, hair-raising deaths, and one spectacular rocket-launcher joke aren't enough to give Hostel a run for its blood, but they will keep the desensitized occupied.
The most outrageous and exhilarating moments of Severance zip by like Apocalypto on whippets, gory but hilarious.
A comical cautionary tale which ought to trigger a little paranoia in the souls of any advocates of the Military-Industrial Complex.
Unlike [Dr. Strangelove], to say nothing of a whole spate of recent movies (including The Host and Land of the Dead) that have employed genre as a means of social criticism, Severance isn't a sustained work of imagination.
If anyone involved in this sloppy, inexplicable slasher flick had a notion of what they were doing or why, they've kept it to themselves.
Director and co-writer Christopher Smith, mischievously blending The Office with Friday the 13th, keeps things fierce and funny enough to give Steve Carell ideas.
Witty slasher pic about weapons dealers who are hoist with their own petard.
Severance is how Office Space would’ve turned out had Michael Bolton and Samir not been able to take their frustrations out on the office printer.
A The Office-style comedy of corporate manners crossed with a Friday the 13th-style slasher movie, with encoded satire on U.S./British foreign policy and birds coming home to roost.
It's a brutal, gruesome horror film with a dose of refined British wit, a delicate combination that serves the film remarkably well.
Severance's lame jokes are fully formed, something that can't be said about its political critique
An old-school slasher flick with a really quick sense of broad British wit, a whole lot of energy, and a seriously strong cast.
...it's not difficult at all to imagine audiences going crazy over some of this stuff (the "bear trap" sequence is an obvious highlight).
This is the first shocker in ages where you actually care about what happens to the victims.
Full of wonderful set-pieces of both comedy and horror, Severance is a remarkable success...
mixing comedy with horror's never an easy business, but time and again Severance cuts it.
Latest News for Severance
September 18, 2007:
RT on DVD: It's Death Proof Time!
If you've been itching for a good rental, you're in luck -- even the gambles this week are near Fresh on the Tomatometer! Tarantino fans already know to look for his Death Proof... More...
September 13, 2007:
A comical cautionary tale which ought to trigger a little paranoia in the souls of any advocates of the Military-Industrial Complex. ![]()
More...
May 17, 2007:
Critical Consensus: Third Time's Not the Charm for "Shrek"
America is going green this week: "Shrek the Third" (featuring the voices of Mike Meyers, Eddie Murphy, and Antonio Banderas) is our single new wide release. Critics... More...
April 28, 2007:
Trailer & Poster review ![]()
More...
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 66% 66% | Public Enemies |
| 83% 83% | Harry Potter and the H… |
| 44% 44% | Night at the Museum: B… |
| 75% 75% | Julie & Julia |
| 32% 32% | Terminator Salvation |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 88% 88% | Inglourious Basterds |
| 78% 78% | The Hangover |
| 49% 49% | Taking Woodstock |
| 26% 26% | The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard |
| 47% 47% | The Girl From Monaco |
RT On Current TV
DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196 | More...
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
CloseSponsored Links
Fresh Links
Featured

Take a look at MSN's choices for the Top 10 films of 2009.

What were your favorites? Least favorites? The funniest and scariest? Moviefone wants to know!

Hollywood.com explores why QT's characters resonate so well with audiences.

TIME chimes in with their own list of the best films released this year.

Click through to see which movies BuzzSugar placed in their Best-of-Decade list!
Promos

Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!



Top Critic



