Opening

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63% Epic May 24
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85% We Steal Secrets: The Story Of Wikileaks May 24
82% Fill the Void May 24
20% A Green Story
—— Alyce Kills May 24

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87% Star Trek Into Darkness $70.2M
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—— After Earth May 31
—— Now You See Me May 31
100% The Kings of Summer May 31
89% The East May 31

The Signal (2007)

tomatometer

57

Average Rating: 5.8/10
Reviews Counted: 69
Fresh: 39 | Rotten: 30

The Signal is gruesome, funny, and has big thoughts about society, but those disparate elements fail to come together convincingly.

61

Average Rating: 6/10
Critic Reviews: 18
Fresh: 11 | Rotten: 7

The Signal is gruesome, funny, and has big thoughts about society, but those disparate elements fail to come together convincingly.

audience

56

liked it
Average Rating: 3.3/5
User Ratings: 9,272

My Rating

Movie Info

As glasses are raised for a New Year's Eve toast, the denizens of the city of Terminus fall prey to a mysterious transmission that pulses through all electronic devices and transforms rational, sane people into murderous, rampaging psychopaths. All forms of communication have been jammed, and now the airwaves have been saturated with an ominous signal that preys on fear and deep-rooted desire. Though Terminus was once a city defined by conformity, any semblance of order in this concrete jungle

Jun 10, 2008

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All Critics (69) | Top Critics (18) | Fresh (41) | Rotten (31) | DVD (3)

[A] cagey low-budget horror flick.

December 17, 2008 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Too fuzzy and indistinct to work on either a literal or a metaphoric level, The Signal nonetheless pulses with enough random static to hold viewers' attention.

March 20, 2008 Full Review Source: Time Out New York
Time Out New York
Top Critic IconTop Critic

It doesn't take long for the The Signal's promising beginning to fade into a haze that leaves the viewer exhausted and irritated.

February 22, 2008 Full Review Source: ReelViews
ReelViews
Top Critic IconTop Critic

None of the rabbit holes in The Signal go that deep. But you do leave persuaded that you've discovered some talented people.

February 22, 2008 Full Review Source: Boston Globe
Boston Globe
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A movie that explores the common ground between visceral horror and sketch comedy, and finds plenty of it.

February 22, 2008 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The Signal is electrifying, deliciously mad and twisted filmmaking. It's certainly not for everyone, but chances are it will inspire many.

February 22, 2008 Full Review Source: Detroit News
Detroit News
Top Critic IconTop Critic

...suffers from an increasingly uneven sensibility that ultimately becomes oppressive...

May 1, 2009 Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews
Reel Film Reviews

Funny, terrifying and haunting all at once, this tripartite vision of postmodern alienation, societal breakdown and mental disintegration is as arresting as a baseball bat to the head - while still cutting to the heart.

April 8, 2009 Full Review Source: Eye for Film
Eye for Film

Esforçando-se ao máximo para alcançar o equilíbrio entre gore e paródia que transformou Uma Noite Alucinante em cult, esta bomba torna-se risível apenas pela incompetência generalizada com que foi realizada.

September 8, 2008
Cinema em Cena

It's definitely an interesting premise and the three filmmakers almost pull it off, but the last ten minutes were a bit of a disappointment to me.

July 22, 2008 Full Review
Sin Magazine

This is much more than a typical genre piece; it's a sort of hip, almost punk, combination of drama, science-fiction and horror.

July 15, 2008 Full Review Source: ESplatter
ESplatter

Bloody, hallucinatory horror movie isn't for kids.

July 9, 2008 Full Review Source: Common Sense Media
Common Sense Media

A bloody banquet of excessive, tasteless gore, but with an odd infusion of unsavory humor that never meshes with the horror. Think fatal car crash with a laugh track.

June 18, 2008
Baret News

The film is both an impressive "calling card" work for the filmmakers and a failure as an actual film.

June 15, 2008 Full Review Source: CinemaBlend.com
CinemaBlend.com

(The filmmakers), taken with the way in which humans act with their world wide wired habitat, never lets the populace off the hook. In The Signal, we are responsible for our technological addiction, and the fatal results of same.

June 14, 2008 Full Review Source: PopMatters
PopMatters

A bloody banquet of excessive, tasteless gore, but with an odd infusion of unsavory humor that never meshes with the horror. Think fatal car crash with a laugh track.

June 13, 2008 Full Review Source: NewsBlaze
NewsBlaze

All I kept writing down in my notes during the movie was "gruesome" "I can't breathe" "My stomach is in knots."

June 1, 2008 Full Review Source: WJFK-FM (CBS Radio)
WJFK-FM (CBS Radio)

In the end THE SIGNAL will burn it's transmission into your brain and leave you with an impression that will never go away. This is that film that leaves you with that special glow (yes, kind of like after sex), the smile that doesn't fade and the convers

April 17, 2008 Full Review Source: Bloody Disgusting
Bloody Disgusting

For a soup overseen by three cooks, the whole works reasonably well, with some pretty complex interlocking, A must for fans of nonlinear storytelling.

March 13, 2008

tone shifts awkwardly to a Shaun of the Dead-meets-Fido-style satirical commentary on domestic life

March 6, 2008
Manhattan Movie Magazine

The Signal reveals killer horrors skills on the part of Bruckner, and to a lesser extent of Gentry and Bush. So if you don't mind a film that starts strong and finishes weak, check it out.

March 1, 2008
KPBS.org

It's a pity that the film isn't a little bit better, to really do the concept justice. It's not a bad movie...but it's not at all good in the ways that you'd hope.

February 29, 2008 Full Review Source: Antagony & Ecstasy
Antagony & Ecstasy

Audience Reviews for The Signal

The Signal is a decent horror flick that had the potential of being a great film. The problem with this film is that it starts off promising enough, but halfway through it loses its strength, and becomes a decent flick. What could have been an effective horror flick is brought down by a weak second half. The film is watchable, but it could have been reworked a bit because there are some good ideas on-screen. The films cast do a pretty decent job here, and the plot is pretty interesting as well. The films faults lie in the second half of the film where it falls apart. I think it'\s a shame because this could have been a memorable horror flick with an effective plot. Unfortunately, The Signal leaves you wanting a bit more from the story, and as a horror film. This is a low-budget psycho Slasher film that almost gets it right. The script was good, but like I previously stated, if only there could have been a bit more effort put into the second half, it would have made The Signal a much more memorable ride. There are some elements that work well, but most of them don't quite get there. However you do see the potential of a very good horror film here, it's just too bad that some ideas fell flat. Overall a decent horror flick that is worth watching, but it leaves a lot to be desired as well. For a low-budget film, this is a decent try; if only the script would have been reworked a bit, then The Signal would have been a terrific film.
April 27, 2012
TheDudeLebowski65
Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski

Super Reviewer

One of those movies where things only occur because the script says so, with a total abandon of logic and plot.
Sometimes seeing the signal makes you crazy...sometimes it doesn't.
Sometimes people die from multiple blows to the head...sometimes they don't. Sometimes the entire world (or at least city) is consumed by the madness...other times people don't seem to understand that their is utter anarchy in the streets. Sometimes a canister of pesticide will make you blind, other times it just makes your eyes sting for a moment or two. Sometimes it's a comedy, sometimes its a drama and other times it's a horror flick.

The constantly shifting perspective completely kills all attempts to build tension and the characters are all down right stupid. Why am I supposed to care about a bunch of adolescent adults acting like children? The female love interest in particular is the worst kind of heroine cliche.

Now I will give the filmmakers props for making a movie that looks descent in 13 days for $50k, but SHAME on them for going forward with this script. The Signal could have been really good, but instead it just ends up becoming a crapticopia of tedious nonsense.
March 2, 2008
kenstachnik

Super Reviewer

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Latest News on The Signal

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January 23, 2007:
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