Census taker Steve Kady from Chicago is sent to a small town called Rockwell Falls whose population of 436 have remained the same for 100 years. Once there, Kady starts to interview people, and starts asking question about the unchanged population but no one seems to wanna give him an honest answear. The idyllic little town also has all these golden rules to follow, and everyone seems completely happy there and calls it 'the most perfect place on Earth'. But something is fishy in the quiet little town, and the censustaker is soon to find out what, and why the population always remains at 436.
When I sat down to watch Population 436, I was pretty sure I was in for yet another meaningless 'horror' flick. Not only did it seem bad, but it also featured Fred Durst as one of the actors. Now, I absolutely hate Limp Bizkit, but to my big surprise the guy was actually pretty darn good, and was one of the few likable characters that were in this movie. Another thing that surprised me was the fact that Population 436 didn't turn out to be such a lousy movie after all. It wasn't great, but it was slightly above decent and I found myself to be quite entertained from beginning to end.
Steve Kady is a Census taker who's on his way to investigate the population in a small town called Rockwell Falls. The population has remained unchanged for 100 years and has stayed at the number 436. Very strange indeed. On his way there, he stops at a gas station to ask for directions but the people there won't give him an answear when they hear the name Rockwell Falls. Soon after on the road, Kady gets a flat tire and catches a ride with a deputy who takes him to the town.
His first impression of the town is that Rockwell Falls seems like an idyllic place to live in, and even though people are a bit strange, they welcome their new guest with open arms. Kady soon starts to interview people around the town but doesn't seem to get any straight answers to why the population has remained the same for so long. The deeper he digs into the towns secret, the more he starts to see how things really are, something that puts his life at risk.
Population 436 had a simple story and was extremely predictable. The very ending was good but was also very predictable as well. Still, it was a good ending that made the whole outcome seem a little better. I would describe this movie as more of a mystery thriller than an actual horror film, since there's hardly any horror elements in it. There's some suspense which works pretty well, but there are no scares to be found anywhere. Also, you won't have to use your brain too much, since like I said, it's very predictable, and it's not hard to figure out what's gonna happen next, or how it's all gonna end.
Having recently just seen 2001 Maniacs, Population 436 at times looked like a total rip-off of that movie. Even though it was slightly different it was still very similar at times, especially in the beginning. A small southern town that is inhabited by a lot of strange people, some outsider that comes into town and has to deal with the crazy people there, and what they wanna do to him. Ok, so it's a bit of a copycat, but apart from the setting the story is a bit different, and once I had gotten over the fact that it looked too much like 2001 Maniacs, I found myself to enjoy the film.
Even though it was too predictable, it still worked with being entertaining enough for one to sit through the whole thing. The acting was totally ok, I've nothing to complain about there really. Jeremy Sisto delivers a great performance as the census taker who has to deal with the secrets of the town, and Fred Durst surprised me with his performance as a likable cop. No gore, no blood and more of a suspense thriller than an actual horror movie. Not great but way better than I first had expected it to be.
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ALTERNATIVE TITLE:
MOVIE YEAR: 2006
DIRECTOR: Michelle Maxwell MacLaren
WRITING CREDITS: Michael Kingston
GENRE: Horror, Thriller
CAST: Jeremy Sisto, Fred Durst, David Ames
COUNTRY: Canada, USA
RUNTIME: 88 min
RATING: 6/10
Population 436 Website/IMDB Click here
Population 436 Trailer Click here
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