Although different from anything in the recent past I've seen, the structure does work a little bit against the movie. It does in the sense, that you do get three short movies, instead of one whole. That itself wouldn't be bad, if the short movies would be more coherent with one another. But as it is, the movies have a different feel (by choice),but also different quality (not by choice of the makers and I don't mean the video quality).

The middle part is the "funniest", with the other two being more disturbing. But the "mood" change isn't really fitting into the whole thing. Not to mention, that some jokes are just plain stupid. A shame, because the overall thematic (technological horror with social commentary -> TV) is a good one. But for a first-time movie it's still pretty good/impressive.

Maya Denton (Anessa Ramsey) has a love affair with her beloved lover Ben (Justin Welborn) that invites her to leave her husband Lewis (AJ Bowen) and Terminus City, meeting him in the Terminal 13 of the local station. Maya decides to go back home and finds a wounded man and his attacker in the parking area nearby Ben's house. When she arrives at home, she sees Lewis discussing with his friends Jerry (Matt Stanton) and Rod (Sahr Nguajah). When Lewis hits Jerry with a baseball bat on the head, Maya runs to the house of her next door neighbor Janice (Suehyla El-Attar) and realizes that the dwellers of her building have gone paranoid and crazy in an outburst of violence and hallucinations through the transmission and waves of television, cell phones and radios, feeling the need to kill.

"The Signal" is a refreshing horror tale that slightly uses the idea of mass control through television and cellular of "Videodrome" and "Pulse", leaving a message about the brain damage caused by the subtle message of television and excessive use of cellular. The plot is disclosed in three parts: "Transmission I: Crazy in Love", which is scary and the best one; "Transmission II: The Jealousy Monster" that is a boring dark humor comedy that does not work well in the context; and "Transmission III: Escape from Terminus" that returns to the main theme and has a good conclusion. The acting is great and the depressive cinematography gives a special climate to this good story. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

New Year's Eve. A mysterious signal that prays on feelings of fear and desire causes people to go crazy and transform into dangerously unstable homicidal maniacs.

Writers/directors Jacob Gentry, Dan Bush, and David Bruckner use the ingeniously novel and arresting premise to potently evoke a truly unnerving mood of pure edgy unease and paranoia, generate plenty of tension, make a chilling statement on how advanced and pervasive modern technology can be utilized to destroy mankind, offer some dark insights into the worst aspects of human nature such as fear, anger, and jealousy, and top everything off with a wickedly funny sense of pitch-black humor. The solid and credible acting from a capable no-name cast keeps this movie humming, with especially praiseworthy contributions from Anessa Ramsey as the scrappy Mya Denton, AJ Bowen as Mya's unhinged and relentless husband Lewis, Scott Polythress as goofball landlord Clark, Justin Wellborn as the rugged and determined Ben Capstone, and Chad McNight as the happy go lucky Jim Parsons. The outbursts of bloody'n'brutal violence back a ferocious punch. Ben Lovett's rough cinematography provides a rattling immediacy. Best of all, this film possesses a quirky sensibility that gives this picture its own singularly bent identity. A real sleeper.