''WΔZ'' (pronounced ''double-u delta zed'') is a 2007 British

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...

horror thriller Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...

film directed by Tom Shankland and starring

Stellan Skarsgård Stellan Skarsgård (, ; born 13 June 1951) is a Swedish actor. He is known for his collaborations with director Lars von Trier appearing in ''Breaking the Waves'' (1996), ''Dancer in the Dark'' (2000), '' Dogville'' (2007), ''Melancholia'' (201 ...

Melissa George Melissa George (born 6 August 1976) is an Australian actress and entrepreneur. A former national artistic rollerskating champion and model, George began her acting career playing Angel Parrish in the Australian soap opera Home and Away (1993– ...

Selma Blair Selma Blair Beitner (born June 23, 1972) is an American actress. She played a number of roles in films and on television before obtaining recognition for her leading role in the film '' Brown's Requiem'' (1998). Her breakthrough came when she s ...

and Tom Hardy. The film was released in the United States with the title ''The Killing Gene''.

Plot

A pair of detectives attempt to solve a series of grisly murders in a dark rain soaked New York in which each victim has the

Price equation In the theory of evolution and natural selection, the Price equation (also known as Price's equation or Price's theorem) describes how a trait or allele changes in frequency over time. The equation uses a covariance between a trait and fitness, ...

(wΔz = Cov (w,z) = βwzVz) carved into their chests . Detective Eddie Argo (Skarsgard) and his new partner Helen Westcott (George) decipher the strange equation and realize each victim must make a heinous choice: kill your loved ones or be killed. Soon, it is clear the perpetrator has suffered a similar fate and is now coping by attempting to solve this philosophical quandary.

Cast

as Eddie Argo *

as Helen Westcott *

as Jean Lerner * Tom Hardy as Pierre Jackson * Ashley Walters as Daniel Leone *

Paul Kaye Paul Kaye (born 15 December 1964) is an English comedian and actor. He is known for his portrayals of shock interviewer Dennis Pennis on '' The Sunday Show'', New York lawyer Mike Strutter on MTV's '' Strutter'', Thoros of Myr in HBO's ''Game ...

as Gelb * Michael Wildman as O'Hare *

Sally Hawkins Sally Cecilia Hawkins (born 27 April 1976) is an English actress who began her career on stage and then moved into film. She has received several awards including a Golden Globe Award and the Berlin International Film Festival's Silver Bear fo ...

as Elly Carpenter * Michael Liebman as Wesley Smith *

John Sharian John Sharian (born John Shahnazarian) is an English actor of Armenian descent. He appeared in the film '' The Machinist'' (2004). Education John Sharian attended the Taft School in Watertown, Connecticut and later the Kenyon College in Gambier ...

as Jack Corelli *

Alibe Parsons Alibe Parsons (born 21 December 1945) is an actress who has worked in both film and television. On television, she is best known for her regular role in the 1970s BBC drama '' Gangsters'' as Sarah Gant. She also had a recurring role in the ...

as Miss Allaway * Sean Brian Chipango as Jamal Osman / Khaled Osman * Barbara Adair as Alice Jackson * Lauren Hood as Sharon Williams * Sheila Kerr as Alison Lerner * Joshua O'Gorman as Dominic Carpenter * Robert Phillips as Captain Maclean * Marcus Valentine as Hassan Harbi * Peter Ballance as Trucker * Igor Smiljevic as SWAT leader * Larry Cowan as Junkie * Laurence Doherty as NY Detective * Roy McManus as Paramedic

Release and reception

The film received generally positive reviews. Review aggregation website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

gives the film a score of 71% based on reviews from 14 critics. ''CHUD.com'' wrote of the film, "Director Tom Shankland paints a grimy portrait that fits well with the Clive Bradley script. It is a great debut for both filmmakers who created a movie that works on almost every level." ''

DVD Talk DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman. History Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...

'' wrote, "But let's not kid ourselves: This is a nasty horror thriller that has a ''

Class of 1984 ''Class of 1984'' is a 1982 crime action thriller film directed by Mark Lester and co-written by Tom Holland and John Saxton, based on a story by Holland. The film stars Perry King, Merrie Lynn Ross (who also served as co-executive producer), T ...

'' feel to it, although it has the most in common with the ''Saw'' series (even the line "Oh yes, there will be blood!" is morphed into "But there will be pain!"). It's not quite as outlandishly brutal, but it's still mean." ''

Fortean Times ''Fortean Times'' is a British monthly magazine devoted to the anomalous phenomena popularised by Charles Fort. Previously published by John Brown Publishing (from 1991 to 2001), I Feel Good Publishing (2001 to 2005), Dennis Publishing (2005 to 2 ...

'' wrote, "While the plot twists rarely come as a surprise, the film's grimy feel and effective pacing, and a gripping – if occasionally rather over-exaggerated – central performance by Skarsgård, make this a genuinely thrilling venture into '' Se7en'' territory, despite the unfortunate silliness of the title."

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:W Delta Z 2007 films 2007 horror films 2007 crime thriller films 2000s horror thriller films 2000s psychological horror films 2007 psychological thriller films 2000s serial killer films British crime thriller films British horror thriller films British psychological films British serial killer films Police detective films Vertigo Films films Torture in films Films scored by David Julyan 2000s English-language films 2000s British films

Plot

Cast

Release and reception

See also

References

External links