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Population 436 (2006) (V) More at IMDb Pro »

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46 comments in total

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75 out of 93 people found the following comment useful :-
A pleasant surprise.....decent thriller with a good performance from Sisto, 25 May 2006

Author: srivastavag from Canada

Do you ever watch a movie and are pleasantly surprised?? Doesn't happen often for me....but Pop/436 did the trick! A decent thriller with an unique plot, Pop/436 tells a story of a small town that through over 100 years has kept a constant population. The story is adequate, but a good background score and another excellent performance by Jeremy Sisto (who was excellent in Paranoia 1.0) is able to keep the audience interested for the 90 min runtime.

Don't expect anything extraordinary from this movie, but in a day and age where over budget movie miss the mark time and time again, Pop/436 is a rare treat which is worth a view.

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30 out of 32 people found the following comment useful :-
"Welcome to Rockford Falls.", 15 October 2006
Author: Backlash007 from Kentucky

Population 436 is a welcome change in the direct-to-DVD market. It's actually a good movie. Jeremy Sisto stars as census taker who stumbles into a town where the population has stayed the same for over a 100 years. To say anything else would be to ruin the movie. Let's just say it has a few elements from The Lottery but still remains its own movie. There are excellent twists and turns along the way and the ending is brilliant. There are two endings on the DVD, but the ending they chose for the film was the finale that I wanted to see. It's the perfect ending. And Sisto was the perfect choice for the lead. He's quickly becoming one of my favorite rising stars and he does a lot of genre work. The supporting players are all top-notch. Charlotte Sullivan is perfect, Peter Outerbridge has always been underrated, and Fred Durst can actually act. He's quite good, and that's a big surprise. If you are tired of wading through the trash that covers the walls of your local video store, pick up Population 436. It's a welcome breath of fresh air.

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42 out of 56 people found the following comment useful :-
Mundane re-run of Two Thousand Maniacs, less the gore, 28 July 2006

Author: The_Void from Beverley Hills, England

Population 436 was a point of interest for me because of its main plot line. The idea behind the film is definitely intriguing, and I've got to say that I did want to discover the mystery behind the film; but the plot is also the film's biggest problem. Writer Michael Kingston seems too content to let the film simply wallow in it's central idea rather than building it up, so what we're left with is a movie with a rather dry final third, as it soon becomes obvious that it's not going anywhere it hasn't gone already. The plot is fairly original in itself; but the handling isn't, as most everything about the film reeks of Herschell Gordon Lewis' classic 'Two Thousand Maniacs', only without the bloodshed. The plot focuses on Steve Kady; a man that works for a census-taking agency. He is dispatched to a small town called 'Rockwell Falls' in order to investigate why their population has been at 436 for the last hundred years or so. While there, several instances transpire and our man soon finds out that the town of Rockwell Falls isn't quite right; and the reason why the population stays the same is more than a coincidence.

At first, I thought the reason why the residents of Rockwell Falls have opted to keep their population at 436 was so they wouldn't have to change their painted sign, and actually; the real reason isn't too far away from being that drab. The film starts off with a woman giving birth, inter-cut with a scene that sees a man killed in a car accident. I guess this would be a pretty good indicator for most people as to why the population stays at 436 right from the off, and the film makes a habit of not keeping it's cards close enough to it's chest as heavy hints are dropped often and by the time it gets to actually finding out the mystery, you already know. However, in the film's favour; it does feature an amiable lead performance from Jeremy Sisto. Sisto made his best film with 'May', and since then has also starred in that Dead and Breakfast rubbish, and some American TV shows. Population 436 is directed by Michelle Maxwell MacLaren, a director that has only worked on TV shows prior to making this; and it shines through, as the movie never feels any more ambitious than your common TV movie. Overall, Population 436 is not essentially 'bad' - but it's not very good either. Feel free to skip this one.

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17 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :-
Great little Mystery/Thriller..., 17 September 2006

Author: zarmazievex from United States

I was very surprised that this movie did not get a better rating compared to some similar titles that were very disappointing. Population 436 is a low budget but to its benefit as it doesn't play the usual visual and audio special effects. Actually, you don't even pay attention as it doesn't require a high-budget that would have ruined it anyway (i.e. The Wickerman - 2006).This movie has a good cast, good acting a very subtle creepiness. You will follow the main character inside a weird, cult society as with The Tenant, Rosemary's Baby, The Wickerman...If you like the genre you will like Population 436. Give it a try.

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26 out of 38 people found the following comment useful :-
Average in all aspects, 14 July 2006

Author: David Blaine from Australia

Well, I was kind of hoping for a thriller with this movie, but around half way through you'll see the ending coming if you've watched at least half a dozen thrillers. And I have seen MORE than half a dozen so it was pretty predictable.

Can't say this was too much of a thriller, Michelle Maxwell MacLaren doesn't come anywhere near M.Night Syamalan and his thrillers and suspenses. The other thing that backed me off was the background score. Its always the same weird music which you'd get sick of 15 minutes into the movie. The theme is well... nice.

The story is unique, that I guarantee you, but kinda seemed lame to me. I mean a town with Population at 436 through a 100 years? You can always guess how the climax is going to be! Oh yes, there are a large number of plot holes too.

Decent performances though. Jeremy Sisto, through whose eyes we see the movie give a good enough performance. The camera angles throughout the film were average and impressed me only in the 'chase'. ;) OK, now this movie might be rated R, but the "brief sexuality and violence" lasts only a couple of sec. It should be PG-13.

Predicability and average plot with huge plot holes cause its downfalls. Decent performances uplifts it a bit. Overall though it doesn't fall into MUST-WATCH-OR-ALL-HELL-WILL-BREAK-LOSE, its worth a rental... maybe.... if you're too much of a movie buff.

I give it 5/10. Bite me.

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12 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
very good twilight zone style stuff, 21 September 2006

Author: windypoplar from United States

Being a huge fan of Jeremy Sisto, I had to check out Population 436. This was very good. It sort of plays like a twilight zone episode. Nice little town, what the hell is wrong with the people? Being a big horror fan, I was very pleased with this movie. Jeremy Sisto is such a great actor, He was really good here, just a simple everyman confronted with growing malevolence and secrecy. A surprisingly restrained Fred Durst also gives a nice performance as the deputy. Actually his presence almost kept me from getting this, don't worry, he's actually good here.

Simply put these townspeople are really sick. I highly recommend seeing it on DVD as this includes a very interesting alternate ending. I actually thought this was good enough for theaters, I guess the lack of gratuitous violence kept it out. It's a thinking persons horror flick. With the terror more implied than shown. Very good. In fact to return to the always brilliant Sisto, I don't really think he's been in anything poor, OK Hideaway (96) comes close, but this is another feather in his cap. Lets hope NBC's "Kidnapped" is a hit so we can see more of this fine young actor.

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17 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :-
Are you in a Matrix?, 25 August 2006

Author: whotheff

This movie has no special effects, no super celebrities, no expensive advertising campaign. But it has atmosphere, this is the thing that lacks in most of the today's movies. It immerses you into it's story.

Although you know that this town is corrupted in some way, it makes you believe there is nothing wrong with it - it LIES you! That's why the cinema is called "The Great Illusion".

Instead of hearth-stopping LFE effects, breathtaking views made with a computer frame by frame, this movie manages to create the illusion only by using the right music + right acting + right nature shots. It's far away from perfect, but nowadays making a different movie is not easy. It lacks authenticity at the end, but that's not the important in it. The hidden message is to open your eyes and take a look around (i sound like Fred Durst) you and see if you are not in a matrix like Rockwell Falls... yourself!

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9 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
The Most Perfect Place on Earth, 15 February 2007
Author: Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

While traveling to Rockwell Falls in an assignment of the US Census Bureau, the surveyor from Chicago Steve Kady (Jeremy Sisto) has two flat tires nearby the small town. The local Deputy Bobby Caine (Fred Durst) brings him to the town and the Mayor Grateman (Frank Adamson) lodges him in a farm, where the gorgeous Courtney Lovett (Charlotte Sullivan) lives with her mother. Steve finds that Rockwell Falls, considered by the locals as the most perfect place on Earth, has the same population since 1860 and sooner he discloses the meaning and the dark secret of their creed of solidarity and steadfastness.

"Population 436" is a good horror B-movie, with an intriguing dark story that in some moments recall the original "The Stepford Wives" and a great mystery. I personally liked the surprising and unpredictable conclusion, and hated the alternative commercial ending in the Extras of the DVD. If the viewer sees this low-budget movie with a lower expectation, he or she may have a worthwhile surprise. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "População 436" ("Population 436")

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11 out of 16 people found the following comment useful :-
Solid film with "subliminal" message for some of us, 7 October 2006

Author: A.N. from CA

I think this movie could have been better but it's hard to say exactly how. The acting was less than stupendous but I can't find too much to criticize. I was never bored and the ending (including alternate) was unpredictable. I didn't find it too scary except for one scene that caught me off guard; a pivotal point in the movie.

Two CGI flaws stood out in scenes where it was probably used to cut costs. Keep an eye on the moving Jeep and study the town in aerial views. The latter may require a high resolution TV or projector. A few plot holes were adequately explained by paranoia but it's difficult to be that isolated in the lower 48 now.

Under different circumstances Rockwell Falls could indeed be "the most perfect place on Earth," meaning a picturesque town that isn't destined to get overrun. There are safe and sane ways to stop population growth and I think the whole world should encourage that. Whether or not you agree, I can recommend this film as more than light entertainment.

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5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
436 Mini-Maniacs!, 9 December 2006

Author: Coventry from the Draconian Swamp of Unholy Souls

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I enjoyed "Population 436", I have to admit! Sure it was very predictable and a little too tame for my usual liking – they could have used a bucket or two of fake blood – but director Michelle Maxwell Maclaren maintains a nicely uncanny atmosphere and everyone involved in this production showed a lot spirit. "Population 436" feels like an honorable throwback to the 'creepy little town with a dark secret' sub genre of the older days. It's very similar to films like "Dead and Buried","The Wicker Man", "Messiah of Evil" and in a way even to the almighty Hershell Gordon Lewis' classic "2000 Maniacs", with its plot about the remote little village of Rockwell Falls that holds the same number of inhabitants since more than a complete century. Government worker Steve Kady (Jeremy Sisto) is sent to investigate the registering habits of this little town, only to realize the locals are a bunch of deeply religious lunatics who believe they have to keep their number on 436, otherwise God will severely punish them. Steve is warmly welcomed as a new township member, but that of course means that someone else has to be sacrificed. Writer Michael Kingston tries a little too hard to keep the events going on in Rockwell Falls a secret, even though it's all fairly obvious since the opening sequences already. This approach nevertheless results in a couple of creepy and ominous moments, like the fantastic highlight during the town's autumn festival, but there never are any real surprises or shocks to experience. As stated previously, the film also could have used a little more bloodshed, as that is the least you expect from crazy inbred rednecks living in isolated areas. Still, I very much admire the effort and, since I'm a sucker for unhappy endings it gets another extra point. The filming locations are splendidly chosen and so are the eerie musical tunes and camera viewpoints. The acting performances are far above average with Jeremy Sisto as a convincing hero and the beautiful Charlotte Sullivan as an amiable local girl. Heck, even Fred Durst did a fine job and I'm really relieved that none of his songs were on the soundtrack. Recommended!

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