On an ordinary day in London, Charlie (Noel Clarke) and his best friend Mark (Colin ODonoghue) are stuck in traffic on their way to a storage facility. Charlies girlfriend of 5 years has just dumped him and hes going to pick up some of his belongings. They are stuck in traffic because of some kind of massive, unexplained crash. A quarantine has been declared and the city is in chaos.
After arriving at the storage facility and wandering around until they find the right unit, the guys stumble upon Charlies ex, Shelley (Antonia Campbell-Hughes). She is also getting some of her things. Her friends Nikki (Laura Haddock) and Chris (Jamie Thomas King) are along for moral support. Charlie immediately picks a fight, demanding to know why Shelley ended their relationship.
Soon that is the least of his worries. It was a military cargo plane that crashed. It was transporting something top secret. That something is an 8-foot alien and its in the storage facility. Charlie and the rest discover that they are locked inside with it. The alien is not friendly.
So, the set up isnt exactly original. Storage 24 does not contain many surprises. Genre fans will be able to determine exactly who will live and who will die in short order. There are plenty of boo scares and bonehead decisions, like aimlessly strolling around a dark place alone after hearing a strange noise. Charlie and Shelleys squabbling is equally irritating and feels like it belongs in an entirely different movie.
Thankfully, all of that is overcome by the setting, a solid cast, and strong effects. The creature design is by the extremely talented Paul Hyett, who has also worked on The Descent, Attack the Block, and many more. The alien is a mix of practical effects and CGI enhancements. The latter are barely noticeable and the creature itself is a huge, nasty, and imposing beast. When it kills it does not hold back. The attacks are quite gory and brutal (though a little too infrequent).
The cast is made up of some recognizable faces. Clarke has been in Doghouse and Dr. Who, among others. ODonoghue starred with Anthony Hopkins in The Rite. Co-star Ned Dennehy was in Grabbers and Blitz. The performances are good all-around.
Finally, the setting is perfect for a horror movie with a limited budget. You never know whats going to be around the corner or when and where the alien will pop up. Its a creepy place in the dark even without a homicidal monster. Director Johannes Roberts milks the setting for all its worth and stages a few suspenseful sequences including one in air vents.
While it covers familiar territory and gets bogged down in melodrama a little too often, Storage 24 is a well-made and fun movie that genre fans will enjoy. If a creature-feature can be judged by the quality of the monster, this one is worth seeking out.
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