Chris Boston Residue is one of the most promising releases Netflix has had in some time. Drawing clear inspiration from video games such as FEAR, they present an incredibly compelling story in a believable universe, populated by relatable characters. It is certainly dark, gritty, and purely of the psychological horror genre, unlike the more popular Stranger Things (with its lighter elements and more positive theme). One of Netflix's biggest mistakes was releasing this series without any fanfare whatsoever. If this show ends up a single-season story, it will be a tragedy unheard of since Firefly.

Toshisnowtoe I don't need to summarize the series/film. That's been done enough in other reviews. I'm surprised by the low score on IMDb, so I thought I'd add my 2p to the bucket. Clearly, Residue has a limited appeal. It isn't full of heart pounding action or gore and it is deliberately disorienting and the vacillations in the plot are subtle. My impression from the reviews here is that viewers do not like disorienting and subtle.**very minor spoiler here in the first sentence only*** It's true that, as many have said, a number of things, such as the nature of the threat, are not explained, but that is part of the storytelling. You, the viewer, need to be doing your own detective work - this is not passive television. Nonetheless, if you like J.G. Ballard (aside from Empire of the Sun), you'll get this. In fact, if you are at all intrigued by Residue, I'd recommend you read Ballard's story called "Chronopolis." As far as genre is concerned, this is sci-fi/horror. Heavier on sci-fi than on horror. It's also a bit of a detective story.Acting: I had no problem with it. Natalia Tena - Tonks from Harry Potter if you prefer - is good as is Iwan Rheon. Rheon's boss is a bit one-dimensional, I suppose, but even she showed some signs of cracking near the end, so perhaps her performance is deliberate. Some complained that they don't like the characters - that's a critique I'll never understand. I don't think there's a likable character in The Office (the original version), but it's still good. So, if you need to like characters to get into a television show or film, then you might think twice about Residue. Everyone is a bit cold and distant...but not for reasons that can't be explained.Setting: One review said something about the setting being somehow Asian. I don't know where that comes from. This was shot in Leeds as far as I can tell, most of the actors sound like they're from Manchester. The film feels noirish though, so maybe the reviewer thought of Bladerunner? Production values: Worth commenting on the fact that the values are pretty good. If you're familiar with the British series called Utopia, I'd say Residue's production values are certainly within that range. Maybe not quite the same degree of obsessiveness about the setting, but close enough to be reminded of it.In all, I'd say if you like your television hot, Residue is not what you want. If you like it cool, you'll probably enjoy it as much as I did. (the hot and cold/cool thing, read Marshall McLuhan)

Peter Pluymers "Since the explosion, since the construction of the Quarantine Zone, my photographs are different. We're different. Is it despair? Confusion? Rage? Fear? Everything's changed. Maybe forever."Not knowing what was waiting for me and whether it was worth to watch this alleged horror / mystery (the content seemed interesting to me though), this film visually impressed me afterwards. At the end credits, I was somewhat irritated because the ending made no sense at all and left me with a lot of question marks. Ultimately it was a huge open ending with everything still as mysterious and unexplained as in the beginning. Afterwards I found out that this was a pilot for a brand new television series. What a disappointment ! As a fervent opponent of anything that even resembles a serial, the further course of this nevertheless very intriguing story will be completely unknown to me. However, I am sure that by the third season everything will be very confusing and complicated, because the writers are completely lost and are forced to invent new story lines. That's nothing for me.The whole story revolves around a massive explosion that occurred in an underground dancing somewhere in futuristic London. According to the government chemicals are released, which leads to evacuating part of the population and a perimeter is established around the disaster area. Jennifer (Natalia Tena) and Jonas (Iwan Rheon) witness this explosion and gradually see their part of the city mutate into an area with military control. Jennifer is a photographer who starts to make photos of local residents after the incident and who discovers that these individuals experience a personality change. They get suicidal and turn out to be downright murderous. Jonas is someone who works for the organization who have closed the area in question (all the buildings in this area are covered with plastic, which creates some surreal images) and gradually he becomes aware that there is more to it than an explosion. And finally there is also Levi (Jamie Draven), a police detective whose daughter died in this explosion."Residue" is a fairly depressing film. Not only because of the futuristic story, but also because of the atmosphere and the used color palette. Everything looks bleak, gray and with no future. In retrospect I understood why the film was so slow without really shocking or relevant incidents. That's of course because this is just a long intro to a multiple seasons full of episodes. Only the artistic image fragments are momentary attention grabbers. For the most part it's just observing the main characters wandering around and looking for answers to their questions. After that there's something paranormal coming up. This makes it a little more interesting. So, are you a TV show freak, then I think this one is worth to watch. Instead, I'll stick with my addiction to caffeine and nicotine ... and I'll still eschew the "soapine" for the moment!More reviews here : http://bit.ly/1KIdQMT

PeterAndTheWolves Wow, finally I like a series once and it gets canceled. f.e. I detest that too the max overrated hyped soap-series "Game of Thrones" with its über-annoying boring story-telling about NOTHING. Residue on the other hand has all GoT has NOT; good story, impressing, spooky, tension,.....and breathtaking astonishing beautiful camera work/scenes. The scenery , oh man , the beautiful sceneries....accompanied with an outstanding music-score.. Parallel series are Containment and Cordon. I give Containment a try, seems acceptable to me and that Belgium Cordon is a joke no one laughs about...... Anyway, I am hoping that the material available of Residue gets released on Blu Ray soon....