''Bloodwork'', also known as ''Bloodworx'' (US), and ''The Last Experiment'' (UK) – is a 2012 Canadian-American

thriller film 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 ...

directed by Eric Wostenberg and written by David Nahmod. The film stars

Travis Van Winkle Travis Scott Van Winkle (born November 4, 1982) is an American actor, best known for starring in the feature film ''Accepted'' (2006) and the 2021 third season of the Netflix streaming television series ''You'', portraying Trent Sutton-DeMarco i ...

Tricia Helfer Tricia Janine Helfer (born April 11, 1974) is a Canadian-American actress and former model. She played the enigmatic Cylon model Number Six in the re-imagined ''Battlestar Galactica'' series (2004–2009). She also voiced Sarah Kerrigan in ''S ...

, and

Mircea Monroe Mircea Monroe (born March 11, 1982) is an American model and actress, known for her roles on the TV series ''Episodes'' as Morning Randolph (2011–2017), ''Hart of Dixie'' as Tansy Truitt (2011–2015), ''Impastor'' as Alexa Cummings (2015–201 ...

. The production was filmed in Canada under the

working title A working title, which may be abbreviated and styled in trade publications after a putative title as (wt), also called a production title or a tentative title, is the temporary title of a product or project used during its development, usually ...

''Phase One'', in November and December 2009.

Plot

Two college students — irresponsible slacker Greg (

) and his straightlaced best friend Rob ( John Bregar) — decide to take a trip to Europe for their spring break. Lacking in money, they research odd jobs and find an opportunity with Ravexin Pharmaceuticals to participate in a two-week trial for the company's new allergy drug. When they travel to the unexpectly run-down, remote facility where the test is to take place, they are troubled by the stringent rules in place but enroll in the trial anyway, as it will earn them each over three thousand dollars. Greg and Rob meet Dr. Wilcox (

) and become acquainted with some of the other patients, including prudish Stacey (

) and veteran trialgoer Nigel (Rik Denton). The patients are given the first dose of the drug, RXZ-19; though they experience violent bowel movements as a result of taking the drug, the test soon begins to take a turn for the better, as the patients start to exhibit remarkable recovery from illness and injury. However, strange circumstances begin to occur, such as the discovery of worms and insects in the food served to the patients and infestations in the building. Despite the seemingly grotesque events happening around them, none of the trialgoers seem to display any reaction to them, save for Greg. Greg confronts Wilcox in her lab and learns the truth about the trial: RXZ-19 is not an allergy drug, but a formula designed to give its users regenerative abilities, and the trials are being sponsored by the government. Greg is experiencing normal reactions to the facility's conditions because he is the

control Control may refer to: Basic meanings Economics and business * Control (management), an element of management * Control, an element of management accounting * Comptroller (or controller), a senior financial officer in an organization * Controllin ...

in the experiment, while the others are losing some of their inhibition and sense of self-preservation due to their newfound immunity. Outraged, Greg attempts to rally the others to rebel against Wilcox, but she convinces them to stay by increasing the payment to $8,000. Wilcox's superiors learn of the encouraging results so far and push her to extend the trial further beyond her original intentions. While administering additional doses to Rob, increasing his regenerative abilities to a degree that he heals from a normally fatal neck wound almost instantly, he escapes from his restraints and attempts to rape Wilcox before being subdued by her assistants. Seeing that the patients are becoming zombie-like as their dependence on RXZ-19 increases, Dr. Wilcox has a crisis of conscience and decides to pull the plug on her experiment. She has Rob brought back in for

detoxification Detoxification or detoxication (detox for short) is the physiological or medicinal removal of toxic substances from a living organism, including the human body, which is mainly carried out by the liver. Additionally, it can refer to the period of ...

, but before she can begin the process on any of the others, the facility's power is cut in a storm. The patients rebel en masse, desperate for more of the drug. They begin killing the staff and corner Wilcox in her lab to demand more, but when she runs out, they attack and mortally wound her. Greg escapes from his room and finds Wilcox dying, along with evidence that the patients have begun turning to

cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, b ...

in their need to sate their addiction to RXZ-19. He comes across Aaron (

Joe Pingue Joe Pingue is a Canadian actor and film maker. Early life Pingue was born and raised in St. Catharines, Ontario. He attended Ridley College for both elementary and high school, and studied theatre at York University. While attending Ridley Coll ...

), the facility's

phlebotomist Phlebotomy is the process of making a puncture in a vein, usually in the arm, with a cannula for the purpose of drawing blood. The procedure itself is known as a venipuncture, which is also used for intravenous therapy. A person who performs a ph ...

, frantically packing up records. The pair escape the facility, but when Greg overhears Aaron contacting his superiors to tell them of the chaos, he forces Aaron to return to the facility so he can retrieve Rob. Greg arms himself with a fire axe and searches through the facility for Rob, having to kill Stacey when she attacks him. Meanwhile, Aaron's superior (

Eric Roberts Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor. His career began with a leading role in ''King of the Gypsies'' (1978) for which he received his first Golden Globe Award nomination. He was nominated again at the Golden Globes fo ...

) arrives with a military unit to purge the facility and its victims to cover up the government's actions. After hearing Aaron's report, his superior has him strangled to death. Greg finds Rob, whose detox was successful in restoring him to his true self, leaving him traumatized by his actions while on the drug. They are forced to work together and kill Nigel when he discovers them, and barely escape before the military unit sets off explosives, destroying the facility. The next morning, Greg and Rob wander aimlessly through the forest until they discover a road. A car stops for them, driven by Aaron, who survived his injuries. Aaron retrieves a blanket from his trunk for them, but they do not see that his hand begins trembling uncontrollably, prompting him to take a dose of RXZ-19. As they ride, Greg and Rob realize Aaron is driving in the wrong direction from the nearest town. Aaron locks the doors of the car and warns the pair that there are events much bigger than them taking place as they realize that their nightmare is not over.

Cast

(in order of appearance) *

as Greg * John Bregar as Rob Jeffries *

as Dr. Wilcox *

James Purcell James Purcell may refer to: * James Purcell (actor), American actor and filmmaker * James Purcell (businessman), Australian businessman * James Purcell (mountain man), American mountain man of the 19th century * James Purcell (politician) Ja ...

as Taylor *

Yanna McIntosh Yanna McIntosh (born 1970), sometimes credited as Yanna MacIntosh, is a Jamaican-born Canadian television, movie and theatrical actress. Early life McIntosh attended the University of Toronto and the Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Ha ...

as Patrica * Sterling Jarvis as Curtis *

Rik Young Ricky James Young (born 25 April 1978) is an English actor, dancer, and producer. His early work includes the miniseries ''Frank Herbert's Children of Dune, Children of Dune'' (2003) and the films ''Is Harry on the Boat?'' (2001) and ''Beowulf ( ...

as Nigel Denton *

as Stacey *

Tamara Feldman Amara Zaragoza (born December 5, 1980), known by her stage name Tamara Feldman, is an American actress. Career Feldman is known for playing Marybeth Dunston in the horror film ''Hatchet'' (2006) and for her roles in the television series ''Smallv ...

as Linnea * Vas Saranga as Binal * Albert Chung as Huy Lee *

Ardon Bess Ardon Bess (born 1941) is a Canadian actor best known for appearing in a Heritage Moment television commercial about the 1958 Springhill mining disaster portraying survivor Maurice Ruddick. Early life and education Bess was born in Kingstown, ...

as Martel * Anna Ferguson as Maggie * Stephen Bogaert as Ira *

as Aaron * Brad Givoque as Special Ops Commander *

as Man in Suit

Production

Reception

Distribution

''Bloodwork'' was released on DVD in the Netherlands and Japan in 2012, and Blu-ray in Germany in July 2013. The film was also released on DVD in 2014; as ''The Last Experiment'' (UK) in March, and as ''Bloodworx'' (US) in October.

References

External links

* * {{Rotten Tomatoes , m/bloodwork , Bloodwork 2012 films 2012 thriller films Canadian thriller films English-language Canadian films Canadian independent films American thriller films American independent films Films shot in Greater Sudbury 2010s English-language films 2010s American films 2010s Canadian films