'Population 436' tells the story of a Federal census taker visiting the small, rural community of Rockwell Falls to investigate the cause of its never-changing population. Featuring a citizenry of grinning simpletons practicing strange religious rights to protect their way of life, the movie is part 'The Wicker Man', part 'The Stepford Wives'. It comes as no surprise to find that director Michelle Maxwell MacLaren was a producer on 'The X-Files'—the film plays like an extended TV episode with a central mystery that could very well have been investigated by Mulder and Scully. Except it would have been better written and directed. 'Population 436' is pretty dull, made-for-television fare, largely devoid of any real drama or suspense and containing nothing to warrant its R-rating. The most shocking thing about it is the revelation that Fred Durst can act.
Review of Population 436
