If you are in the mood for cheap thrills, or perhaps thinking of bringing your date to a juvenile alien adventure where not much concentration is required, then The Darkest Hour is your best pick.
No, there’s nothing wrong with popcorn movies manufactured for light Friday night entertainment at the cinemas. And with 3D effects, these sorts of films can de-stress a moviegoer--- and if lingeringly good, can even be a good conversation starter. But the problem with The Darkest Hour, it is shallower than the acceptable level of shallowness of popcorn movies.
Sean (Emile Hirsche) and Brad (Max Minghella) are hanging out one night in a stuffy bar in the heart of Moscow, meeting new people, when there is a sudden blackout, and then strange beautiful lights started appearing in the Russian sky. Soon after, these lights started wiping out humanity-- and Sean, Brad, the two girls they had just met in the bar, and a Russian guy are the only survivors.
We then follow the five young people venture into the midst of the Russian ruins in the wake of a global alien attack, trying to outsmart the killer alien lights that roam invisibly, turning every living creature into dust.
The Darkest Hour has good potential to be an ultimate alien thriller, but, sadly, it is unable to boost your adrenaline level. Yes, it can sustain your attention towards the end because it’s not boring; it’s actually fast-paced--- but mediocre.
Written by Timur Berkmambetov (Wanted, Night Watch) and directed by one obscure Chris Gorak, The Darkest Hour is a bad popcorn movie; extremely shallow, lazy, with embarrassingly cheesy dialogue, poor humor--- and, worse, it sometimes defies logic and reason for the sake of conflict. The only substantial factor of this movie is the location--- Moscow is refreshing to the eyes, mystical and foreboding, a refreshing break from the streets of New York or L.A.
The Darkest Hour is one that is similar to a low-budget TV movie disguised as a real film (or just like my movie companion commented, a "video-on-board-a-bus" kind of movie to keep you entertained in long trips) and seemed to have been only created to rip you off with its 3D effects.
0.5 out of 5 stars
Opens on January 25, 2012 in Philippine Cinemas
The PEx Post
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