Movie review: The Darkest Hour (2011)
Wah, this movie is receiving quite a very poor rating from sites like IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes. I knew that much earlier, but I still take the chance to watch it, making it as the last film of the year for me. After leaving the hall not long ago after the movie, I find it really not that disappointing, but to certain extent; even good too!
I’m referring to ‘The Darkest Hour’ which is a science-fiction film on alien invasion over the world but the film took place in Moscow, Russia together with few young adults surviving the invasion after several encounters. The alien invasion in this film is very special, and the idea of having those floating electromagnetic energy wave as the ‘alien’ that steals the power and minerals is very creative and fresh in the genre. There is no ugly creature, no gigantic spaceship or whatsoever which the audiences would be get bored over the same things again. This film is definitely an exception. I like the whole general idea and concept of the film, also to mention its framework. What’s lacking is that there are not much character’s development shown in the film, and that it is very predicted that which characters are going to die. The script is also not well-written enough.
I have to say the worst part of the film would be on the casts themselves. Only several people are needed throughout the whole length of film, and it is very important for them to perform effectively as the whole atmosphere depends on them besides than the visual and sound effects. The performance by the casts which are mainly new and inexperienced is seriously not very good, but still satisfying enough to get the scenes much more exciting to watch. Ahhaa….the visual and sound effects are pretty amazing in the film, and I’m convinced with the quality of computer-generated backdrop of Moscow portrayed in this film as a dead city.
However, there are too many scenes involving that few casts running around the ‘dead’ city with nothing much interesting going on in between. Luckily, there are also quite a number of exciting scenes involving the appearance of the extra-terrestrial floating electromagnetic wave getting closer and posing danger to the survivors. Those scenes are the climax and everyone likes it definitely. There are also emphasis on some emotional moments when someone in the group died, which is not too excessive and just nice. I find this alien-invasion film to be the best of the year instead of the worst that is being reviewed and rated mainly out there. I’m enjoying the film, and so the audiences in the same hall with me too. Definitely worth-watching, interesting and exciting! Out of 10 points, I rate this ‘The Darkest Hour’ 7.4.
(Ahhhaaa…the first movie I watched in the year 2011 is The Green Hornet and the last movie I watched for the year is this one, The Darkest Hour).
