Dark Was the Night

Up until the closing scenes Dark Was the Night is reminiscent of any number of films by director M. Night Shyamalan.

A strong sense of foreboding and tension is established early in this film. The source of the terror that infects a US country town is hinted at and glimpsed but never fully revealed, until the final scenes.

As a result, Dark Was the Night could be described as somewhat slow by some but that was not what I took away from this story. Its well acted, with a solid sub plot and good character development, that moves the story forward.

The ending is somewhat predictable, as is the final twist but that really doesn't detract greatly from what is a worth while watch. Seven out of ten from me.

A creature is terrorizing the small town of Maiden Woods. Animals are coming up missing, strange footprints and claw marks are everywhere. The town is unnerved and it's up to one stoic sheriff to keep everyone calm.

The movie is more of a drama with a horror story as the occasional distraction. What did that mean? It meant witnessing Sheriff Paul (Kevin Durand) deal with the loss of his son and the painful conversations he would have with his estranged wife--then a blur of a creature. In essence they were able to maintain the mysterious and ominous entity that was upsetting the town because it was almost secondary to Paul and his issues.

One could say it made the movie better and one could say it made it worse. For those looking for a scary drama, they got what they wanted. For those looking for a horror with little to no drama, they were somewhat disappointed. I, for one, was looking for a pure, unadulterated scary movie. The drama detracted from that, but because it was done well and they didn't make it too sappy and over-the-top I was able to satisfyingly watch it.

Predominantly set in chilly blue tint, Dark Was the Night has quaint and also eerie ambiance fitting for a mystery thriller. The wintry set-up is convincingly effective on creating a sense of isolation, which keeps the suspense going even though it slightly stumbles at midway point. It's troubled by relatively bland acting and repetitive developments at some points, yet it still looks and feels refined.

Several odd occurrences have happened in isolated town of Maiden Woods. The small town has small population and the anomalies understandably disturb its occupants. What may seem like a prank eventually escalates as the beastly sightings become more malicious. For a straightforward theme, it maintains the thrill well without straying too far into campy monster flick.

Its biggest asset is the cinematography. Visually the movie has just the appropriate outlook for mystery horror. Details of the town and its surrounding produce morbid effect on its own. However, it may take the title too seriously. A couple of scenes in night time look overly bleak and vague. Choppy editing and jittery camera unfortunately hamper some of the intense sequences.

Acting is also a bit imbalance. The sheriff looks ridden with guilt and anguish, while it may work with his sad backstory, the excessive lamentation proves to be tiresome in the long run. Several other cast deliver better performance, more emotionally involved than most horror movies have to offer. Yet, the subplots and monotonous investigation plod the pace significantly in second half before reaching its climax.

There are a few inconsistencies on the presentation, it's not overly innovative either, however the solid atmosphere is primed for mystery horror. It's polished cleverly, and will most likely please fans of the genre or audience looking for light thrill.

I often watch indie horror/slasher films, but they usually suck. This one, thankfully, did not. They say you have to watch a ton of bad horror films to find a good one. I guess I'll be watching a lot more bad ones to find one to stand up to this one.

The screenwriter actually gave these characters a background and a reason to care about them, rather than letting them only be known for getting chewed up and spit out. The storyline wasn't flooded with action to make you forget the screenwriter(s) didn't put anytime into developing the characters Kevin Durant (Lost, The Strain, I Am Number 4, etc.,) is a good actor. I never saw him as the lead actor before, but I hope they take advantage of his talent. He was believable in the role.

The creature was only fully shown towards the end of the movie. They should've shown it more, because it didn't look stupid. It was actually rather inventive how they made it look.

The storyline was fun. The atmosphere of a small town miles away from anyplace is always a turn on for me, but many horror movies don't do a good job with that. This one did.

I approve of this movie. I recommend it to anyone who likes creature features. It's not Jaws, but what is? One thing I didn't like was the lack of consistency with the monster towards the sheriff as opposed to how it behaved with others. It had no problem attacking people in daylight or night. However, the sheriff came across it a few times, and it played hide-and-seek with him, not killing the guy when it had a clear shot of doing it every time.

I gave this a 7-star rating. Enjoy! I did :)

Although there are no truly new or astonishing things done in this film, it is good to see Kevin Durand in a lead role. He has played all kinds of characters, which are typically antagonists, he is a very talented actor. So, I tip my cap to him in this thriller.