THE DARKEST HOUR (Chris Gorak). 89 minutes. Opens Sunday (December 25). For venues and times, see Movies. Rating: N
The Darkest Hour feels like a third-rate Stephen King movie of the week, but lacks any discernible plot, character or ideas – ya know, things that actually make those MOWs worth watching. A handful of hot, young (mostly American) tourists in a Moscow nightclub witness an invasion by invisible aliens who instantly eat up every bit of electrical energy (hence the title) and reduce living things to atoms.
After coming out of hiding, the kids (headed by Emile Hirsch, Max Minghella and Olivia Thirlby) try to avoid the invisi-aliens, who conveniently light up electrical devices when they’re near, and get to the American Embassy. What they expect to find there isn’t clear, but nothing else is either, including who the aliens are, what they want with the power and – oh yeah – what became of Hirsch’s career after his impressive turn in Into The Wild.
The CG effects, dialogue and acting are laughable, and the picture even lacks visual flair – strange for a film helmed by Chris Gorak, who’s better known as an art director and production designer.
The only suspense comes from guessing the order in which the actors will be knocked off. What’s most disappointing though, especially for a genre film, is how monotonous the killings are. One death-by-pulverization resembles the next. Some subtitles.
