The Movie Itself
Aliens descend into Moscow, and proceeds to disintegrate humans into ashes. That’s the premise of ‘The Darkest Hour.’ But, a few humans get out. The small group wanders the city, looking for places to stay, and along the way meets other survivors. They learn to fight the creatures as best they can. At first, their methods are somewhat ineffective, but they eventually find ways to make things better. The aliens come in electric form, the dark streets would light up as they got closer to the characters. The crude characters would run, but they lack common sense. It’s hard to connect with characters that lack realistic personalities. The soul of the film, however, isn’t within the characters. The film relies heavily on its suspenseful atmosphere, and it works. The film is nothing original, but is somewhat entertaining. Also, scenes gets a little repetitive throughout the film. It’s predictable, it’s brainless, but it’s still fun, in a cheesy sort of way.
The Movie Itself: C
Video Quality
The video quality is superb. The display of colors and details are magnificent. The colors are well-balanced, from the clothing to the flesh tones. The details are crisp and revealing, especially in the buildings and such. The depth of the black tones are very deep, as it comes in wide array of shades. The substance of the shadows are strong, it doesn’t blur nor blend. The forms are clear, even at nights. The clarity of the transfer is consistent throughout the film.
Video Quality: A+
Audio Quality
The audio transfer does not disappoint. Everything is clear, crisp, and very refined. The dialogue is easy to understand. The background is almost always active. Even the quietest scenes have subtle natural background noises. All the speakers are utilized well, the static of the electric pulses sound alive and running. During the Club scene, the music thumps in the background gracefully while the characters talked over beers. For a split second, I had to look around to see where the thumping came from. It sounded real.
Audio Quality: A
Extras
– Short Film (8 min.)
– The Darkest Hour: Visualizing (12 min.) – focuses on the film’s many visual effects.
– Deleted Scenes (5 min.) – also comes with Director’s commentary.
– Director’s Commentary – insightful and entertaining. It’s worth listening to if you’re interested in filmmaking.
Overall, a decent Extras features. Although, they only give us the minimum of what to expect from Blu-rays these days. I would have liked to see more Behind-the-scenes content.
Extras: C
Overall
The Darkest Hour is repetitive, unoriginal, and lacks substance. But, the film has enough energy to entertain, especially amongst the Sci-fi fans. The experience truly shines through the transfers of both the video and audio quality. The video quality should be set as a standard in the industry, it is that good. The film is enjoyable, but I recommend renting first before buying. Though, there are enough reasons to buy the Blu-ray, especially for Home-Theatre enthusiasts.
Overall: C+
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