From the Dark (2014)

March 6, 2016 11:22 AM

A couple on a trip through the Irish countryside find themselves hunted by a creature who only attacks at night.

A farmer accidentally releases creatures whose only weakness is light. A young couple on a trip experience car difficulties and find themselves battling these vicious creatures. They resort to some creative means in order to protect themselves.

posted by miss-lapin (7 comments total)

I avoided this movie for a long time because the description seemed just so very "meh" but when I finally watched it, I really enjoyed it.
posted by miss-lapin at 11:22 AM on March 6, 2016

The opening is very strong, but I wasn't feeling it much once the main event got started. Horror movies don't necessarily need deep stories, but I feel like ones that stick to an all-action format really have to be shot out of a cannon -- I'm thinking of propulsive stuff like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. This one didn't grab me like that. It's kind of a cliche to say so, but I also couldn't get past how dumb the couple was; why would you not immediately call the police when you found the guy in the house?
posted by kittens for breakfast at 1:59 PM on March 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

Yeah that is a big problem, which could be easily fixed by "CRAP WE DON'T HAVE ANY SERVICE OUT HERE." Phones also have flashlight apps so...It's a flawed movie, I admit. For some reason though I enjoyed it, particularly the end. I like ambivalent endings to horror movies.
posted by miss-lapin at 2:27 PM on March 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

The under-appreciated Joy Ride (2001) raised its letter letter grade with me simply by dealing with the "why wouldn't they call someone?" question by having them call someone. It demonstrated well that you don't have to ignore it or even just thwart them; it can be part of the story in a non-idiotic way.
posted by phearlez at 8:01 PM on March 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

Oh, this one came through my Netflix queue a while back! (My queue is about ninety percent random horror movies, mostly terrible.) I wouldn't go out of my way to harass anyone into watching it, but it was definitely a step above the base level. Basic plot, doesn't try to get too fancy or have someone explaining everything, the subplot is at least attempting to add depth of character, good spooky atmosphere. The vampire creature is a wee bit too contagious for plausibility reasons, but everyone loves a good zombie bite scenario, I suppose.

I could have sworn there was a bit where they tried using their phones and they didn't work? Or was it that they'd been using their phones as flashlights during the walk to the house and didn't have any juice left when they got a breather and tried to make the call? I do think it got addressed a little, anyway, in the half-hearted way modern horror movies do. (I think the whole genre still resents the invention of the cell phone, honestly.)
posted by Scattercat at 10:25 AM on March 8, 2016 [1 favorite]

Hey, did we ever select a next movie?
posted by kittens for breakfast at 11:16 AM on March 13, 2016

Sorry that was my fault. I was supposed to post on Friday but I got hit with a killer flu and so while I was in my own little horror film of fever dreams and I'll spare you the rest, some kind soul has posted a new film for this friday. Sorry about that guys.
posted by miss-lapin at 8:14 PM on March 16, 2016