Pitch Black

The Legend:
Marketing:
8.0 A slick and stylish trailer that manages to peak interest, and yet give none of the major story arc away.
Performances:
8.5 These weren't so much performances as just plain old "Getting the right man for the job", casting selections. You'll probably only recognize Keith Davis, and the rest... well lets just say if you don't recognize them now, you will.
Production Design:
 8.0 Not a whole lot really needed here. A spaceship wreck and an abandoned Geological Survey camp. Oh and a lot of desert. But what is there is really cool.
Score:
6 Not memorable, but not bad.
Overall Rating:
 8.75 Put the crowbar in your wallets and bust out the price of rental you cheap bastards...


I find it odd and a little funny that the year 2000 has been one of the most horrendous years for science fiction ever. (There's Irony in them there words) The string of over-hyped duds from this year included such distinguished titles as: Mission to Mars, Battlefield Earth, Titan AE and the yet to come Red Planet (which has bomb written all over it), I had given up on a decent sci-fi film coming out this year. Just when I was ready to write off the year 2000 as one of the worst years ever in science fiction along comes the film that proved me wrong.

I have to admit, the saturation bombing of the trailer reminded me that the worse a film is, the more they have to rely on a Big opening weekend. But I was wrong. There, I said it. Are you happy now?

Fact of the matter is, I loved this movie. Watched it four times in three days. It's been a long time since I felt the need to watch a rental more than once. Now I will tell you this, the movie lost points on subsequent veiwings. Only because I knew the surprises, and the sheer "Shock Value" wore off. But this movie is solid and it has a valuable lesson for HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS.

Produced on a shoestring budget with no big name actors, they wrote a really solid script, and lo and behold look, A Sci-Fi Film worth Watching.

Hey look George, a movie I can concentrate on without having to filter out a retarded CG character. Hey look Mr. DePalma, characters that are interesting and a plot that makes sense. Hey look Mr. Travolta and Mr. Roger Christian. Just look, because you obviously have no fucking idea what your doing behind a camera.

From the clever lighting, to the character development, to pacing (that barely lets you catch your breath), to the creatures and the point-of-view visuals, this film delivers in a big way.

Warning!
If you are not totally sucked into this film in the first five minutes. Stop the movie, pull it out of the VCR and check your pulse. Don't be alarmed. You're just probably dead.

If the crash sequence doesn't wake you up like a bite on the ass, nothing will. The Bottom Line
Let's just get to it. If you like pulp science fiction, or just a good action flick, see it. Let's not confuse the issues here. This is not 2001. If you want recent cerebral sci-fi, I'm afraid your going to have to bust out your copy of The Matrix. If you want a thrilling plot with great action sequences and some really phenominal visuals, this is your bag, baby.

Got an idea for a Movie Poster, or
just want to tell me how wrong I am...
Drop Me a Line HERE.