"The Darkest Hour" Review by Chris

When two website designers find themselves trapped in Russia during an invasion of invisible aliens, they must band together with other survivors to find a way to fight back. But how can they fight an enemy they can't see? They soon figure out that the only way to locate the aliens is by their effect on electrical objects, and it is this battle with the invisible is what sets "The Darkest Hour" apart from most alien invasion films.

Emile Hirsch and Max Minghella do a admirable job as the protagonists of the film, but their dialogue would have felt more at home in a sitcom. They bounce back and forth between making situational jokes and actually trying to figure out how to survive. The remainder of the cast does equally well with what they’re given, but have far less to work with than the main characters. Most are clearly there to push the battle forward and become cannon fodder for the aliens.

The film also suffers from a lack of story consistency in its established rules, and uses very basic science to explain complicated things. They learn early on that the aliens can see electricity because they’re made of energy, and by complete happenstance they also discover that glass acts like an insulator and makes them invisible to alien sight. Later in the film, aliens attack after seeing three of the characters through glass windows, but only a few minutes later one character hides behind a glass table and is invisible. The film is riddled with these holes, but never seem to be enough to stop the plot.

The visuals for the aliens are one of the highlights of this film. Early on they can only be seen as flickers and waves, but they produce an interesting spectacle of lights when they vaporize humans into dust. Their lack of form adds to the suspense, but halfway through this effect is ruined when humans learn their weaknesses, and the aliens gain physical form. Despite being physically inconsistent, the aliens are well crafted and have a unique look to them. These invaders are the highlight of the film and the reason to keep watching.

The 3D effect is adequate, but adds nothing to the film and is generally tacked on, which is unfortunate considering most theaters are only showing it in 3D. No moment ever feels too flat, but nothing stands out as memorable. Even the fast moving aliens fail to add excitement to the 3D experience.

With its unique ideas and decent cast, "The Darkest Hour" had potential to be a different type of invasion film, but a lackluster script and little consistency drag it down. It has some new ideas but everything else is simply average.

2.5 "dusted humans" out of 5

Written by Chris
Edited by Aaron