DARK SKIES
Director : Scott Stewart
Year : 2013
Genre : Horror
Rating : ***1/2
Due to the phenomenal success of the 'Paranormal Activity' franchise that has dogged our cinemas for the past half decade, there has been a slew of similarly themed haunted house movies that have all stuck to the same boring conventions and clichés. Films such as 'The Innkeepers', 'Insidious', 'Sinister', 'An American Haunting' and 'The Messengers' all follow the same narrative style, generic and predictable denouements and an overuse of blindingly obvious jump scares and as a result, watching the more recent haunted house films has become nothing more than a horrible, deja vu filled experience and one that I don't look forward to at all. However, some films endeavour to break the mould and 'Dark Skies' does exactly that. With it's use of surreal and creepy imagery, interesting and engaging characterisations and a surprisingly proficient knack for building tension, 'Dark Skies' is a much needed breath of fresh air into this seemingly tired and overused subgenre.
As Daniel and Lacey Barret experience an escalating series of disturbing and unexplainable events involving their family, their safe and peaceful home quickly becomes a hotbed of surreal and terrifying activity. When it becomes clear that the Barret family is being targeted by an unimaginably deadly force, Daniel and Lacey take matters in their own hands to endeavour to solve the mystery of what is after their family and work together to stop it.
Owing a debt to some of the most revered horror movies ever made, 'Dark Skies' is an interesting throwback to the suburban set shockers of the 1970's and 1980's. In fact, if the production values hadn't been so high and the proficiency of the special effects wasn't so good, you would swear that the movie was made during the second golden age of horror. From 'Poltergeist' to 'The Shining', 'The Exorcist' to 'The Birds', 'Dark Skies' references the classics of the genre without ever treading on the toes of it's counterparts. Filmed in the style of a Hooper or even a Hitchcock shocker, the film is a more thought provoking and evocative affair and one that is clearly made by fans of the genre, rather than a conventional and lazy mess made by a low rent director who is keen to bleed a few million dollars from those who flocked to see the endless tide of 'Paranormal Activity' rip offs.
With the help of an engaging cast, rather convincing special effects and moments of goosebump creating tension, 'Dark Skies' is a cut above many of the horror movies released this year. Sure, it's not a classic and many of the elements that make up most of the film have been seen before. But for the most part, it is an interesting, spooky and entertaining 90 minutes that could have been so much worse. Unfortunately, 'Dark Skies' has taken a beating critically and it does seem that the curtain is finally falling on the haunted house subgenre. But to me, it is much better than many of the other 'Paranormal Activity' knock offs that have bored me so much in the past and it is a movie that I believe will stand the test of time.
With the help of an engaging cast, rather convincing special effects and moments of goosebump creating tension, 'Dark Skies' is a cut above many of the horror movies released this year. Sure, it's not a classic and many of the elements that make up most of the film have been seen before. But for the most part, it is an interesting, spooky and entertaining 90 minutes that could have been so much worse. Unfortunately, 'Dark Skies' has taken a beating critically and it does seem that the curtain is finally falling on the haunted house subgenre. But to me, it is much better than many of the other 'Paranormal Activity' knock offs that have bored me so much in the past and it is a movie that I believe will stand the test of time.
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