And Soon the Darkness

nnn

Workably well-made, but unremarkable pot-boiler remake of the 1970 British version. This time it takes place in Argentina with two American girls on a cycling trip, compared with the original having two British girls cycling in the French countryside. One of the girls goes missing, leaving the other friend on a desperate search to find her. The simplistic narrative is routine as can be, dealing with alienation and paranoia of being a fish-out-of-water. Still rather under-written. While it might start off lousy and not surprise with its lack of twists (as the mystery does eventually loose some steam), it remains effectively sustainable in making you uncomfortable in its foreign surroundings… where it's hard to know just who to trust, as no one wants to get involved even though the suspicions are there that the locals (you know those long stares) might just know what is going on. Desperation and danger fills every inch of space as details become clear for the protagonists. The direction is intrusively slick and pacing slow-going, but this only adds to the unsettling atmosphere and breath-taking mountainous scenery. Other than Amber Heard's commendable performance, the scenic photography also is a true scene stealer. The lush sights are a marvel and only compliment the underlining threat of this idyllically forlorn retreat. After such a sturdy progression and falling into contrived developments, it breaks away in the final acts with some intense cat and mouse moments but never fully tapping in to the suspense of the predicament. The cast give well rounded performances, even though their thin characters are descriptively black and white. Heard is impressive in the lead role, while Odette Annable provides plenty of energy. A disconnected Karl Urban shows up as a mysterious stranger (though foreseeable to where his character's ends up in the plot) and Cesar Vianco (with that icy stare) plays the town's officer. Underdone, but modest travel thriller. "He looks… responsible."

The blonde actress could not act her way out of a paper bag. I feel embarrassed for her even watching for ten minutes. And it is not just the dialogue. She would have been much better off spending her money on acting lessons instead of implants. The plot is full of holes as well.

2 beautiful girls with perfect bodies and pretty faces. Enough to watch and enjoy. Besides the script is actually very good. Could be on real life events based. Interesting and intriguing. Not many characters and all is happening outside with little background and I have a thought that the movie is small budget, which makes it even more attractive, everything is set as professional. I only did not like the end. I don't think Miss Heard can fight against 2 men so easily unless she is pro-boxer or something, obviously she is not. 8/10

Although this movie may have had a few cliché characters, I think it well a well put story with a great storyline. The acting in this film was also quite honorable, and I think the main reason I feel this film deserves more credit than it receives is because it is a lot different to all of the other thrillers. The story surprised me and I felt this movie was a one to watch, not only because of it's storyline, but the actors in it really portrayed the characters well. I give this an 8 out of 10. Cheers for the great watch

This is a very well made suspense drama, with exceptional story, very good acting, fine cinematography, noteworthy direction. The 95 minute running time -- unusual in 2011 -- doesn't allow time to be wasted. The movie is set and filmed in rural Argentina, a place few of us have seen, and the problems these two girls face are as unusual to Americans as is the strange setting of the story. Many reviewers have blasted the movie as being hostile and/or discriminatory; supposedly giving a false negative view. Let me tell you our experience in this part of the world..... We rented a car in Iguetzu Argentine to drive to Ascuncion, Paraguay. At the main square in Asuncion, we had car trouble and about a dozen men tried to help. Nice guys seeking a tip, they eventually pushed the car into the garage of the modern hotel right on the square. We got a room and the hotel Reception helped us with the car, we thought. In fact, the car was stolen overnight and the hotel Reception orchestrated the theft. (Sounds like a movie script!) Two days later, in Manaus, Brazil, I was shaken down for $850 by 8 large guys in the manager's office of the Tripical Hotel. I would not have been able to leave that room without paying. Back on my own turf in America, I used my position as a federal official in Washington to bring about a return of the $850. Had I not had this clout I would have just been another robbed tourist. IMDb reviewers can use their Political Correctness bull in their reviews, freedom of speech and all that, but more level headed people ought set the record straight. Aside from my personal experiences, "And Soon the Darkness" is well above the usual tripe we get in 2011 movies; downright good!

The only good thing about this movie is the editing, the camera work and the sound. The acting is okay, but the plot is shallow. The promise of twists is totally unfulfilled. It is predictable and rather pointless. What a shame. It is one of those movies that seems to have something, but you wait and watch and nothing happens. There is very little to say about the movie. I had to add this filler just so that the review could be accepted for having 10 lines of text. The characterisation is shallow. I suppose the scenery in some of the scenes is rather interesting. But other than that, this is a complete waste of your time.

Two young attractive girls are biking through Argentina. They miss their bus to leave and stay a bit longer, when they get into a fight one of them leaves the other by herself. Big mistake, the girl gets herself kidnapped. Now her friend must try to find her. The film never tries to elevate the genre that it is in, nor make it interesting. And Soon The Darkness manages to follow the footpath of every film before it, thus making it boring and predictable. First we have our two female characters. One is obviously a trouble maker and the rebel, while the other is more conservative. Guess which one gets herself kidnapped and which one has to rise to the occasion to get her friend back? The two female characters are played by Odette Yustman and Amber Heard, they fit their roles of attractive young females. The roles don't call for anything beyond that really. The biggest letdown, had to be Karl Urban. His character is somewhat pointless. He doesn't advance the plot, his story line is left unfinished and Urban himself seems to be bored with the material. I like the guy, but he needs to pick better projects than this. Now that I have my biggest letdown out of the way, let me tell you where else this film went wrong. The main reason for the girl getting kidnapped is due to the character's stupidity. The two girls get into a verbal argument, one storms off leaving the other. Who would leave their best friend in the middle of nowhere in a foreign country? On top of that, they state earlier that they were part of a bike tour group, but got lost from the pack? These point in the film had me scratching my head. The film doesn't really know what it wants to be either, it reminded me a lot of Turistas. These characters are in a beautiful location, the film knows this and it is shot fairly well. There are bits of torture, yet the film never steers into that Hostel, or Saw territory. It comes off as very tame, I'm surprised it is even restricted. The film can easily be a PG-13 flick. There are no surprises, you know from the moment you see the characters, who is responsible for what. The film tries to be clever to throw a curveball, but as I mentioned before, we have seen this type of film before and it's obvious where it was going. The film even lacks suspense. The kidnapping scene is poorly done, the climax is also a third rate cat and mouse game. The film fails to create any tension and that was a key element missing from here. Too many things were left unanswered for me. The two people who ran the hotel, do they know anything? Are they in on it? Does the wife try to warn them, but the husband put her in her place? Who knows. And Soon The Darkness peaked my interest, but is failed to excite me. If Karl Urban was not in it, I would never have bothered with it. You should do yourself a favour too and skip it.

The plot as many has mentioned is so stupidly predictable from the very beginning. What really annoyed me though was how it stereotypes American going to developing countries and acting...well like ignorant American tourists just asking to be robbed, ridiculed, and/or raped. I mean, who in their right mind, male or female, would dress up and go to a local bar in a small, little town out in the middle of nowhere. What gets to me most though is this very Hollywood, developed world perspective that all developing countries from Asia to South America to East Europe are dangerous places where deviants and criminals are constantly roaming around hunting and kidnapping innocent, naive American tourists. This is as far from reality as it gets. Well that's Hollywood for you and the 5.2/10 is well-deserved.

And Soon the Darkness_720p(480P)