Dark Signal

source: Dark Signal

They were probably going for a straight horror flick here, but it failed in so many places so magnificently it was actually funny and amusing to watch. Not quite the type of spectacular failure of something like "The Room", but there were moments I was bursting out laughing. the very first jump scare moment with the lighter in the car was so poorly executed I not only burst out laughing, but I didn't even jump or get in any way shocked by it. The acting by certain people was, being generous, questionable, with certain dramatic moments coming off as goofy or otherwise unbelievable. The film starts off already unclearly, with two separate events unfolding at once with no clear connection until several minutes in, and no clear explanation as to what one of the stories even is until later on. The disparity in accents also makes it unclear exactly where this is taking place until about 20-30 minutes in. Ultimately this doesn't end up making much a difference in the story but it adds to the overall disorientation that the first 15 minutes of this movie suffers, to the degree that I had started and stopped and kept re-watching the movie several times because I couldn't fully get into it. Once it finally does delve into its central plot, it becomes largely a waiting game as to when the "Ghost Story" aspect starts paying off. A radio DJ is broadcasting her last show ever, when a ghost suddenly makes contact with them via EVP while recording a segment with a psychic. After that, they're somehow able to communicate in real time with the ghost with absolutely no explanation as to how. The ghost appears to be narrating the events unfolding with the second protagonist, a woman named Kate who is waiting for her boyfriend Nick to finish robbing a farmhouse to pay off her debts and start a new life with her disabled son Marek. She gets a call from Nick where he's attacked and she sneaks into the farmhouse, getting ambushed by the house owner who had confronted her earlier in her car about trespassing. He apparently thinks she killed his daughter, only for the real killer to kill him and then threaten to kill Kate, saying he'll kill her son in front of her before killing her. She says he better kill her now because she'll be the one to kill him. From there, a surprising amount of nothing happens, until the killer heads to the radio station and we get a big reveal as to his identity, which finally connects us with the seemingly unrelated cold open of the "Wedlock Killer" as it's revealed Ben, the radio operator guy, was the killer, and the events unfolding in the radio station happened the previous day, and he had to kill the radio DJ because she found his inexplicable container full of unpreserved severed fingers. From there we respawn in the daytime somewhere where we get a hilariously awesome fight sequence between Ben and Kate, one involving actual choreography and an action movie type vibe, complete with the ghost appearing to help Kate, and Kate delivering a one-liner before killing Ben. What ever they were trying to go for here either failed miserably or succeeded miserably, and while that doesn't make this anything resembling a good movie, it definitely made itself very memorable

This is a fairly forgettable film. It has some interesting ideas, but mostly fails. Some of the camera-work is good, and the lead actresses are good, but the director seems to think that sticking in a jump shock every few minutes constitutes good horror filmmaking. To make matters worth, each of these shocks is punctuated by a loud musical screech. In the hands of a talented director, these types of shocks can be very effective, but here they are just annoying and actually interfere with the flow of the story.

Was drawn into seeing 'Dark Signal', with as said for many films seen an intriguing and reasonably creative premise and as someone with a general appreciation for horror. That it was low-budget, which from frequent personal experience is rarely a good sign due to that there are so many poor ones out there, made me though apprehensive. 'Dark Signal', simply put, turned out to be a disappointing film and waste of potential with a few fairly small positives and so much done catastrophically wrong. Not one of the worst films ever seen, not even close, but 'Dark Signal' is a classic example of how not to do a premise deserving of a film that does it justice. Lets start with the positives. The scenery is atmospheric and the music fits nicely and has eeriness. A few decent twists and there is a passion for horror at times though it only comes in spurts when too much of the film is undone by the mediocre at best and often bad execution of everything else. However, the story does feel over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained in the last third where the film especially became duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary. Too many characters are too sketchy and with nowhere near enough to make one want to endear to them. Their irritating and illogical decision making and behaviours frustrate. Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into it. The acting is pretty bad to put it lightly, particularly from agreed Joanna Ignaczewska spending the entire time looking unsure and bored, and the effects are ropy at best. Dialogue can be stilted and rambling, not to mention far too exposition-heavy, while the pace is uneven, dragging in a lot of the first half, which goes on forever and fails to get going, and never is it exciting after a truly irrelevant beginning. Found too many the supposedly shocking moments not surprising or scary and the supposedly creepy atmosphere dreary, due to the excessive obviousness and the lack of tension and suspense. Too many elements are introduced, and then dropped, barely explored or don't go anywhere, sometimes even all three. A lot of the film completely fails to make sense, both in underdeveloped plot elements and often nonsensical and confusing character motivations. There is a lot of choppiness and lack of coherence. The threat is poorly used and poses very little threat. The film completely peters out with an ending that felt like an afterthought. All in all, very mediocre at best. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Enjoyed this British horror, doesn't have the big bucks of a Hollywood horror or production gloss but shows what a good storyline, believable characters and great acting can do. Liked the sound score as well, gets the thumbs-up and definitely worth watching.

Dark Signal, what a film!!! amazing plot with a brilliant twist. Ed Evers Swindell's horror is a refreshing movie, a fantastic British film. The only thing i would change is Kate would have gotten plenty more positive reviews if she wasn't in it. You can clearly see Swindell's passion for horror, and I can't wait to see what he comes out with in the future.

Brilliantly directed, suspenseful horror. I think it was well shot and the locations chosen worked really well with the film. Great for my halloween binge weekend for horror films.

If you watch the movie, you'll know who I'm talking about. The one actress sounds like she's laughing when she's crying. Her broken English doesn't add anything to the movie either. A British actress would have been much better for the role. The story is a bit confusing. It feels as though the twist wasn't that thought out. The movie was quite charming at times. However, the is a major plot hole. Without spoiling the movie, records are kept of who someone talks to over the phone or via the internet. Knowing this, the movie's events would be impossible. It was genuinely scary at times. There are cheap jump scares, but there's also subtle scares if you're paying attention.

One interesting element in this movie is that the Italian psychic was the blind blonde girl in the cult horror movie The Beyond (1981) directed by Lucio Fulci. Other than that, the plot doesn't make any freaking sense, two stars are awarded purely for the movie production. Best to watch during dinner, it is constantly hilarious which helps digestion.

This movie had so much potential, but the lead actress and cheesy fight scenes killed it for me