The Darkest Hour
Directed by Chris Gorak
- horror
- action
- thriller
- science fiction
The story
In Moscow, five young people lead the charge against an alien race which has attacked Earth via our power supply.
What it’s like
Cold blue-grey light and washed-out night streets, with the city rendered as a tangle of wet asphalt, glowing storefronts and emptied squares, the look often sliding into a bleached, almost monochrome haze once the invaders take hold. The camera stays close and jittery during the chases, then pulls back to hold on eerie stretches of deserted architecture, where the silence is broken only by crackling electricity and the hum of unseen machinery. The sound design leans on sharp, bursting electrical discharges, distant screams and a pulsing synth score that swells under the action. Its vibe is bleak, jumpy and tense, a cold-weather survival thriller with a sci-fi edge. It suits a late-night watch alone or a loud, dark weekend with friends, and the pacing runs in short bursts of frantic movement between long stretches of dread. Violence is frequent and sudden, with people vaporised or electrocuted in bright, startling flashes, though the gore stays restrained and the cruelty is mostly impersonal. The arcs follow young outsiders scrambling to survive and trust one another in a city that has turned hostile. Made for viewers who want ominous, high-concept alien action with a grim, tense atmosphere and no comfort.
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