Dark Country (2009)

Wonderful character development!

Simply A Masterpiece

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

First off, you know what this movie looks like? Imagine picking up a shattered egg that had just now fallen out of an eagle's nest. And inside, you see this half-formed, or in this case, nearly nearly complete fetus, but not just fetus, another two, three days THIS would have been a little eagle.This movie would never have been a super-big colossal mainstream hit, but it could have been an eagle amongst other cult movies......but something went wrong. Listening to the DVD commentary just adds fuel to this suspicion. It is as their budget ran out, the time limits, something. Some plug was pulled. The egg was shattered and the chick is not properly formed yet. But what there is of the chick, it would have been some eagle.Instead, it kinda limps as it flies.There are so many mistakes, if you'd honk a car horn for each and every one, it would be a virtual cacophony.Let me just say, as I started off watching, I thought I LIKE THIS... THIS I'M GONNA GIVE A 10.(I tend not to be too thrilled with my movies. I collect them for the sake of the pretty actresses and I am that way stuck in a trend that means they're kinda Bumsville and it soon shows as you watch. I'm trying to say few movies win me over in an instant. This one very very soon had me thinking WOW this is promising LOOK AT THAT PRETTY GIRL - Lauren German you are a vision, you are a little goddess, Lauren MERE WORDS CAN'T DO YOU JUSTICE - hell, waking up and you are married to THAT ONE? Is not exactly a fate worse than death. Oh, okay, gotta get back on track.... Also, the way the titles appear, grand graphic novel style, settle in for the ride of your life...I just wanna say that besides looking AWESOME, Lauren gives a wonderfully convincing acting performance. Critics praise Thomas Jane? Aw pshaw! It's Lauren! Lauren in the trailer made me buy this movie (which I'd never heard of before) and Lauren is worth it ALL THE WAY. Her screen presence is magnificent and I consider her ONE OF THE VERY BEST I'VE EVER SEEN ON FILM......and people, I am that fool fan boy here on IMDb known as The Raven, a laughable little critter, but people, I know what I am talking about, I am a man of taste, not ashamed of admitting what I like LIKE SO MANY ENVIOUS ONES OUT THERE.Let's just all admit in: Lauren is a Class A dream-girl, and that old Dodge speeding along the deserted highway (er, deserted road that used to be a highway, whatever) = the stuff that dreams are made of. To bring in some story to give it suspense, we have the nightmare intruding upon paradise.But the problem is: Too much nightmare.It's all ruined by the overplaying of the Bloodyface character, who plays the misery of his situation not like a severely hurt human but like an alien in a grotesque rubber mask.This movie fails because of shoddy bodywork done to the vehicle. It ultimately needed only a glossy coat over that purring engine.It didn't get it.For shame.I'm sure some exec guys in accounting were to blame. It was a money thing.Stupid.Stupid stupid shame.

This movie was defiantly in the top ten worst of the worst worst. I don't think the producer gave thought into anything. The movie seam to start off with a married couple who hooked up at first glance and now they have to deal with the reality of who the other is. When the bloody face guy is introduced it is way too obvious that its him just look at the u shaped hair line and the blue car. I am aware however that some people may not notice these fact they probably would enjoy they movie better then the rest of us.The movie spent to much time in the car trying what it would seam like make the watcher think about who this strange guy they killed might be. Unless you are one of those who already figured it out . While watching the movie I thought that the real mystery would be how Gina would die. However to my disappointment they jump that scene.(Closing statement) With poor scenery to the point where one scene they actually look green, fake lightning that was irreverent to the story board, story holes like Gina death and lots of time wasted doing next to nothing this movie most defiantly earned its poor grade (waste of time) like some teachers say in the schools you fail your self.

This reminded me of a Coen Brothers film, particularly Blood Simple and Fargo. What distinguishes it is it from the brothers is the flat dialogue, though the stunning digital landscape offers some visual stimulation. After a spectacular coupling, the participants get married in Las Vegas and then light out for the desert. Pretty soon they come across a dead body and find themselves in the twilight zone. The style is a mix of film noir in colour and comic book graphics. The acting is no more than serviceable but it all holds together and the visuals keeps you occupied during the script's lesser moments, of which there are quite a few. It's not for a film for everyone but I stayed with it to see where it was heading, and I'm glad I did

I'm not sure if this movie had caught my eye unless Thomas Jane had directed it. I always find it interesting when an actor with some fame goes behind camera. I think Thomas Jane succeeds pretty well, the movie holds itself together all the way.Not gonna go much into the plot, but it does indeed play a bit like a Twilight Zone episode as some others have mentioned. To speak the truth, I didn't quite understand how the movie eventually unfolded, but it was fun to watch. Probably isn't even meant to be explainable.The noirish style works quite well. A somewhat similar look has been popular recently and it's easy to guess the budget has been tight on this one. There are many many shots, where you can see the green screen through hair or the darks just don't match up. Despite the sloppy post production, there are some nice visual ideas without going over the top with visual trickery and the noirish atmosphere works.There are basically only two actors (three if you count Perlman) and they both do a decent job. Lauren German is quite a chameleon it seems. She never looks the same, yet she resembles so many other actresses. She's very capable of pulling of different roles, really looking forward to watch her career go sky high.The movie is something you'd expect to see from someone graduating from a film school. It's still got the fun factor, it doesn't take itself too seriously. It feels more as if the crew made the movie for themselves rather than the audience, and that's how art should be done.I'm still giving only 5, because it really is not a classic, even tho it's a fun little indie movie. Five here doesn't mean it's a bad movie, there's just so many better ones that I can't justify a higher score.