Dark Was the Night (2014)

Well written (screaming bloody murder and dystopian gun battles are not necessary in EVERY SINGLE monster movie), well directed, great casting, perfect settings, interesting mythology, and the ending was just...AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! No way! Then the music comes up and you're like, That was so cool!Well, I was like that, anyway. This movie proudly sits on the shelf between the classics Creature from the Black Lagoon and Enemy Mine.

Dark Was The Night is a relatively engaging creature feature that benefits from appropriate pacing and adequate acting on the part of the participants. Kevin Durand delivers a fine performance as a quirky and moody character, elevating him above most generic characters in more mundane and mediocre horror flicks. I'd have to say none of the actors delivers a gut wrenchingly bad performance, though none will win an Academy Award.DWTN also proves you can make a relatively engaging horror flick without a lot of fancy CGI or FX. In addition to the calculated pacing (not too fast or too slow, IMHO), Jack Heller uses simple set creations, plot devices and staging to heighten the tension and mystery, never revealing too much too soon. Coupled with decent character development, a fairly good story line, and an above average script (for this kind of low budget creature feature), it makes the flick work for most of it's 90+ minutesAs many have observed, the movie falls victim to trite mechanisms toward the end, making it just short of anti-climactic in its predictability. The creature was somewhat interesting, but the sub- standard CGI made it less believable. Heller and the writer then proverbially club the viewer over the head with a disingenuous twist at the very end, no doubt set up to introduce a future sequel. (I will not reveal it here, as I don't want to introduce a TOTAL spoiler).Suffice it to say, DWTN is a relatively entertaining creature feature that should hold your attention throughout. Not a movie you'd need to see twice, but much better than a lot of the tripe I've been viewing lately.

Unlike many of the reviewers, I enjoyed the movie right up to and including the end. Decent acting, and the decisions and actions of the sheriff as the film progressed were logical for the most part. I didn't think the creature was THAT bad either, sorry.It did seem that the movie was a little dark and jerky at times, and of course those were the times you wanted to see more clearly what was happening!!I also agree with other reviews in that the creature's actions did not seem logical at times, and it seemed to have some strange affinity for the sheriff.Also, why would it go after a church containing the few people of the town who had not evacuated, when there was a fully stocked (only missing one) horse ranch on the edge of town??Overall, 8 out of 10. I have seen soooo many that were worse.

This is equal parts Drama and Horror.The Beginning seems kind of slow and tedious, but if you're patient and in the right mood, then you settle in. Durand plays the Sheriff with deep emotional background, although it can seem a little heavy at first. And his deputy is a good balance of a lighter character with an Outside-Of-Town perspective. And the Monster is all in the build-up.In some ways, this movie starts with the usual horror formula...except it's not a screamer/splatter. The Townspeople aren't a forgettable list of cardboard a-holes just lining up to be dragged off. It's ordinary people coming to realize that something dangerous has moved in with them...and now they're scared...and as a viewer, I found myself scared for them.This ain't a blockbuster movie...but I rate it above the generic B-Grade cable fare because when you parse the plot, there's a lot of common sense logic involved in the sheriff and the town trying to figure out what's happening. And the acting is solid and believable all around.This one is best for classic After-12 Midnight viewing on a Saturday night. Even better if it's raining or snowing outside.