And Soon the Darkness (2010)

Directed By: Marcos Efron

Starring: Amber Heard, Odette Yustman, Karl Urban, & Adriana Barraza

MPAA Rating: R

My Rating: 3 / 10

Full Disclosure: I have never seen the 1970 film, And Soon the Darkness, upon which this film is based.

And Soon the Darkness is a textbook example of how to squander a perfectly pleasant first half. This film skillfully builds tension throughout its first half, introducing us to two believable heroines and then constantly suggesting that bad things are about to happen to them. Sure, it overuses the old "villagers stare ominously" shtick, but it works nonetheless. In fact, I was almost convinced that I was watching a great thriller...until the so-called "thrills" actually began. Then, And Soon the Darkness loses all of its carefully-mounted momentum, hitting a narrative brick wall of sorts and becoming a standard, run-of-the-mill torture flick...except without the torture. So, what we have is actually a movie that becomes all about our heroines running and bad guys chasing them, with utter lifelessness and absolutely zero tension. It isn't that And Soon the Darkness is a poorly-made film. Indeed, it's a beautifully-shot and well-acted film. Its problem is that there isn't a single spark of interest, creativity, or originality in any second of its 90-minute runtime. This movie practically defines the word "blah."

Two American tourists, Stephanie and Ellie (Amber Heard and Odette Yustman, respectively) are bicycling through Argentina, when they get in a heated (and clearly contrived) argument that separates them. When Stephanie goes to find Ellie to reconcile a little while later, Ellie is nowhere to be found. As the locals and even the police seem to refuse to help Stephanie in her search, she turns to a man named Michael (Karl Urban), who claims that he too is looking for a lost friend, for help. But, in a strange country with no one she can really trust, Stephanie finds her worst fears realized...or so the IMDb plot synopsis says. In all actuality, the film does a poor job of realizing this so-called "fear." By the end of the movie, Stephanie is a psychologically-scarred mess (that really isn't a terribly spoiler-y spoiler), but the events that precede her final breakdown don't seem nearly as traumatic as the movie would lead us to believe. Sure, it might be scary and disturbing to endure what Stephanie endures here...but, when compared to other "torture" films (think Hostel or The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), And Soon the Darkness looks practically tame.

Perhaps the only scene that ever even borders on being chill-inducing is an almost-rape scene, but it's so short and safe, it doesn't come anywhere close to eliciting the response the filmmakers so clearly hoped it would. This is a movie that the filmmakers hoped would be shocking and disturbing (as evidenced by the all-too-serious music and the heavy-handed nature of it all), but plays it too safe to be either one. It's too bad too, since the cast is clearly up for the task. Amber Heard is a natural leading lady, a skilled actress whose talent is matched by her beauty. She is automatically sympathetic, and is able to balance the "kick-ass heroine" aspects of her role with the "damsel in distress" aspects. Odette Yustman handles her transition from carefree party girl to emotionally-savaged victim well, making her character believable and relatable. Unfortunately, these two solid leading performances are wasted on a subpar script and fairly manipulative plot devices. The fight that separates the girls, especially, is a glaring example of this. It's so clearly contrived and obviously scripted that not even the most talented cast could make it feel fluid and natural.

On a brighter note, director of photography Gabriel Baristein really went above and beyond with his work on this film. He captures the beauty of Argentina, making its countryside one of the most important characters in the film. Aesthetically, And Soon the Darkness is a cinematic homerun, perhaps the most visually-stunning straight-to-DVD horror film of the year (I mean, that isn't necessarily saying too much...but take from it what you will). It's too bad that Baristein's talents are wasted on basically dressing cinematic crap up to look pretty; he is far better than this film deserves. But, let's be honest, everything about And Soon the Darkness is good...except the script, which is, you know, the foundation of the whole damn thing. It crumbles altogether in the second half, dragging the cast, the cinematographer, and everything else down with it. For people who are interested in Argentina, it might be worth a watch simply for the gorgeous depiction of the city. And for anyone who ever hoped to see Amber Heard and Odette Yustman (easily two of Hollywood's most beautiful young actresses) wearing nothing but bikinis and lounging beside each other, well, you will see that here. But, if you're looking for an actually good movie, don't let this darken the doorway of your Netflix queue...darken, get it? See what I did there? Because the movie's called And Soon the Darkness...ah, never mind. Just pick a different movie.