Friday, 15 September 2017

It comes at night (2 Stars)


This is the 40th film in the Stuttgart Fantasy Film Festival.

At a time in the near future the human race has been decimated by a deadly virus. There's no cure. Anyone who is infected dies. People with the virus are contagious for a few days before the symptoms become visible, symptoms such as bleeding from the mouth. Families live in isolation to prevent infection, but drinking water is in short supply, suggesting that polluted water was the way the infection was first spread.

A married couple live with their teenage son. They keep to themselves, like everyone else. They decide to be compassionate and take in a couple with a young child who have no home. They don't seem to be infected, but how can they be sure?

The film is already a box office success, but I don't understand why. The action is painfully slow, and there's very little suspense. Apart from this, the picture is too dark for most of the film. This is something the film industry has forgotten. In films made up to the 1960's night scenes were always artificially lit, so it was clear what was happening. Just because you and I see unclearly when we walk in a moonless night, it doesn't mean that night scenes in films have to be just as dark. Artistic license should take priority over clinical accuracy.

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