Overall Rating
  Awesome: 20.69%
Worth A Look: 36.21%
Average: 11.21%
Pretty Bad: 16.38%
Total Crap: 15.52%
4 reviews, 92 user ratings
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| Event Horizon |
by Scott Weinberg
"Cool actors doing gory things in outer space. I'm so in."
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You know those movies that you only "kinda like" after seeing them once, but the magic of DVD and cable-induced repeat viewings give you a new appreciation for them? That's Event Horizon, which is one gory little concoction. Though it's not likely to win any originality awards (or screenwriting Oscars), this is a movie that more than delivers where it counts: Blood, jolts and gravity-defying gore!Written by Philip Eisner (his first and so far only script) and directed by Paul Anderson (not to be confused with Paul Thomas Anderson, this is the guy who directed Mortal Kombat, Soldier and the upcoming Resident Evil), this is one of the nastiest and darkest haunted house movies ever to take place...in outer space. With a surprisingly strong cast for such an obviously B-grade movie, a handful of thought-provoking concepts and a truly nasty sense of horror, this is a movie I find myself recommending more and more to people who are weary of such "science fiction" drivel as Lost in Space, Supernova and those two twin towers of astronomic ineptitude: Red Planet and Mission to Mars.
It seems that Dr. William Weir (Sam Neill of Jurassic Park and Dead Calm) has discovered a way to expedite interstellar travel by creating small black holes with a "gravity drive". Weir's invention is installed into the ship Event Horizon and the ship takes off for Neptune. It promptly vanishes without a trace.
Seven years later, Weir is informed that the ship has been located. The ship Lewis & Clark is dispatched to check it out, with Cpt. Miller (Laurence Fishburne of The Matrix and Deep Cover) at the helm. Weir is along as an observer, and the crew is comprised of the usual gang of colorful characters. What they discover upon their arrival at the Event Horizon is some truly nightmarish stuff. Not the typical bug-like aliens, but a "presence" that mystifies and horrifies the crew, while Dr. Weir becomes more and more...weird.
To say any more would rob you of a whole lot of nasty jolts and gruesome shocks. Suffice to say that Weir's "gravity drive" can not only travel through holes in space, but apparently has no difficulty in also visiting different dimensions (like HELL!!!) Although a fair amount is left up to the viewer's imagination, it seems logical that the Event Horizon has indeed traveled "to hell and back".
The best thing about this admittedly derivative movie is that it's just so damn nasty. Little or no time is spent on things like "comic relief" and the result is a movie that becomes more unnerving as it continues. And although Event Horizon certainly seems "inspired" by countless other sci-fi or horror flicks, it also succeeds in carving out a little niche for itself as well.
With few exceptions, the cast is first-rate. Sam Neill has a skill for making the most absurd ideas seem realistic, and Laurence Fishburne gives a great understated performance as the level-headed commander. In smaller roles, Kathleen Quinlan and Jason Isaacs do a solid job, and Richard T. Jones and Jack Noseworthy aren't half bad either. Obviously these "lesser" characters are simply corpses waiting to happen, but the actors infuse each part with just enough touches of personality to make you care.
What's particularly notable about Event Horizon is its stellar (and generally nasty) effects and dread-inspiring production design. The Event Horizon is simply an interstellar haunted house, but director Anderson has a keen eye for groovy details. Whether its a bunch of gravity-challenged blood drips or a split-second recording of some awful carnage, Anderson keeps tossing some fun stuff onscreen, most of it pretty damn gory. I mean that as a compliment.
Dismissed by many critics and the public at large as just another spaceship flick, Event Horizon has earned a strong cult following since its theatrical release. (OK, it's me and three of my friends, but hey.) If you're a fan of the outer space thing, and you have a taste for stuff a little on the gruesome side, you could do a hell of a lot worse than Event Horizon. I may be damning this movie with faint praise, but I'd list Event Horizon as one of the best sci-fi movies of the past ten years, and certainly one of the most underrated.A warning to some and a recommendation to others: This is one visually nasty movie. It's about as gory as American studio pics will ever get.
link directly to this review at http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=391&reviewer=128
originally posted: 08/02/01 09:22:46
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USA
15-Aug-1997 (R)
DVD: 18-Apr-2006
UK
N/A
Australia
02-Feb-1997
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