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Critics Consensus: Dark Skies writer director Scott Stewart has a solid cast, an interesting premise, and some admirable ambitions, but he can't figure out what to do with any of them, and the result is a dull, muddled effort that will bore all but the most devoted horror buffs.
Critic Consensus: Dark Skies writer director Scott Stewart has a solid cast, an interesting premise, and some admirable ambitions, but he can't figure out what to do with any of them, and the result is a dull, muddled effort that will bore all but the most devoted horror buffs.
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All Critics (82) | Top Critics (16) | Fresh (34) | Rotten (48) | DVD (4)
Time and again, Stewart squanders the opportunity to do anything remotely interesting or worthwhile ...
There's little to fear from this rather tame genre outing.
Dark Skies is sort of supernatural, but it's really more super natural....[it's] about the fragility of family, a muted meditation on how precious it is.
Stewart has some lofty ambitions, some of which he almost fulfills.
Those elements are employed with consummate dexterity.
Dark Skies is a bore that even the most forgiving genre buffs will find difficult to defend or endure.
Leaving the theatre, there's an indistinct feeling that something is missing from the film; but that doesn't keep it from being a generally spine-tingling experience.
Poltergeist meets The X-Files when an average US suburban family is plunged into horror, blah blah blah.
Works perfectly well as a turn-off-the-lights (and be-willing-to-play-along) piece of sci-fi-sprinkled horror amusement.
Sneaks by being a retread, mainly because of the really thick tension and suspense [the director] pulls off with an effective score and sharp direction.
Dark Skies may not be a revelatory experience, but as a pure exercise in genre filmmaking, it excels.
Dark Skies won't totally scratch that itch for a good scare, but it's a welcome treat for those who follow the old X-Files credo, "The truth is out there".
An average horror movie that manages to build an effective mystery and tension better than anyone would expect, even if it doesn't offer anything original about abduction phenomenon that we haven't seen before in better works - say, The X-Files. Still, I find the ending satisfying.
Super Reviewer
Genuinely creepy at the end, though starts out quite lame and even dull.
This movies goes into the "I was pleasantly surprised" category. The trailer was a yawner and the apparent premise initially screamed "overdone!" A family is creeped out by a a bunch of weird, unexplainable things happening in their suburban home. While this movie is not original as a whole, there are surprisingly original and creepy scenes to entertain even the most jaded horror fan. While at first it feels like a "made-for-TV" movie, the performances start growing on you and as you finally get an idea of what is really going on, you're hooked. Compared to Director Scott Stewart's previous outings, "Legion" and "Priest," this is the best of the bunch, and frankly, the best of the most recent suburban, lamely titled fright-flicks (like "Possession").
This movies goes into the "I was pleasantly surprised" category for those movies that are better-than-you-expected. The trailer was a yawner and the apparent premise initially screamed "overdone!" (Family is creeped out by a a bunch of weird, unexplainable things happening in their suburban home.) While this movie is not original in any way as a whole, there are surprisingly original and creepy scenes to entertain even the most jaded horror fan. While at first it feels like a "made-for-TV" movie, the performances start growing on you and as you finally get an idea of what is really going on, you're hooked. Compared to Director Scott Stewart's previous outings, "Legion" and "Priest," this is the best of the bunch, and frankly, the best of the most recent suburban, lamely titled fright-flicks like "Possession."
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