The Horror Show
From the Dark
by Conor McMahon
Set in the Irish countryside From the Dark is a stylish yet imitative foreign release that seems most likely to be watched by viewers who stumble in by accident. The rather talented Conor McMahon, who stands behind the memorable comedy horror Stitches, took a small risk with this production, as From the Dark can only be seen as a run-of-the-mill story with not much to offer.
The story follows Sarah (Niamh Algar) and Mark (Stephen Cromwell), a couple of generic characters, who become stranded on a remote back road of rural Ireland, while traveling through the country. Their only hope is to find a shelter in order to spend the night and search for help, so things start to look up when they discover an old rustic house. Inside the house lies an old wounded man, who is in a state of shock after being attacked by a creature that’s lurking in the dark.
Sarah and Mark soon realize that they are in great danger and their only hope is to remain in the light, where the bloodthirsty beast can’t attack.
McMahon sets a rather tense atmosphere and certainly manages to create a moody thriller, quite suspenseful at times, with dimly moonlit settings and obscure background shots. The chilling ambiance is benefited greatly by the strong focus on darkness, which keeps the vampire-like creature’s true appearance from being fully revealed.
However, the main idea fails to succeed on several crucial levels with the lack of originality being its biggest problem. The main issue is that McMahon keeps it simple and plays it safe. Even though From the Dark is well made and well-cast, it feels like a bland echo of numerous popcorn flicks that might satisfy mainstream audiences, but will certainly disappoint hard-core horror fans.
Maria Kriva, HMS
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