Vanishing on 7th Street (2010)

Everyone is droning on about the lack of an explanation. The movie does not answer "Why" but enough is given to allow viewers their own interpretation. Personally i don't see this as poor writing, but intentional. They tell you that it's all random, if you accept that then you'll enjoy yourself. Where this movie shines is in its shadows. The atmosphere is captivating and suspenseful, the viewer is immersed in the characters desperate need for light and the will to survive. The shadow effects/creatures are amazingly well done and unique. If you are a fan of "The Light versus Shadows" genre, such as Pitch Black and Darkness Falls, this is a good addition.

Fmovies: 'VANISHING ON 7TH STREET': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

Brad Anderson directs this apocalyptic horror film about an unknown darkness falling on mankind and devouring everything in it's path. Hayden Christensen, Thandie Newton, John Lequizamo and newcomer Jacob Latimore star as a small group of survivors who band together. The film was written by Anthony Jaswinski (who's written a few other low rent horror films no one's heard of, mainly of the made for TV variety). Anderson has shown some skill in past projects (he directed the impressive 2004 thriller 'THE MACHINIST', featuring a 110 pound Christian Bale) but here he sinks to pure mediocrity directing a pretty forgettable routine thriller.

One random day there's a severe power outage and most of the world's population vanishes into thin air, leaving nothing behind but their clothes. The remaining survivors are quickly gobbled up by the ever growing darkness as well and the only way to escape it is to stay in the light, which becomes more and more scarce as electricity continues to fail and the days grow shorter and shorter. The film focuses on four surviving strangers who find each other in a bar on 7th Street in Detroit Michigan. Christensen stars as a TV anchorman named Luke, Leguizamo co-stars as a movie theater projectionist named Paul, Newton also co-stars as a mother desperately looking for her lost child and Latimore plays a young boy first camped out in the bar hopelessly waiting for his mom to return.

The film is interesting at first but none of it's puzzling questions are really answered. It's suspenseful and effectively eerie at times but nothing builds to a very satisfying conclusion. The point of the movie is never clearly known. Some will enjoy it's open-endedness but others will be frustrated by what some will call it's creative laziness. The performances are all adequate at best, the screenplay somewhat boring and the directing ho-hum. Not a complete waste of time for horror and suspense thriller fans but ultimately forgettable.

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Quite frankly when I sit down to watch a film like this I'm not expecting fireworks, but I do like to be entertained. That being said, this film lacks everything, apart from production value. Honestly, that's it. There is nothing I hate more than a movie that does not deliver on, plot, character development and sense. Yes, sense. Strangely these, things, can turn off any light they want apart from when it deviates from the ridiculous storyline (what there was of it), and the addition of momentary dogma from one character, which was quickly forgotten, is a tragic if not rife Hollywood device which never goes anywhere. It is in all it's tragic glory a sad reminder of the tripe that passes as screen-writing these days. I could go on longer, or indeed put this in paragraphs, but just like the film-makers, I just can't be arsed.

Vanishing on 7th Street fmovies. OK - let me start by saying this isn't a BAD film. Its just that there's no pay-off at the end. You're left with a "So what WAS going on?" feeling. All successful stories have a start, a middle and an end. Vanishing on 7th Street is missing the 'end'.

The acting, direction and camera work all make the grade - but thats all. Its almost as if they've JUST managed to do enough to warrant getting paid. While there are a few nice touches during the film, there isn't anything here that you wont have seen before. Although I was surprised by one event close to the end which I wont ruin by revealing here.

Unless you have some reason to watch this film I wouldn't waste the time. There are 100s of 'fair/mediocre' films out there so choose one that at least has a proper 'end'.

5/10

An unexplained blackout plunges the city of Detroit into total darkness, and by the time the sun rises, only a few people remain-surrounded by heaps of empty clothing, abandoned cars and lengthening shadows. A small handful of strangers that have survived the night each find their way to a rundown bar, whose gasoline-powered generator and stockpile of food and drink make it the last refuge in a deserted city. With daylight beginning to disappear completely and whispering shadows surrounding the survivors, they soon discover that the enemy is the darkness itself, and only the few remaining light sources can keep them safe. As time begins to run out for them, darkness closes in and they must face the ultimate terror. -- (C) Magnolia

I hate to use something from RUBBER, a film I loathed, but it fits so well here: VANISHING uses the plot of "no reason," a plot that raises many questions but doesn't answer them by the time the credits roll. It is this very reason why the film is disliked by many. Yet, films like THE HAPPENING, KNOWING, and THE FORGOTTEN get bashed because of the explanations of their plots. Go figure. Yes, as human beings, we often want to make sense of events that occur, especially in films, yet we need to realize things in life just happen. VANISHING may be low on explanation, but it's high on suspense due to the use of a common fear: the dark.

Let's take a moment to talk about why so many people fear the darkness: It's not the darkness itself that people are afraid of, but rather, the fear of the unknown. Just what is lurking in the darkness? VANISHING uses this fear and capitalizes on it which generates many of the films' unnerving moments. In fact, its resistance on explaining everything is what makes the film scary. And no, the film doesn't use any "pop out" scares. It's better than that. The film builds up its scares with a chilling atmosphere. That, ladies and gentlemen, is called suspense, and don't be surprised. Director Brad Anderson is in the chair. With films like TRANSIBBERIAN and THE MACHINEST already under his belt, Anderson knows how to make films that are thrilling.

The cast is good as well, but that's probably because I have a soft side for them. Haters of Hayden Christensen will find themselves unconvinced, but I thought he pulled off a good performance. Although their characters don't ask for much, John Leguizamo and the beautiful Thandie Newton do a great job providing sympathy to their roles. Jacob Latimore, the kid actor, plays quite an annoying character at first, which shouldn't be a surprise, but I got to eventually warm up to him in the middle point of the film.

Overall, VANISHING impressed me. While there may be some inconsistency in its high-concept premise, it really makes up for it on the scares. The actors are good as well and the production values are great for a small film like this. Give this film a chance.

While parts of the movie peaked my interest, overall, it was very disappointing. A vague plot, poor script, weak effects and actors trying their best to make it work. Too bad they failed. A movie with this premise has great potential, it can lead the viewer down a path and let the audience intellectually fill in the blanks. In order for that to occur, the movie itself must provide the plot points, the material that that allows, and draws the viewer to want to connect the dots and create, so to speak, their own movie within a movie. I just gave up, and so, apparently, did the filmmakers. I won't gave away anything, because there really isn't anything to tell.