Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Update: 1/23/06 Some comments edited due to this writing being included in the spotlight reviews section. -end update- Event Horizon. First of all this isn't a perfect film. It is, however very good and worthy of purchase. Many other reviewers have savaged the film for being too slasher, too weak or open to intrepretation. I would offer many of them were expecting general science fiction not a bloodbath in space. The gore is what makes them take a step a back. The gore serves the story very well. Hell isn't a primrose path. Many other reviewers have covered the plot in detail. So I'll avoid being redundant in that aspect. What makes the movie good is that its a taunt piece of space horror. You hit the ground running almost immediately. Pacing and storyline are well done (amazing some people don't get the story details - made perfect sense to me). The set design and visuals are simply sublime. There is good character development. Sam Neill plays Dr. Weir to creepy perfection. The Event Horizon calling to him in his dreams by using his deceased wife is disturbing. Lawerence Fishborne as Miller delivers a good performance with edge. The other actors hold the story up well too. One of the other elements that makes the movie enjoyable is that it doesn't lay it all out for you. Sure, we see the hell the Event Horizon crew endured in limited blips. The movie lets your imagination run wild just how bad things got. I kept wondering to myself - ok its bad, but just *HOW* bad is it? Not until almost 3/4 of the way through do we get some answers as to the fate of the original crew. The ending also is open to intrepretation - makes you think. The short latin message recieved also built the story nicely too. "Liberate Tutame Ix Inferis..." In the end analysis, this movie is a combination of science fiction and horror. Its a uneasy marriage, as the combination isn't done very often (vs. regular sci-fi). To that end, many of the people who wanted to see science fiction got the unpleasant surprise that this was more of a hellraiser in space than a 'star trek.' It also didn't help with cinematic audiences that the cliched "good guy saves the day and himself" doesn't fly here. Good guy does save the day, but gets dragged into hell with Wier. Not a pleasant end for Miller. If you are a fan of both genres (scifi/horror) you'll enjoy this like I did. If you are more inclined towards sci-fi only this one probably isn't for you. Falls just short of brilliant in my opinion. The bashers need to be honest with thier tastes instead of bashing for gore. Event Horizon isn't Star Wars. EH accomplishes what is sought to do quite effectively. There are rumors of an extended edition with deleted scenes being re-edited in. Length is said to be over 2 hours. Lets get this out on the market! Not recommended of course for the kiddies either. ****