Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The science fiction horror story has one admirable strategy-using an all female cast as the scientific military squad sent into The Shimmer, a mutating, mesmerizing swatch of land created by something from outer space. As a plot device, so far so good. But the actresses including Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Gina Rodriguez are pretty much wasted and end up as stereotypes that serve the same purpose an all male cast serves in other movies like "Predator" or "Alien"-fodder for the forces inside The Shimmer. The obvious question is why these five and it seems that the only answer is they're expendable and it seems to be understood they won't be returning . Which makes no sense since their assignment is to determine what is going on in The Shimmer. Portman tries to put some dramatic power into her role as she has willingly joined the group after her husband previously disappeared on the same assignment. She assumes a leadership role although her reason for joining remains concealed from the other members. Leigh, as the psychologist, delivers every line in a monotone as if bored by everything she encounters including this role. Rodriguez does shine in her role as the paramedic of the group but isn't given enough to do. They encounter mutations in both plant and animal life that goes toward explaining what The Shimmer is, but even that explanation leaves the viewer still confused. There's enough graphic violence to earn this movie its R rating, but not enough of a compelling story to make this journey worthwhile. As a horror movie it lacks suspense and as a science fiction movie, it lacks coherence. All in all, a frustrating waste of time.