NOCTURNAL MYSTERY
DARK SKIES. Directed by Scott Stewart, with Keri Russell, Josh Hamilton, JK Simmons, Dakota Goyo, Kadan Rockett, Josh Stamberg and LJ Benet. pearance of family photos from their frames and false alarms triggering their homesecurity system.
Things go from messy to spooky when Sam explains the mysterious developments by saying that the “Sandman” has been paying him nightly visits, causing his parents increasing concern.
Daniel’s gambit of rigging the house with security cameras reveals a nocturnal energy force coursing through the house, but it’s the mass suicide of dozens of birds mysteriously smacking into the exterior of their home and bouts of trance-like disassociation they’re all suffering that really unnerve the couple.
Lacy’s internet research reveals similar incidents plaguing other families, all associated with alien visitation, but it isn’t until reclusive ET expert Edwin Pollard (JK Simmons) provides the menacing context for the strange rashes, nosebleeds and marks on their bodies that Daniel and Lacy go into overdrive in an attempt to protect their family.
While mostly skirting the effects-dependent plot devices of his earlier releases Legion and Priest, Stewart borrows heavily from notable supernatural and sci-fi predecessors, managing to noticeably devalue the effectiveness of the alien-abduction subgenre with overly deliberate pacing, miscued suspense and fairly predictable plotting.
Never quite sure if he’s relying more on horror or sci-fi conventions to drive the narrative, Stewart can’t seem to muster much tension by relying predominantly on his intermittently effective cast.
Russell generates some persuasive emotion in a few key scenes, but gets held back by Hamilton’s curiously stiff performance and nearly upstaged by Simmons’s simmering, lowkey appearance.
Approaching the first half fairly conventionally, Stewart then misses the opportunity to capitalise on shifting to more full-on genre mode. – Reuters/ Hollywood Reporter