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Tell Others About This Page By Using This Button "ALONE IN THE DARK" (2005) (Christian Slater, Tara Reid) (R) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons None Extreme Extreme *Moderate Extreme Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Mild Moderate Extreme *None Extreme Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Heavy None Mild Mild Extreme QUICK TAKE: Horror/Action: A paranormal investigator and an assistant museum curator race against time to stop many zombie-like humans and other monsters that have been unleashed by an ancient evil. PLOT: Twenty-two years ago, Edward Carnby (CHRISTIAN SLATER) was a young boy at an orphanage run by Sister Clara (KARIN KONOVAL). Little did he know that she was forced by government agent Professor Lionel Hudgens (MATTHEW WALKER) to allow him to conduct biological experiments on the boys, resulting in "sleeper" units ready to awaken one day for unknown, but presumably nefarious reasons. Edward, however, managed to escape, thus causing the government to shut down the unfinished experiment and fire Hudgens. Since then, he's been trying to collect artifacts from the long lost Abkani civilization with the belief that they'll allow him to open a gate between the worlds of light and dark. At the same time, Edward grew up and got a job at Hudgens former top secret agency, Bureau 713, but now works as a paranormal investigator. He's also collecting Abkani artifacts in hopes that they'll help him remember his troubled past. When one of Hudgens' sleeper mutant humans tries to kill him for the artifact he's just retrieved, Edward heads over to the local museum to see his old flame and assistant curator Aline Cedrac (TARA REID). Although initially antagonistic, the two try to solve the artifact puzzle, but they have to hurry after Hudgens' work unleashes something evil and activates the rest of the sleeper mutants, along with more traditional monsters. With the aid of former coworker Fischer (FRANK C. TURNER), Edward and Aline attempt to figure out how what's going on and how to stop it, all while dealing with the various zombie-like sleepers and monsters that are after them, as well as Commander Burke (STEPHEN DORFF) and his 713 commandos who want to kill all of the creatures. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? If they're fans of the original game, horror/monster movies or someone in the cast, they just might. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R For violence and language. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: CHRISTIAN SLATER plays a paranormal investigator who's trying to uncover the secrets from his childhood while also dealing with the infestation of monsters and zombie-like humans. He uses some profanity and has sex with Aline. TARA REID plays the assistant museum curator and presumably Edward's former flame who assists him on his quest, has sex with him and kills various zombie-like people and various monsters. STEPHEN DORFF plays the leader of the government commando unit sent in to deal with the situation. Generally testy, he uses some strong profanity and kills many monsters. FRANK C. TURNER plays a Bureau worker who tries to assist Edward with his quest. MATTHEW WALKER plays a former Bureau 713 man who experimented on orphans in the past and is now after unleashing the secrets and powers of a long-lost civilization. KARIN KONOVAL plays the nun who allowed or was forced to allow Hudgens to perform his nefarious experiments on the orphans in the past. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: Here's a brief summary of the content found in this R-rated horror flick. Profanity consists of at least 10 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are present. An unmarried couple is seen fooling around, with suggested sex (some rolling around and slight movement, but no explicit nudity). Violence consists of many deaths where humans shoot and kill many zombie-type humans and regular monsters, some of which, in turn, kill humans (while other violence, including some brutal fighting, is also present). Some of that material has extremely bloody/graphic results, while an autopsy scene is also rather gory. Some viewers may find those scenes, other moments and a number of jump scenes as unsettling or suspenseful. Kids may want to imitate some of fighting and other action-related stunts, while some bad attitudes are present. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those concerned with bright flashes of light on the screen, some of that occurs in a few battle scenes. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE None. BLOOD/GORE A cab driver has some blood on his head following a car crash. A bullet rips through a mutant human's torso (with some blood blasting out). A body falls on a post that goes all of the way through it (with bloody results). Edward has a tiny bit of blood on his lip following a fight. We see blood all over a small ship, as well as on the various dead crew members lying on the deck (some twisted in unnatural positions), with pools of blood around them. A claw-like appendage grabs a man by the head (with blood coming out from where it's pinching his skull), with another piece suddenly thrusting out through his mouth from the back of his head. Aline has some blood on her sleeve after a monster slices her. We see a surgical chest spreader doing its job on a dead man's body, with the bloody/gory incision opening and Fischer (who's doing the procedure) pulling out some skeletal type pieces that drip thick bloody goo. We see Hudgens inserting a needle into his arm (seen in graphic detail, with a drop of blood coming out from the insertion point). Edward and various agents fend off attacks by human mutants, killing many of them via various means (including gunfire, breaking one's neck and Burke stabbing one on the floor, etc.), with some bloody results. Human mutants attack agents, with both parties killing the other (the latter with gunfire and explosives), often with very bloody results. We see stakes sticking up out of a man's body that's just been impaled on them. A monster suddenly attacks a man, tearing off his arm (and possibly more, but it's a dimly lit scene), with very bloody/gory results. A commando finds a wounded comrade twitching on the floor. He then sees her head that's been split open at the top (with very bloody/gory results). Hudgens shoots a man in the head, killing him (with brief, bloody results). We see more shots of dead and bloody commandos. We see a small pool of blood next to a dead woman on the floor. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE We see a flashback of Hudgens making a deal with Sister Clara where he gets to conduct his experiment on the various orphans under her care (with the deal being she'd lie to the police that they all mysteriously disappeared). A crewmember turns against Hudgens over a discovery of gold that he wants for himself. FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence," "Blood/Gore" and "Jump Scenes" may be unsettling, suspenseful or scary to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material. Others, however, might not find any of it that way. We see brief footage of men chasing after an orphan boy through the woods and him then hiding in an electrical substation at night. We see some monsters (a cross between wolves and the creatures in "Aliens") in the reflection of a boy's eye. We hear the sounds of monster violence on the other side of a closed door, as Hudgens tries to keep that door from opening. The lights in a museum flicker and then keep going on and off as a security guard slowly makes his way through the building that's filled with various large artifacts, some of which might look scary in the on and off lighting. In another part of that same museum, Edward and Aline also slowly make their way through it. Edward and Aline try to keep a monster at bay at a closed door, with it slicing Aline's arm and Edward shooting at it several times. Edward slowly makes his way through a building as the lights flicker about him. Edward, Aline and Burke slowly make their way through a dimly lit mine tunnel. A manhole type cover in a mine tunnel suddenly gives way beneath a man, sending him plummeting to his death below. We don't see the impact, but do see various bloody stakes sticking up out of his body. Edward, Aline, Burke and others then try to make their way down this shaft, with Aline nearly falling and briefly dangling from Edward's grasp as he holds onto her and a ladder. As they near the bottom, a large block the size of the shaft falls toward them, with them barely getting out of the way just in time (it lands on the impaled body, and a woman injures her leg during that action). Sand worms/snakes slither through the sand toward an injured woman. One bites her and Aline holds off another one that's surfaced, with Edward and others shooting and presumably killing all of them. A lone female commando slowly makes her way through the dark, knowing monsters may be lurking anywhere. Hudgens shoots a man in the head, killing him (with brief, bloody results). He then holds a machine gun on Edward, Aline and Burke. We see a massive subterranean chamber with swarms of monsters headed toward some lone survivors. They then race away, but one returns to make an explosive work to kill the creatures. We see the sudden point of view of something rapidly racing toward two survivors who turn around just as it reaches them, but the scene ends there. GUNS/WEAPONS Handguns/Machine guns/Various explosives/Helicopter gun ships/Knife: Carried and/or used to wound or kill many human mutants and other monsters and/or cause property damage. See "Violence" for details. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "Are you f*cking serious?" "None of your f*cking business," "F*cking pr*ck," "It's about f*cking time," "For f*cking nothing," "No sh*t," "I thought you were dead, you *sshole," "Where the hell's our backup?" and "What the hell is going on here?" All of the fighting and stunts may be enticing for some kids to imitate. Edward has a large tattoo on his shoulder. Aline wears a midriff-revealing top. JUMP SCENES A sudden sound might startle some viewers. A figure suddenly passes by in the foreground of a dimly lit scene. A claw-like appendage grabs a man by the head (with blood coming out from where it's pinching his skull), with another piece suddenly thrusting out through his mouth from the back of his head. A sudden sound might startle some viewers. A manhole type cover in a mine tunnel suddenly gives way beneath a man, sending him plummeting to his death below. A monster suddenly attacks a man, tearing off his arm. Hudgens shoots a man in the head, killing him (with brief, bloody results). MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) An extreme amount of ominous and suspenseful music plays in the film. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None, but some songs had lyrics that we couldn't hear and/or understand, thus presenting the possibility of them potentially containing objectionable lyrics. PROFANITY At least 10 "f" words, 12 "s" words, 1 slang term using male genitals ("pr*ck"), 9 hells, 3 asses (2 used with "hole"), 1 S.O.B., 4 uses of "G-damn," 3 of "Oh God" and 1 use each of "God," "Jesus" and "Jesus Christ." SEX/NUDITY We see a head and shoulders shot of Edward and Aline passionately kissing as well as rolling around on a bed. He removes her tank-top, revealing her bra (and some cleavage) and they switch being on top of each other, with more kissing and some slight movement. There's no nudity and much of that occurs in a dimly lit scene filled with shadows, but sex is suggested/implied. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES A man finds his wife dead or unconscious on the floor of their home, but doesn't have much time to react as someone then attacks him. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT The comment that being afraid of the dark is what keeps most of us alive. The comment that fear is the thing that protects us from the things you don't believe in. VIOLENCE A mutant human in a taxi chases after Edward in a cab through the city. It bumps it from behind and then does so again, resulting in both crashing. The pursuing cab then backs up and then smashes into the side of the taxi again. A mutant human jumps down onto Edward, hitting him with his elbows. The two then fight, with punches and kicks, and with Edward kicking that man back through a plate glass window. That man then comes out and knocks people aside and then blasts through another glass window to tackle Edward. He then repeatedly bashes Edward's head to the floor, followed by more struggling, the man punching Edward, and Edward then smashing a bottle against the man's head. Edward then grabs a cop's gun (with the man bashing the cop against a pole) and Edward shoots the man twice (seen in graphic detail). When that doesn't stop him, Edward shoots the man in the leg, followed by more punching and kicking. The man then lifts Edward by his neck, with Edward then grabbing that man around the head with his feet. There's more struggling that ends with Edward flipping the guy through the air with him landing on a post that impales and goes through his body. A man hits Hudgens in the gut with some large tool, doubling him over. We hear the sounds of monster violence on the other side of a closed door, as Hudgens tries to keep that door from opening. We later see blood all over the small ship, as well as on the various dead crew members lying on the deck (some twisted in unnatural positions), with pools of blood around them. A human mutant bumps into another person while walking past him. Aline punches Edward in the face. A claw-like appendage grabs a man by the head (with blood coming out from where it's pinching his skull), with another piece suddenly thrusting out through his mouth from the back of his head. A monster smashes through various museum display cases while chasing after some people. Edward and Aline try to keep a monster (a cross between a wolf and a creature from "Aliens") at bay at a closed door, with it slicing Aline's arm and Edward shooting at it several times. Agents fire machine guns into a monster. Edward and Burke briefly struggle. Hudgens jabs a pole into a captive monster to retrieve some sort of organic sample from it. Hudgens grabs a man by the throat and starts to strangle him, but only so that he can drop some sort of worm into the man's mouth (that will control him like a zombie). We also see that man's wife on the floor, but don't know if she's dead or just unconscious. A human mutant attacks and tries to strangle Edward who finally breaks free and shoots that man (a former friend) dead. Aline then shoots several human mutants, with Edward hitting more. A monster then chases after the two, with Edward firing a machine gun into it, causing it to disintegrate. Agents fire at many monsters with a tremendous amount of machine gun fire, blasting many of them, while various agents are attacked and wounded or killed (but much of that occurs in flashes in the dark, making it hard to see what's happening). Edward and various agents fend off attacks by human mutants, killing many of them via various means (including gunfire, breaking one's neck and Burke stabbing one on the floor, etc.), with some bloody results. Human mutants attack agents, with both parties killing the other (the latter with gunfire and explosives), often with very bloody results. A manhole type cover in a mine tunnel suddenly gives way beneath a man, sending him plummeting to his death below. We don't see the impact, but do see various bloody stakes sticking up out of his body. A woman injures her leg in a related action. A man hits another man on the head, grabs his grenade and pulls the pin. The resultant explosion kills them and destroys a generator. Burke's heavily armed commandos prepare themselves for an onslaught of alien-type monsters that are rapidly approaching. They then open fire on the creatures, killing many of them, but some get through and attack and kill the commandos. Helicopter gun ships then arrive and open fire on the monsters, but one manages to cause one chopper to crash into the other and both explode (presumably killing everyone onboard both). Sand worms/snakes slither through the sand toward an injured woman. One bites her and Aline holds off another one that's surfaced, with Edward and others shooting and presumably killing all of them. A monster suddenly attacks a man, tearing off his arm (and possibly more, but it's a dimly lit scene), with very bloody/gory results. An explosive is used to blow open a wall. A commando riddles a monster with machine gun fire. A commando finds a wounded comrade twitching on the floor. He then sees her head that's been split open at the top (with very bloody/gory results). She dies and it's implied that he's next killed by the monsters. Burke overturns some lab stuff in anger. Hudgens shoots a man in the head, killing him (with brief, bloody results). He then holds a machine gun on Edward, Aline and Burke. Burke throws a knife into a man, killing him. A massive explosion rips through a tunnel, presumably killing at least one person and many monsters. Reviewed January 25, 2005/ Posted January 28, 2005

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