Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence and some language.
Starring Emile Hirsch, Olivia Thirlby, Rachael Taylor, Max Minghella, Veronika Ozerova and Joel Kinnaman
Directed by Chris Gorak (Right at Your Door)
If we had a list of our least favorite movies of the year, The Darkest Hour would top the list. I’m not kidding, this was the worst movie I have seen in a long time.
The Darkest Hour is the story of five young people who find themselves stranded in Moscow, fighting to survive in the wake of a devastating alien attack. The thriller highlights the classic beauty of Moscow alongside mind-blowing special effects.
The special effects start out o.k. but once the aliens are revealed…it’s cheesier than those late night movies on the SyFy network. Besides too much cheese, there are too many clichés. The empty street, the lone barking dog, and on and on it went. Believe it or not that is the nicest thing I’m going to say about this movie.
The cast is awful. Even The Killing‘s Joel Kinnaman is ridiculously lame. And if you took the rest of the cast, you wouldn’t have enough talent for one decent actor.
But the worst part was the story. When I say so much of this film just didn’t make any sense – that is the understatement of the year! Here are just a few examples: a plane is seen completely intact after crashing through a mall and landing perfectly between the stores. In another scene 20-year-old Americans are allowed to play with buttons in a Russian submarine.
So as I was watching this movie, I was definitely thinking we needed a score lower than a “coaster.” But since we don’t – a “coaster” it is.
SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
This movie is rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence and some language. There is no sex or nudity. There is one brief scene where Sean watches Natalie take off her shirt (her back and the strap of her bra is visible) in the mall.
The F-word is mouthed (or implied) once. There are a few sexual references and several other obscenities.
Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):
Q: What’s the message/theme of this movie?
A: There is one scene where Skyler acts very cowardly. Later when he is confronted about his actions, he says, “I think we all want to be brave in our minds. The truth is you don’t know who you are until something happens.”
What do you think about that quote?
Q: How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
A: In the movie, Skyler shows that it is also useless to say you are brave if you don’t prove it by your actions.
Have you ever seen someone say one thing, but then do the exact opposite? How did you feel watching that?
Read James 2:14-17, “Dear brothers and sisters, what’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can’t save anyone. Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, and you say, ‘Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well’—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless.”
According to this passage, faith is proven by what?
James says “Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all.” Why are our actions important?
Q: How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
A: Take a minute to think about the things you believe. Do your actions match your words?
What are some things you can work on this week to better align your actions and words?
