Whitech
It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.
Gurlyndrobb
While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.
Humaira Grant
It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.
Mathilde the Guild
Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.
lovecraft231
There's nothing wrong with paying respect to your influences. Many a genre film past and present has done this, and sometimes to great success. It's usually for not though, as many directors trying to respect the directors and movies that they love end up coming off as immature fan-boys or people without an original bone in their body. While Marc De Launay's "Dark Nature" doesn't fall for those traps, it's still a mess.Somewhere in Scotland, a very dysfunctional family is on vacation. There's a bit of a problem though-there's a killer whose knocking people off. Oh, and some of the requisite oddball characters who exist only to be killed show up as well.There are a few things "Dark Nature" get's right. The score is pretty good, some of the cinematography and footage of nature is beautiful, and the gore is pretty cool. That's where the fun ends though, as much of the movie is De Launay paying tribute to the likes of Dario Argento, Mario Bava ("Twitch of the Death Nerve" seems to be the primary influence here,) "Friday the 13th" and old ecological horror films like "Long Weekend." While he manages to thankfully do so without pilfering from said movies, he still gets a whole lot wrong.For one thing, it's never that scary or intriguing. The aforementioned movies and directors managed to create a sense of dread and suspense to go with everything else. However, the director here seems clueless as to how to do that, as he can't even pull off a decent atmosphere. Also, all of the characters are extremely annoying. People like the entomologist and the psychic are supposed to be interesting in an odd way, but they are more annoying if anything. And don't get me started with the family, especially the daughter. So much time is spent with this obnoxious bitch that the viewer is left exhausted.And then there's all of the talk. There's a lot of it here-and let it be known there is a difference between dialog and talk. Dialogue is interesting and helps with the characters. This movie is so talky that there were moments in which I started to remember the films of Andy Milligan-and that's not a good thing. Oh, and let's not forget the whole ecological message in the movie, which in a shocking surprise falls flat. The film wants to be a commentary on man's mistreatment of nature, yet it can't make that work. It instead comes off as a poor man's mix of "Friday the 13th" and Lars Von Trier's "Antichrist." It's a shame that I didn't like the movie, as there are a few neat things in it, and I do think that it had potential to be good. What I got though was a talky, boring mess of a movie. I expect better, and the audience deserves better too. At least it's better than the movies of Dante Tomaselli.
Seb
I love horror movies and I don't mind a good thriller but this is neither. I realised halfway through that I was watching a virtual remake of an equally pointless Italian flick I'd already seen. I was hoping I was wrong but I wasn't, this is every bit as witless and shares the same pathetic ending.Rip up the first 40 minutes of this film and throw it away, it has no bearing on the rest of the movie. There's some killings rendered dull by the flat pace and boring killer. There's some victims but they are completely dull and lifeless too.To cap it off there's a message about the world cleansing itself or something and pure crap that is too. It doesn't even make sense within the confines of the dreamlike situation it tries to create. This is a pitiful boring movie and anyone rating it over two stars is most definitely in it, directed it or just has no taste in movies. Don't waste your time, it's beyond terrible.
degenerate_1
Dark Nature is an admirable albeit flawed attempt to replicate the genre film making of the U.S that dominates our multiplexes. The film is a considerable achievement when you consider the budget involved and respect has to be shown for getting a Cineworld release, something most Scottish films can only dream of. As for the film itself, while I don't agree with delusional users who dare to make comparisons with Dario Argento's work, it's certainly more palatable than most art house fare churned out by Scottish cinema at present. The casting of the film is by in large good, with Imogen Toner, Niall Fulton and Vanya Eadie putting in solid performances. Direction while somewhat choppy at points is indicative of a first feature director and low budget, while the DOP work is solid. Whether intentional or not 'Dark Nature' does entertain the audience, something the Scottish film industry forgot how to do a long time ago. Most problems in the film occur due to the script, lending weight to the old adage that you can't make a good film from a bad script. Films such as 'Dark Nature','The Dead Outside' along with the superior 'Outpost' represent an interesting new development in the Scottish film industry, namely production houses attempting to make effective genre films which are commercially viable. It's worth considering that studio's such as New Line cinema were built by genre fodder such as the Nightmare on Elm Street series, lets hope the three production companies involved in the aforementioned films evolve in a similar manner. On a side note I'd also like to thank the punter with the bout of Tourette's syndrome who shouted at the screen for reminding me why Glasgow people are amongst the most ignorant cinema goers in the UK.
SC-20
Don't be fooled by the low budget - there are plenty of gory surprises in this bloody thriller about a family holiday gone horribly wrong, as well as a sprinkling of red herrings and twists.Director Marc de Launay contrasts the shocks with lingering shots of the deceptively peaceful scenery (the setting is Cumbria but it was filmed in Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland), but the accompanying score never allows the edge-of-the-seat tension to drop.This is one for the genre fans - unlike in Hollywood slashers, there are close-up shots of the wounds and spurting blood. Not to mention a hands-over-the-eyes finale involving the optimistic setting of an ancient animal trap...