Review by
Eric Hillis
Directed by: Andrew Cumming
Starring: Safia Oakley-Green, Chuku Modu, Kit Young, Iola Evans, Luna
Mwezi, Arno Luening
Andrew Cumming's directorial debut
Out of Darkness takes it cues from
Quest for Fire and
The Clan of the Cave Bear in setting its drama during
prehistoric times. And like those movies it features a fictional
language created for the film, which is translated for the viewer
through subtitles.
At first glance the film appears to tread similar ground to the recent
Predator spin-off
Prey. That movie saw a Native American tribe battling a technologically
superior foe. Here we get a tribe of early humans in Northern Europe
trying to survive as some mysterious and seemingly more advanced enemy
picks them off.
With the unseen enemy seemingly able to better exploit the darkness
than our heroes, the film also shares a commonality with genre pieces
like Pitch Black and The Descent.
The movie opens with a camp fire retelling of how our small tribe
crossed the water and landed in an unknown landscape they hope to call
home. The tribe consists of alpha male leader Adem (Chuku Modu),
his pregnant mate Ave (Iola Evans), their son Heron (Luna Mwezi), Adem's younger brother Geirr (Kit Young), tribal elder Odal
(Arno Leuning) and Beyah (Safia Oakley-Green), a stray
they recently picked up.
Taking a shortcut through a forest proves a bad idea when the tribe is
targeted by some unseen menace lurking in the shadows. Cumming wisely
refrains from revealing the antagonist until the final act, keeping us
guessing as to whether its origins are earthly or alien. We see glimpses
of a black figure passing through the trees, though sometimes we might
just think we see such a thing, so primed are we to scan the background
of cinematographer Ben Fordesman's murky compositions.
Beyah emerges as the key figure, a fur-clad final girl. Considered an
outsider by her adopted tribe, she must prove herself as a warrior, much
like the young female protagonist of Prey. Along with the unseen foe, Beyah faces a threat from within. Shedding
menstrual blood for the first time draws the unwanted attention of Adem,
who begins to view her as his next mate. Odal suggests that she be
offered as a sacrifice to appease the monster he believes they're being
menaced by.
Out of Darkness will likely appeal most to fans of action
and horror, but the movie never quite fits into either of those genres.
The final act reveal takes the film into more philosophical terrain, and
will no doubt prove highly divisive. A lot of viewers will probably feel
they've been tricked into watching a rather trite message movie when
they had signed on for a survival thriller.
Cumming seems more interested in landing his message than in
constructing suspenseful set-pieces. The sort of stalk and slash scenes
you might expect from this sort of fare suffer from Cumming's insistence
on maintaining the ambiguity of the scenario, with most characters
meeting their demise offscreen.
What stands out most is the quality of the performances. Every cast
member nails the difficult task of performing in a made up language,
convincing us it's an argot they've been speaking for their whole lives.
Oakley-Green is a standout, her expressive eyes betraying Beyah's fear
even as she tries to present herself as a fierce warrior. The film's
final act hints at a progression of our species, but it's the evolution
of Oakley-Green from newcomer to movie star over 90 minutes that keeps
us invested.
