Event Horizon (1997)

Often referred to as "The Shining in space," British director Paul Anderson's follow-up to the enormously popular Mortal Kombat (1995) also bears more than a passing resemblance to Stanislaw Lem's short-story Solaris (though with a decided slant towards the horrific). Unquestionably an exercise of style over substance, Event Horizon sustains it's running time and frequently shifting theories of time and space with solid performances by Laurence Fishburn and Sam Neil. As the captain of the ship sent to investigate the disappearance of the titular spacecraft and the creator of the said time-bending craft respectively, Fishburn and Neil lend much needed weight to a story that borrows heavily and frequently from multiple sources. Though the film is marked with a number of shocking images in addition to a handful of intriguing concepts, the languid pacing (likely an intentional effort to build a foreboding sense of dread) robs the film of the needed trajectory to truly penetrate the mind of the viewer. It often seems that as soon as the audience is drawn in to the admittedly horrifying concept of a connection with Hell by means of experimental dimension-shifting spacecraft, they are pulled from the dark hypnosis of the admittedly awe-inspiring production design through a series of implausibly drawn situations and questionable motivations on behalf of the characters. As previously mentioned, the menacing design of the Event Horizon and it's Notre Dame cathedral-inspired black heart are nearly enough to induce nightmares alone. This observations not withstanding, it's a shame that Anderson couldn't parlay the often involving story and talented actors into a more effective story. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide