Film Review: THE DARK (1993)

In the ‘90s it was very common for horror films to have giant monsters and depending upon the type it could either be good or bad.  In The Dark (1993) there is a prehistoric subterranean rat-like creature that feeds off the dead corpses buried in a cemetery. 

Character actor Stephen McHattie is a researcher searching for this creature for its regenerative abilities that could revolutionize science.  Close on his tale is a disgraced federal agent played by Brion James and caught in these two hunters close fire are a couple local cops (one played by Neve Campbell in an early role) and two grave diggers.  The night is long as the two hunters fight each other over the fate of a giant creature that may kill them both just to survive.

Written by Robert C. Cooper and directed by Craig Pryce the film is actually quite entertaining and hasn’t aged as badly as some other films of the ‘90s.  One of the reasons for this is the presence of McHattie and James who play off each other really well and are great character actors that drive the film.  There are also some interesting moments with the creature who makes its home underneath the cemetery (and there is some great production value added in the subterranean tunnels) and the creature for the most part is kept in the dark, so the low budget doesn’t betray the film too much.

There have been other films that have used a similar theme since this one was released in the ‘90s but this film retains a charm of the ‘90s that doesn’t betray its low budget roots too much because any film with McHattie, James, and Campbell can be all that bad.