Die Weite der Nacht

One of the most important things in thrillers but even more so in horror movies, is that things happen at night. At least when it's dark (outside), because that is more likely to reel viewers in and make them easier to be susceptible to be afraid and scared.

Now this is more of Science Fiction touch, still works with many of the things I mentioned. Having said that, mostly this works in your head. There is not so much visually (scary), but what you hear and what you think and imagine happening. And maybe you're just imagening? Or our main characters are ... well played and acted, this is low budget and the pacing is not something everyone is willing to endure. Whoever is and likes that, will be thoroughly entertained though.

Call me the weird one, but this movie is trippy. Watching the story go in and out of drone photography, blackouts, black and white to color was fascinating. The director made it work, the acting was intriguing, watching the teenage girl scurry from place to place and all the charm of a trusting small town, well-it I loved it. Very unique.

My wife and I watched this on Amazon streaming via Roku. It is set in New Mexico but filmed digitally in Texas and Oklahoma.

It looks like the late 1950s, when I was a young teenager, and they mention Sputnik which was a 1957 event. The movie opens with an extended scene at night of local residents going to the school gym for a basketball game, just to set the mood of the time, and it all feels authentic.

But things get going when the teenage girl goes to her job as phone switchboard operator and her good friend, a slightly older guy, goes to his music and talk show at the tiny local radio station. Some electricity goes out, some phone calls get disconnected, some strange sounds are heard, coming from the skys, and recorded. All leading up to a strong belief that alien beings are in the sky.

The movie is interesting and very well made, considering it had a tight budget and a short shooting schedule. The dialog is mostly interesting and the main actors are very good in their roles. It all takes place at night on one day which adds to the mystique.

I thought it was well acted and the story well told, it could have been about 30 mins longer, slightly slicker in the way 80s movies set in the 50's were made with a bit more background to the characters or a plot twist.

Nowhere near as polished or as captivating as Fire in the Sky or Close Encounters but thats not a negative.

Anyone who likes the old Twilight Zones or good old fashioned storytelling will appreciate this so that rules out anyone with a short attention span or those that prefer big explosions and stunt action type movies.

This, for me, was a near perfect film. Although Its subject matter was of little interest to me, everything else from the score , the lighting the editing AND the magnificent performances were beautiful. The best i've seen for a while. It was a film with so much mood i was mesmerized after the initial 5 (annoying) minutes and was transfixed till the very end. Go see this little gem.