Official Synopsis:
t's 2 A.M. in St. Louis when a routine scientific experiment goes terribly wrong and an explosion shacks the city. A scientific team investigates, clashing with an intergalactic, voltage-devouring creature that vaporizes them. By 7 A.M. a chain of earthquakes is tearing the city apart while a massive swirling black hole is consuming the remains. The alien is devouring every human who blocks its way. Mass chaos rules as St. Louis is being evacuated. Only a few people, scientist Eric Bryce (Judd Nelson, The Breakfast Club), his assistant Shannon (Kristy Swanson, Big Daddy), and General Ryker (David Selby, End Game) comprehend the mortal danger. By midnight, the Pentagon initiates a nuclear attack against the black hole. Bryce has only one hour to find a solution to obliterate the alien and the colossal black hole before mankind is annihilated.
Our Take:
Most science fiction films follow certain rules in their stories; very often, they involve a group of people trying to save the world from intergalactic beings or from a natural disaster. In the case of director Tibor Takac’s The Black Hole, the film combines both of these ideas into a fun-filled scientific adventure.
Kristy Swanson and Judd Nelson star in this rollercoaster ride about a scientific experiment gone wrong which unleashes not only a beast made of pure energy, but also a black hole that is devouring everything in its path. It’s up to Swanson and Nelson to save the world (or at least St Louis) by sending the energy beast back into the black hole.
The premise of this film is very interesting to me; I’ve been a fan of astronomy and quantum physics for a long time now and this film touches on each of those subjects. The film ends up being very entertaining, with some special effects which are not bad for a B-movie.
My only problem with the film is the acting. I have seen Judd Nelson in many movies and he usually does very well. This film is a bit of a stretch for him, though. The same can be said for Kristy Swanson. Placing the two together with an underlying love story but with no chemistry whatsoever is a misstep. The saving grace for The Black Hole is David Selby; this veteran actor comes across as being very genuine and at least believable in his role.
The DVD is accented by a featurette that goes behind the scenes into the making of the film. but that’s all you can expect as far as extras go.
* Exploring the Black Hole – (18 minutes) – A detailed behind-the-scenes on the making of The Black Hole with cast and crew interviews.
The Black Hole may be a B-movie but it does bring up some interesting subject matter as well as packing a special effects punch. I only wish the cast would have studied their lines a little more before shooting started.
Overall Picture:
Movie: B+
DVD: C+
- Stan Nowak
Staff Writer
|
|
