ivan_mckeon Review of The Dark Side of the Sun

The Dark Side of the Sun (1988)

Pretty scenery, pretty people, and pretty ordinary movie

[4/10 · 31 January 2003]

The chance to see a very young Brad Pitt and take a look at the beautiful Yugoslavian countryside before the schism are the main reasons to see this film. The film itself is fairly mundane. With only a slight story to tell the film needs a sharp script and a strong director but gets neither. Pitt (or his double) plays Rick, a teenager who spends most of the film hidden behind a leather mask. This does not give him a lot of scope to convey the tragic nature of his character except through the non-too brilliant dialogue. Cheryl Pollak is attractive and personable where the role calls for someone truly charismatic. It doesn't help that, when he finally removes the mask, Pitt is much prettier than she is. On the plus side, Guy Boyd lifts the film with an excellent portrayal of Rick's father. It's probably unfair to judge this 1980s film by today's standards but, even allowing for that, I can't see this as anything more than the kind of movie that passes the time while your lying on the sofa recovering from a bout of the flu.