For the first half of this movie, mostly consisting of introductions and rising suspense, the story was fantastic. Many of the scenes were unsettling and they successfully introduced each important character while keeping the plot going.
Special effects-wise, the movie is absolutely laughable, yet the creepy portions of the movie kept the suspense building. In fact, that's one of the major successes of the movie; it builds tension by having creepy moments interspersed with unsettling scenery and props.
Unfortunately, due to the writer seemingly giving up after building aforementioned suspense, we get a movie that builds lots of suspense, but never really tells us what the monster was, or how it was defeated. We are left bereft of resolution and closure. It is left to the imagination how real the monster was, and there is no satisfaction of knowing that the cast has overcome great obstacles.
The movie is tense, and builds suspense, but on a plot line, it doesn't comprehend that a climax and resolution are necessary to end a good story. Without a climax, there is no way to truly evaluate a story for meaning, and thus the strong first half is useless.
*spoiler warning*
As far as I could tell, there is an attempt to use uncertainty between reality and hallucination as a plot device. When a doctor in the research reel suggests that the patients hallucinate an astral projection, they are /actually/ projecting, and a vampire-like doppelganger takes control. Supposedly, by believing in an afterlife, one can protect themselves from these beings. (There's also some strange portion about a virgin becoming pregnant). The film has pretty lofty goals, but could have been trimmed and given a climax and resolution. If that had been done, it would have been a good addition to the genre.
Unfortunately, the film does a poor job of providing this information, leaving the viewer without any solid facts to orient themselves. This disorientation is excellent while building suspense, but should have been fixed after the climax, or during.
Special effects-wise, the movie is absolutely laughable, yet the creepy portions of the movie kept the suspense building. In fact, that's one of the major successes of the movie; it builds tension by having creepy moments interspersed with unsettling scenery and props.
Unfortunately, due to the writer seemingly giving up after building aforementioned suspense, we get a movie that builds lots of suspense, but never really tells us what the monster was, or how it was defeated. We are left bereft of resolution and closure. It is left to the imagination how real the monster was, and there is no satisfaction of knowing that the cast has overcome great obstacles.
The movie is tense, and builds suspense, but on a plot line, it doesn't comprehend that a climax and resolution are necessary to end a good story. Without a climax, there is no way to truly evaluate a story for meaning, and thus the strong first half is useless.
*spoiler warning*
As far as I could tell, there is an attempt to use uncertainty between reality and hallucination as a plot device. When a doctor in the research reel suggests that the patients hallucinate an astral projection, they are /actually/ projecting, and a vampire-like doppelganger takes control. Supposedly, by believing in an afterlife, one can protect themselves from these beings. (There's also some strange portion about a virgin becoming pregnant). The film has pretty lofty goals, but could have been trimmed and given a climax and resolution. If that had been done, it would have been a good addition to the genre.
Unfortunately, the film does a poor job of providing this information, leaving the viewer without any solid facts to orient themselves. This disorientation is excellent while building suspense, but should have been fixed after the climax, or during.