FilmSnobReviews

Title: Nebulous Dark
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Shahin (Sean) Solimon
Starring: Shahin (Sean) Solimon, Ginger Christie, Kent Hatch
Running Time: 1 hr 14 mins

What It Is: From the mind of Shahin (Sean) Solimon, comes an adventure about Captain Apollo (Solimon) who awakens on an Earth that isn’t so familiar. Taken over by Octaliens, Apollo has to battle his way through the planet’s new tenants, as well as zombies. Stuck in a time loop he can’t get out of, Apollo must enter his ultimate fight for survival to save the future of the planet, and our race.

What We Think: This isn’t a film so much as it is a rejected Nine Inch Nails music video. Admirably, Solimon swings for the fences, but whiffs terribly with every try. The film tries hard to hide its low budget. In doing so, it exposes how micro-budget it is. Close-ups are the preferred shot choice, hoping the viewer doesn’t notice the dimly lit. When the shots aren’t drenched in blue, we’re treated to exterior shots of alien ships and a ravaged Los Angeles, complete with effects that make PSOne games look cutting edge. At one point, the film inexplicably goes to black and white, for no reason other than Solimon wanted it to. Inexplicable seems to be the theme of this movie, as random filmmaking decisions extend to the writing. We’re never told why Apollo is in the time loop, nor is it clearly explained how he arrives at his predicament. The audience is just expected to go with its as if Solimon thinks he’s written something prophetic. In actuality, what’s written on the page are half-cooked ideas that are mistaken for deep.

Our Grade: F, Films of this nature should either tell a coherent story with likable characters or have a certain charm about them that embraces its limitations and has fun. The film chooses to do neither and wants to be taken as a serious blockbuster. The completed film is a terribly written, acted, and directed fiasco. Had the film not been so po-faced, a scene where you can blatantly see the human underneath an Octalien would be a hoot. Instead, it just goes to show how poorly executed this motion picture is. With a bigger budget and some much-needed rewrites, Solimon may get close to achieving the sci-fi epic he strives for. What he’s released is a horrendously amateur vanity project.