this is what sci-fi horror should be

Rating: 9/10 (12 July 2002)

An eerie, pounding techno soundtrack.. excellent special effects, and lots of them.. brilliant futuristic/gothic sets.. great 'Mary Celeste' storyline.. good shocks.. great ending.
I can't understand why people criticise this movie for being derivative. Yes, it's got a big gloomy spaceship. That doesn't make it Alien. It mentions black holes, but that doesn't have anything to do with the Disney movie. It blows up at the end - Hey, I think I saw a movie once where the thing blew up at the end! Jesus. Oh, and that wasn't a spoiler. Telling you about an action movie where nothing blows up - that would be a spoiler.
Most of all, I enjoyed the zero-G effects, the amazing sets (on a par with Burton's genius on Batman), and the generally fewer-holds-barred-than-usual take on Hell. It was creepy too, which a lot of horror films fail to be.
On the minus side (and not to take away from the film), TV-edited versions of Event Horizon are especially rubbish. We're used to seeing swearwords replaced, and violence trimmed - but watching this on the BBC the other day I noticed whole swathes missing - entire scenes! The plot was cut to shreds (even worse than .. is), and I can understand why someone watching it on TV for the first time would think it was a load of cluttered, unexplained rubbish. Except for the actual look, and the soundtrack - which anyone should realise is excellent.
I have moderate hopes for Resident Evil (Paul Anderson's latest film), but - having seen Soldier - I fear he may have peaked with Event Horizon which would be a shame, because (judging from an audience chat I saw once), he seems to be a decent guy.