Not Much On The "Horizon"

Rating: 3/10 (15 September 2000)

**Possible Spoilers**	In an era that has given us such films as `The Matrix' and `The Phantom Menace,' audiences have come to expect a lot, especially visually, and special effects are definitely one of the elements that separates the memorable from the forgettable. In the case of `Event Horizon,' there are four key elements that separate it from total `B' movie status: Fishburne, Neill, Quinlan and Richardson; the bottom line is, the story, and the movie itself, just doesn't live up to the star power involved with it. The Event Horizon is a spacecraft launched in 2040 to explore the `boundaries' of the universe. Somewhere just past Neptune, it disappears without a trace. Seven years later, it shows up again, and a search and rescue ship is sent to check it out. Captain Miller (Laurence Fishburne) leads the crew, which includes Peters (Kathleen Quinlan), Lt. Starck (Joely Richardson) and Cooper (Richard T. Jones). Also aboard is Dr. William Weir (Sam Neill), who originally programmed the Event Horizon. When they finally make contact with the phantom Horizon, they find that the crew is dead or missing, and the only clues they have are from the ships visual logs. And the news isn't pleasant. The ship apparently ventured into some other dimension, and returned with a life all it's own, including the ability to discern the vulnerability of whomever happens to be aboard at the time; and when Miller and his crew show up, the Horizon wastes no time in exploiting the fears or remorse of the individuals who have blundered into it's territory. Soon they find themselves, along with the Horizon's crew, trapped in a virtual `Hell' with nowhere to go; it's like the sci-fi version of `Hotel California,' where you can check in, but you can never leave.
The concept of the story is interesting, but the transfer from the written page to the screen falls a bit short. Neither the story nor the characters are developed anywhere near well enough; we get what amounts to a mere glimpse into what makes Miller and Peters tick, and a little more (but still not nearly enough) into the background of Weir. Throughout the film there are flashes of the Horizon's crew, trapped in this Hell they've entered, with plenty of blood and gore thrown at you very quickly, just enough to give you the idea of what's going on. But after awhile, these flashes seem redundant and lose any significance they may have had to begin with. The same process is used to play out the susceptibilities of Miller (what happened to a former crew member of his), Peters (her son) and Weir (his wife). There are some shocking moments, but not enough to sustain much interest, and the computer graphics are not up to standard by a long shot. Especially early in the film, much of it has an animated look, like what you would have expected maybe twenty years ago (what was great in a movie like `Tron,' for example, doesn't cut it today).	The supporting cast includes Jack Noseworthy (Justin), Jason Isaacs (D.J.), Sean Pertwee (Smith), Peter Marinker (Kilpatrick), Holley Chant (Claire) and Barclay Wright (Denny). The performances are credible enough, especially by Fishburne and Quinlan, but director Paul Anderson has wrung little out of what he had to work with, and it's all delivered fairly unimaginatively. The special effects are mediocre, and in the end, what you have with `Event Horizon,' is essentially a pretty decent `B' movie. There's a few thrills and some suspense, but don't go into this one expecting too much of a return on your investment of time or money. I rate this one 3/10.