Vanishingon7thstreet

Vanishing on 7th Street (2010)

The movie starts off with our cast surviving while everyone else around them suddenly disappears in the shadows leaving only their clothes behind. One by one, sometimes thru a flashback, we see what brought them to the bar that still has power. Every electrical source and every source of light is slowly dying, but the bar’s generator is still working. Our cast of characters includes a physical therapist, an investigative reporter, a movie projectionist, and a young boy. They have to try and figure out a way to avoid the shadows and survive the night, which keeps getting longer.

This is an interesting movie with a very creepy concept. I sort of dug the fact that it never tries to really explain what is happening, other then to say that some how the world is trying to reset itself. Beyond that we never really know what is in the shadows and more importantly why our main characters have survived up to this point. Maybe they were lucky or perhaps there was some kind of redemption involved. It is really up to the viewer to decide. If you like that kind of story then Vanishing on 7th Street is going to appeal to you. If you want everything explained to you then perhaps this isn’t the flick for you.

As far as I’m concerned I think that I fall somewhere in the middle. The movie doesn’t give me the kind of resolution that I like, but I still enjoyed the story and characters. Speaking of the characters the cast is pretty good. John Leguizamo and Thandie Newton are both pretty good in their roles and seem genuinely scared. We even get a cameo from genre regular Larry Fessenden. The only complaint that I have with Vanishing on 7th Street is Hayden Christensen. I don’t want to sound mean, but the guy can’t act. Most of the movie it seems as if he is either whining a bit or ready to cry. I suppose it might just be me still being angry about him ruining my favorite movie villain from when I was growing up (guess who?), but the guys voice just puts me on edge.

This is sort of a creature feature that never really shows the audience any creatures. We get shadows that move against the background and reach out towards their intended victims. This is all done with CGI and is pretty effective. It isn’t a scary movie, but I did find it a bit creepy. This is helped along by some good camera work and lighting that takes full advantage of the dimly light sets and setting. I found myself really paying attention to not only the story, but that atmosphere too.

I did like Vanishing on 7th Street. It was moody and different from most of the movies that I normally watch. Though the lack of a defined creature or resolution to the story is probably going to bug some viewers. Yeah I know I already mentioned that, but it was important to mention again. If you are looking for something a bit different I think that Vanishing on 7th Street is worth at least a rental. For more information on this movie head on over to the Magnet home page at http://www.magnetreleasing.com/

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer