Nitzan Havoc If you're a Horror fan such as myself, you must have noticed by now that this profound underrated genre has a few different types of films, other than having a few sub-genres. The Dark Hours, a Canadian production, is much like a combination between Funny Games (where two psychopathic killers take a family hostage and forces then to play sadistic games) and any film (take your pick) where the protagonist can't tell fantasy from reality due to a mental condition.In some films, the effects of fear and unpleasantness are achieved by frightening and startling the spectators, often using cheap cheats like sudden loud music. Not such is the case in The Dark Hours. In this film, the audience is, in a way, tortured along with the characters.Nothing makes a good Horror film great like some unexpected and surprising twists. In this film - what at first bothered me was the fact that the questions asked aren't fully answered. Meaning, the audience can't know for sure what really happened, and what didn't. Eventually, I realized that this feature was exactly what made this film what it is.What's real? What really happened, and what happened only in the protagonist's imagination? Come the film's end - you'll be debating with your friends (or yourself), as the film provides "half-proofs" to support or disprove any theory.Personally, I prefer it when the twists and endings of films do in fact answer all the the questions the original story plants in the spectators' minds, making us go "Ohhhhhh, now I get it!". Still, I really appreciate the M.O this film uses to invoke confusion and despair.I do think tagging this film "sci-fi" is pretty inaccurate, but I guess this is a matter of personal interpretation like almost everything else about it.All in all, The Dark Hours proved to be an original and mind-blowing film, taking the audience for a ride of questions and confusion. For me - that has really done the trick. Very highly recommended for any Horror fan who enjoys it when films successfully mess with their minds!

Noel Barton Psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Goodman has an incurable brain tumour which was stable but has now began to grow. She retreats to her cottage for a break where her writer husband David and her younger sister Melody are staying. It all spirals into a hellishly insane movie: gripping, intriguing and paranoid.'The Dark Hours' is NOT a movie that everyone will appreciate. Those wanting a simple movie spoon fed to them should avoid like the plague. This is a trip into insanity with a non-linear narrative and multiple interpretations. It will frustrate those who aren't willing to give it thought and, perhaps, numerous viewings. If you enjoy the weirder David Lynch movies and films that mess with reality/non-reality like 'Jacob's Ladder' then you'll probably appreciate this low budget Canadian horror/thriller.It's a little on the short side and ends fairly abruptly which disappointed me at first, but the more thought I gave the movie the more I liked the it and its ending. You can end up thinking about it and discussing interpretations until you too feel like you're developing a brain tumour. I highly recommend it, just not to everyone.

Claudio Carvalho The thirty and something years old psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Goodman (Kate Greenhouse) has an incurable brain tumor that has just started to grow. Felling totally stressed, she decides to spend the weekend in her cottage with her husband, the writer David Goodman (Gordon Currie), and her sister Melody (Iris Graham). She unexpectedly arrives in the cabin and finds a bottle of champagne in the refrigerator. Later, a young man, Adrian (Dov Tiefenbach), asks for help due to the cold weather and once in the house, he shows a gun and brings his partner, the violent sexual offender and Samantha's former patient Harlan Pyne (Aidan Devine). Along the night, Harlan forces the family to participate in twisted games, where truths are disclosed."The Dark Hours" is a tense and very well acted and directed thriller, having a surprising twist in the end. The process of madness of Dr. Samantha, using experimental drugs as her last chance to survive and having hallucinations, is impressive and very original. While watching the film, I was comparing the story with Michael Haneke's "Funny Game", but the plot point showing that jealous Samantha actually killed her husband and sister under the effect of the drug, and used her patient and his victim as a scapegoat to support the reality is refreshing. Unfortunately the Brazilian DVD is very poor, without any Extras or comments that might give further explanations of the screenplay. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Horas de Horror" ("Hours of Horror")

ktotheirbee The movie was one of the, if not the worst I have ever seen in my life. Tried to be too smart, ended up being very distasteful and appalling.There was no clear end, and the movie was far too short to have any real defined plot. The ending was almost predictable from the moment you see the tumor on the screen in the opening shot.All in all, acting was far too abrupt, not subtle. Characters were unbelievable and the shots gave away too much of the movie. The story really tried to be far too complex without really meaning anything, and a multitude of movie clichés lead to a quick giveaway of the "twist".I would not recommend this movie to anyone.