The Darkest Hour

Survive the holidays.

American web designers Sean and Ben (Emile Hirsch, Max Minghella) are in Moscow for a business deal when aliens suddenly attack the city – and every other metropolis around the world. We’ve all seen plenty of alien invasions, but rarely from a Russian perspective. The Moscow locations are a plus in this otherwise exceptionally by-the-numbers tale in 3D that is reasonably fun to watch but instantly forgettable. Some of the characters are easy to like, but the dialogue, some of the acting performances and the design of the aliens are disappointments.

2011-U.S. 89 min. Color. Widescreen. Produced by Timur Bekmambetov, Tom Jacobson. Directed by Chris Gorak. Cast: Emile Hirsch (Sean), Olivia Thirlby (Natalie), Max Minghella (Ben), Rachael Taylor, Joel Kinnaman, Veronika Ozerova.