User Reviews

This is literally the movie version of the Mars Argo/Poppy/Titanic Sinclair drama. It was watchable.

I would like the music for this film in an EP with additional songs. The production and lyrics are excellent.

The Outer Limits, the Twilight Zone, and Tales from the Crypt were great at installing insight into their programs. Into the Dark is not.

Culture Shock is my favorite movie in the series.

This movie is ill paced, unbelievable, and vapid.

If Into the Dark could simply be Tales from the Crypt 2.0, I would be grateful.

From the premise, I was kind of expecting something more Black Mirror than Lifetime Mystery, but that's not what I got. Also the fact that it's on valentines day doesn't really factor into the plot all that much and could have been cut entirely from the movie (or built up since it's marketed as a holiday movie). It was a great exploration of recovering from an abusive relationship, especially when your ex is a sociopath out to ruin you for "being mean" to them (I feel like we've all been in a relationship with someone like that, or known someone like that through scrolling r/relationship subreddit twitter). I also enjoyed the digs at the parasocial delusions "super fans" have with content creators and the way they lash out at any perceived threats to their celebrity crushes/"friends". The acting of the main 2 was very engaging and I got strong vibes everyone was having fun with their roles. Also the lighting? Amazing, the bisexual blues and pinks get me every time. There is a lot here that hits home emotionally, but once it veers firmly into the traditional horror part it sort of falls apart completely. A lot of the complaints other people have had are completely valid as far as characters go, and it gets real unsatisfying and frustrating around the halfway point, but I would still recommend watching it for the music if nothing else.

This chapter is really bad don't even try to see it.

This series is falling off a cliff, it's in desperate need of a parachute

Now I decided to check this movie out as I wanted a 2020 horror film to keep up with my pace for the year, but one that I could do a mini-review for as well. Since this was the oldest of the Into the Dark on Hulu I hadn't seen, I decided to give it a go and came in pretty blind. The synopsis is a pop singer's songs and artistic identity has been stolen by her ex-boyfriend/manager and shamelessly pasted onto his new girlfriend/protégé. They end up getting locked together in a small concert venue to sort it out.

We start this off with Valentine (Britt Baron). She is in a hoodie and is listening to a podcast about how to fix yourself after being in a co-dependent/abusive relationship. She stops to a poster for Trezzure (Anna Lore). At first, I thought they were the same person, but that is the point. Valentine grabs a piece of glass and attacks it. With a bloody hand, she sits on the ground.

What is really happening here is that Valentine was dating Royal (Benedict Samuel). He would gaslight her, physically abuse her and she finally had to get away. The problem is that he registered all of her songs in his name and molded Trezzure to look just like her. Valentine decided to return to the music scene and has been fighting with a message board fan club called 'The Trezzury', who supports this other artist.

At her first show back, Valentine is there with Julie (Anna Akana). Heckling them on stage is Trevor (Alan Chow), Allison (Ally Maki) and Dave (Ruben Vernier). They run the message board and they're convinced she stole Trezzure's material. Coming to the duo on stage's aid is Rosa (Tiffany Smith) and Nick (Shaun J. Brown), but they end up getting confused about the truth.

Also showing up at the show is Royal. He pays the bartender a lot of money to close down early, so he can talk with Valentine. He gets the fan club to watch the door and Trezzure eventually comes into the building. While locked in, we learn the truth of what really happened and who really came up with all of this music. Royal is a worm, but when he is pushed to the brink, he will do some unthinkable things to continue his success, even asking Valentine to come back to him.

Now I'll admit, I've seen a few of these Into the Dark episodes, but not all of them. I've been pretty entertained from the ones I have while still knowing some of these get picked apart pretty bad. I'll preface my thoughts with that; I don't think is the best one I've seen and actually has the lowest rating for me thus far, but it does explore some interesting aspects.

Since this was the February episode, Valentine's Day is the go-to holiday. It is interesting making the main character's name be Valentine, as you don't really need to use the holiday itself and this one really does focus on relationships. I found it intriguing that we're introduced to Valentine when she is being heckled. No one really seems to believe her and it isn't until we meet Royal that I'm really started to pick up what this movie is putting down.

I'll admit, it wasn't until listening to podcasts and being more socially aware of things that I discovered what the term gas lighting is. I have seen old movie with that title, but it didn't click until recently. Royal is a master manipulating and that is what he did to Valentine until she had enough. He reveals to her the truth and I really like that we explore this idea in the movie. I feel horrible for Valentine and what she's dealing with. I also feel for Trezzure as she's been pressured into becoming Valentine in this master plot. The movie does well in fully putting us in Valentine's camp though and as I said, it is heart-breaking to see the toll Royal has done on her to the point where she has given up.

We also get an interesting look at toxic fandom here. Some people I respect on social media have brought this up about the horror community and we really did get to see that in things in group pages. I'm all for social justice and doing the right thing, but there has to be a point where you stop yourself and not going on the offensive. It is interesting that we get to see the group of fans who are from 'The Trezzuery' have been duped and they're in the wrong. I love seeing how misguided they are.

Despite all of this social commentary we get in this movie that is relevant, I did find the movie to be problematic as well. I do have to admit; I did find it boring and didn't really feel like it knew where it wanted to go. I also found Royal's character to be a bit off as well. All of the psychological damage he is doing fits and I like to see him when he's challenged, but it would have been better in my eyes to keep him a 'puppeteer'. Him doing some of things I don't just buy if I'm going to be honest. I can see those that could disagree and that's fine, I can see their point of view as well.

I would say the acting is fine across the board. Baron is quite attractive and I like that we get to see her at her lowest point as well as her finding her strength to overcome everything around her. Samuel fits as well, but like I just was stating about him, I don't necessarily buy everything that he did. He seems like a snake and behind the scenes kind of guy, not necessarily doing what we get. Lore is interesting as a duality to Valentine. I like the character we get for her in the end. Akana was solid as well. If I do have a gripe, it would be Smith and Brown along with their storyline are just there for padding and not necessarily needed in my opinion. The fans for Trezzure add an interesting dynamic as I was saying as well.

Something that I did need to talk about would be the effects in the movie. I hated the cheesy effects used at different times surrounding characters. It just felt out of place to me. The blood we get looks good. The gore is subdued aside from that and I enjoy the practical approach of using angles for things. The cinematography works in that regards as well.

The last thing to briefly go over would be the soundtrack. It might surprise you, but I kind of dug the music that Valentine and Trezzure sing in the movie. I know there was an artist commissioned to do it all and it is not songs I'll listen to regularly. I will admit though, there are times where I could put it on and enjoy it if I'm going to be perfectly honest.

So with that said, I'll reiterate that I dug the social commentary this movie is conveying. I thought that the acting was solid for the most part in bringing this to light. Both Valentine and Trezzure are interesting as well as attractive characters and I would say the rest of the acting was fine for the most part. If I did have any issues, the movie is a bit boring as I don't really care where it is going for the most part. Outside of some cheesy, gimmick effects, the blood and what not was fine. I did dig the soundtrack for the most part as well. I would rate this as above average, but don't think I'll go much higher.

Good solid setup of the story. The actors eloquently execute the installment. Do not pay attention to negative reviews. It is gory, bloody and good singing too. I like the actors that portrayed each character. Do yourself a favor and watch this on a Sunday afternoon when you are scrolling through Hulu and cannot decide what to pick.

This movie definitely took inspiration between the ongoing feud with Mars Argo and Poppy. Blumhouse doesnt disappoint with the gore and the lightning/music is fantastic! Storyline definitely a little bland, but overall watchable.

A format like this; an anthology series with unrelated stories provides so much opportunity for artistic creativity and good storytelling. I have felt so yanked around by this series, where once in a while you have something pretty decent, and then so many episodes were either incredibly mediocre utter crap.

This might be the worst one I've seen yet, It's just an utter mess. You hate all the characters, bad acting, no real storyline, and what storyline there is just drags and drags. Why Blumhouse? Just why?

The people in this movie are the most exaggerated cartoon people I have ever seen. Into the Dark is pretty universally horrible, but this one is especially bad.

These are not human beings. These aren't characters. These are aliens that said "meepety mother f-ing morp, let us imitate the Earth creatures".

I wish I could give negative numbers.

This is a hit or miss series & this episode was definitely a miss. I turned it off before it reached halfway to the end last night. I thought maybe I was just tired & needed a fresh start today. Oh no, it's really that f'n bad...

This movie was horrible! I would have rather watched a wrinkly in time over and over again. The acting was atrocious especially from the three trezzury actors. The discussion between the couple about if they do Valentine's Day was ridiculous. Hulu should have saved its money.

I absolutely love the Into the Dark movies. We look forward to them every single month. But what the heck has happened to the writing? It's just been awful as of late. The New Years episode was boring and the Valentine's Day episode was so dumb.

What happened to the ones like "All That We Destroy" or "Pooka" or most of the first season and the beginning of the second season? Those episodes had some truly talented writers and directors. Can Blumhouse, Hulu and anyone else involved just settle down and write some good basic stories? We don't want flash and dazzle, we want Twilight Zone basic dark stories.

Could have been called My Bloody Valentine 2... Strong performance from the main boyfriend. Lots of violence and blood. And then there's singing but it's not a musical or anything. Throughout the movie a girl selects songs to play on her phone and a playlist pops up on the side of the screen showing the songs. Pretty cool. Solid ending.

The bad reviews are just that, as I've said before people normally review when they don't like something or if they think something is awesome there has never been a in between only time I've seen this is when a viewer is being true to themselves and just want to make reviews more helpful.

It's a great storyline and not only does a lot of girls go through what the main leading lady goes through in relationships but I can bet a few of the most popular singers we know have stolen their artistic expression from someone else, I don't want to add spoilers but if you look past the story you'll see the deeper meaning and it's very well written and in with the times. I gave it a 7 as there has been better into the dark episodes but it's very watchable. I only write reviews for a film but I think these episodes need a review on their own since it is like a film. The show is basically an anthology of films and I hope there is a season 3.

Ps the leading guy did a awesome Job as well. He was very good at playing both sweet and a nut job so well.

What a trainwreck. I hope the Into the Dark series can pull out of this nose dive.

This is probably the worst entry in the series and I couldn't even finish it. Save yourself some pain and skip this. Horrible writing with crappy, unrealistic characters. How does stuff like this get green lit?

While watching the movie it was hard to keep my attention, I felt myself wanting to watch something else. It was bland and so was the dialog, as well the random effects of stars, neon crowns and lights didn't make any sense to me. It was like a thirteen year old found out about IMovie and added in all the effects.

The performance of the boyfriend was well done and the music wasn't bad, it was catchy and fun to listen to.