Chernobyl Diaries (2012)
Brief review: Brought by "Paranormal Activity" series' creator, Oren Peli, "Chernobyl Diaries" is yet another failed attempt at horror, that has all the right elements to be potentially good, if not great, but at the end it screams 'missed opportunity'. Its promising concept is totally ruined by a poorly-developed script, tons of pacing issues, and uninspired execution that makes the whole experience incredibly underwhelming. On the top of that, for a film that consider itself a horror, "Chernobyl Diaries" hardly offers any decent scares, and in terms of tensity it doesn't deliver either. The predictability factor is there as well, therefore most viewers will figure out what threatens the characters pretty early in the movie. Luckily, at least the film manages to use its unique setting to its advantage. The abandoned communist-style buildings are spooky as hell, the pitch-black underground tunnels are more fearsome that the 'creatures' themselves, and the uninhabited city of Pripyat has such a sinister atmosphere about it, it will surely give you the creeps. VFX expert Bradley Parker's lack of directing experience is written all over the screen. He struggles to find the right rhythm behind the camera, and as a result, his debut film is dull and dragged out in its first half, and only semi-interesting in its second. The young actors involved are barely familiar, but they still deliver pretty passable performances, most notably the female part of the cast.
Overall summary: It benefits from its effective use ot setting, but the nightmarishly creepy location alone can't save "Chernobyl Diaries" from being a disappointingly sub-par horror with a predictably formulaic script, unimaginative direction and little to no scares and suspense.
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