Movie: The Deep Dark (Gueules Noires)
Cast: Samuel Le Bihan, Amir El Kacem, Thomas Solivérès, Jean-Hughes Anglade
Director: Mathieu Turi
Rating: 2.5/5
Duration: 103 minutes
In 1856, in the historic coal mines of northern France, Pas-de-Calais, known as the Devil‘s Island, a group of miners found themselves trapped after a collapse. One hundred years later, another group led by Roland Neville (Samuel Le Bihan), and formed by Louis (Thomas Solivérès), Miguel (Diego Martín), Polo (Marc Riso), Santini (Bruno Sanches) and Amir (Amir El Kacem), They are tasked with taking Professor Berthier (Jean-Hugues Anglade) to those deepest, darkest subterranean depths, to take samples and measurements, and a sudden landslide prevents them from surfacing.
Things get worse after that. They happen to awaken the restless Mok’Nor Roth, known as the Soul Eater and servant of Cthulu, and chaos ensues. This ancient mutant that terrorized the previous miners is still around and out for blood.
The setting obviously invokes claustrophobia, which in turn creates tension and a sense of urgency… but only for a short time. It is imperative that the miners be rescued, but will that happen before the monster gets to them? The geologist is there for his own purposes, the mining company wants to profit from this exploration and some of the miners themselves want to order some jewels to ensure their own future. So most people trapped in terror are morally ambiguous and indicate a motto of “each for themselves” that could prove detrimental to their survival. There is infighting and the men find that mutual trust is eroded. The men are also hostile toward their new crew member, Amir, a Moroccan who sends all of his earnings to his family in his home country.
The narrative remains focused on the men of the deep dark domain. We are aware of your immediate concerns, but not your past. Turi’s script expands on the degree of difficulty they experience in carrying out their thankless job, but we barely get to know the men or their inner workings.
Is he monster that fails to cause any scare. The practical effects seem quite crude and inept. So what we assume to be a bloodthirsty creature that awoke from a crypt seems too mild to be effectively fearsome. Director and writer Mathieu Turi does his best to maintain the fear factor, but once the monster comes into play, the fear and tension begin to dissipate considerably. Even the dark, dank, lamplit cinematography is unable to make amends thereafter. We never felt a premonitory sensation from the atmosphere. The pacing is also too uneven to maintain tension.
The script is character-driven and strives to create terrifying confrontations between the old and new generations. It’s the inept practical effects that fail this horror film. Reflecting the stories of HP Lovecraft and set in a French reality with an appropriate social context, the director hopes to generate existential experiences. horror through the discovery of forbidden primordial knowledge. But it’s all for naught once the ridiculous creature comes into play.