All Light Will End (2/5)

All Light Will End is a new horror thriller on Netflix. In many ways, it’s a classic horror movie with both death and night terrors at its core. It’s not without issues, but Sarah Butler of I Spit On Your Grave is in it and that’s certainly a good thing!

All Light Will End is on Netflix now but the horror thriller is not for everyone. The runtime of this horror movie is at a crisp 84 minutes. This tends to be a good sign when it comes to the more classic “old school” horror stories.

The whole “kill your darlings” is something, I am becoming a bigger fan of with every movie I watch. And since I wrote more than 100 reviews for Heaven of Horror in 2018 alone, I watch a lot of movies.

Recommended reading: Check out our “Best Horror, Thriller & Sci-Fi Movies of 2018” list here >

With All Light Will End, it does use a lot of flashbacks which means the storyline is split over many time periods. Part of it works, but it also gets a bit confusing at times. Especially since All Light Will End also features many dream sequences of the night terror variety.

Sarah Butler knows horror

For me, the star of All Light Will End is Sarah Butler – though she has more a supporting role. And Sarah Butler knows a thing or two about horror. In fact, she was the star of a very well-made remake of an iconic horror movie in the torture and revenge department.

She starred in I Spit on Your Grave (2010), which is a brutal beast of a movie. And I do mean this in a good way since it is a remake of the 1978 classic. Once you’ve starred in a movie like that, you know what to do in order for horror movies to work.

In All Light Will End, Sarah Butler plays Dianna, who is the mother of our main protagonist, Savannah. The role of Savannah is portrayed by Ashley Pereira. Her performance really didn’t do anything for me.

Also co-starring as Savannah’s dad is Andy Buckley. You might not know him by name, but you should find his face very familiar. He’s been in a lot of the biggest TV shows such as The Office and Shameless. Also, he was in Jurassic World, so he’s no stranger to making movies either.

The ending of All Light Will End

For me, the best part of All Light Will End is the ending. Mostly because the movie finally starts getting to grips with the core elements instead of dancing around them. I don’t mind symbolism or mystery, but it was way too drawn out for me.

Still, I think most horror movie fans will recognize that a good ending can make all the difference. Just like a bad ending can ruin the overall experience.

Unfortunately, the overall experience of All Light Will End is not very memorable. But the ending alone would’ve made for a pretty cool horror short film.

Watch All Light Will End on Netflix now!

This is the feature film debut for director, Chris Blake. Previously, he has directed four short films in various genres, but he clearly has a knack for horror. That’s certainly my conclusion after watching All Light Will End.

Also, his very first short film was Something Evil This Way Comes. So, you know, obviously, this guy likes his horror!

The script was written by Chris Blake and Jason Hill. The two co-wrote and produced the four short film directed by Blake, so it seems like a pretty solid filmmaker duo.

I don’t think All Light Will End will be for everyone, but it does have elements I really liked. Also, it’s on Netflix so just give it a shot if you’re curious about it.

All Light Will End is out on Netflix in the US and Canada from February 2, 2019.

Details

Director: Chris Blake
Writers: Chris Blake, Jason Hill
Stars: Sarah Butler, Andy Buckley, John Schuck, Ted Welch, Michael James Thomas, Sam Jones III, Alexandra Harris, Graham Outerbridge, Ashley Pereira, Aaron Munoz, Katie Garfield

Plot

A horror novelist with a traumatic past returns to her childhood hometown, where she revisits her night terrors and loses sight of reality.