Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7810 in DVD
• Released on: 2008-01-28
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 95 minutes

Synopsis
Two British girls go on a bicycling vacation in France. After quarrelling, the two girls separate. The more responsible of the pair, Jane, feels guilty about leaving, and decides to return to the infamous stretch of road where she left her friend. When she gets there, she finds her friend is missing and begins a tour of the surrounding area, questioning those she encounters about her friend. However, as time passes and there is no trace of her friend, Jane imagines the worst, and fears that the next person she encounters could be her friend's killer. Atmospheric, suspenseful, and shocking, AND SOON THE DARKNESS is a gripping thriller.

Customer Reviews

A masterclass in misdirection
I bought this on the strength of the other reviews here and I was certainly not disappointed.
After the curiously jaunty title music I was not really expecting such an atmospheric and subtle piece of film making.
This is a master class in misdirection, apprehension and general red-herring-ry without any of it seeming at all out of place within the narrative. You are truly left guessing up until the very last scene (even though you may have your suspicions)

The language barrier between Jane and the locals was an excellent touch, completing the sense of isolation so nicely built by the beautifully bleak and empty locations in rural France.

I have one major gripe with the story but to air it here would be too much of a spoiler. Suffice to say that even a small amount of disclosure can actually enhance trust.... but even so the high-quality of this film's other facets more than makes up for this.
Unbearable tension and a cracking atmosphere make this film a real treat for anyone in search of a quality thriller.

Very scary
This film used to get shown on television a lot back in the 1970's. Now you hardly ever see it. When it gets released on regions 2 its well worth buying.

The story is very simple. Two girls are on a cycling holiday in France and one of them disappears. Watching this as a youngster I was very scared and having bought a region 1 copy it holds up well all these years later. The director Robert Feust keeps the tension admirably high without having that 'in your face' quality of some modern thrillers. There is a lot of subtlety in this film that is sadly missing from some modern teen slasher films. Clearly the director was from the Alfred Hitchcock school of what you can't see is scary, rather than showing everything upfront.

There are some nice extras on the region 1 disc, including a commentary, trailers and biograpical details.

Creepy, suspensful and makes great use of its location
One of those movies you don't hear much fuss about, and then you put it on and think 'why not?' A fantastically simple concept is turned into a clever suspense thriller where you are kept guessing until the end. The director uses every trick in the book to pull you along with Jane, played superbly by Franklyn. If you want to analyse it, instead of simply enjoy it, then you can certainly find a few little holes in the plot here and there, but overall, this is a very good job done by the whole team and it does reward you if you just allow yourself to be pulled into its current of suspense. Thoroughly enjoyed it and like someone else has stated, I can see this as prime Hollywood remake material, as they continue their relentless search for untapped old movies to remake. And in a way, I hope it does get remade, just so we can all say 'It is nowhere as good as the quiet little original.' And those hot pants - ooh la la!