How can anyone like a movie that ENDS with a boy kidnapped (and apparently tortured) in front of his loving parents?? Just before that, we get to watch mom in a pool of blood and dad blowing his own brains out. And the other boy is evidently headed for the same fate. There is nothing more to discuss. I'm disgusted that anyone gave this a positive review.

I had to take this movie for what it truly is - a family concocts an elaborate alien abduction story to explain why their teenage son is missing. Maybe he was growing up too fast, not listening to his parents anymore, indulging in girls and drugs against the prudish wishes of his parents, and he just had to go. The poor kid is probably buried in a grave somewhere deep in the woods. Yeah. The father should definitely have a lot of dirt in his fingernails. However, on the premise that this film was nothing more than an implausible tale about an alien abduction, the movie works. You feel bad for the hardships the family is going through, and the fact that the acting is spot-on in this movie made their angst all the more palpable. They probably really were torn apart and it was no help that their teenage son was ultra rebellious. Taken as a real account of an alien abduction, however, I would've given it a much lower rating, like 2 or 3. I do recommend the flick, if for nothing else, to get into the sick minds of scheming people.

I have news for you. You know that crazy guy with anorobigheadphobia? Who boards up windows and thinks the aliens are coming to abduct him? Well, the guy isn't crazy. We had the exact same formula in the X-Files. Actually this movie is a mishmash of different popular movies, so don't expect one gram of originality. Acting was top notch up til that moment when the actors lose their minds, then it becomes a comedy. I don't have much else to say, so let me tell you that I DO NOT WANT my money back. Why you may ask. Well, because if I stuff myself in a restaurant then say "the food was bad so I want my money back," it begs the question: if the food was bad then why did you eat it? You can have a taste and return the food but once it's sitting pretty in your belly you can't get your money back. I was bored and the movie was free since I watched it on Netflix.

My review process: watch, ponder, research, write, edit, & post. While researching, I found the negative light surrounding horror studio Blumhouse Productions' "Dark Skies" film made claims like "predictable" & "bland". I do not agree. 40% on Rotten Tomatoes is too harsh. A 6.5 on IMDb is a better match but still insults the creep & dread noticeable technical efforts added to the played plot. That is another key word critics labeled this seemingly-haunted house flick: used. Let's be fair; there are no original ideas anymore, folks. Even if a notion so profound it feels unique, it has likely been done. Variations on a theme are all creators have left to tell a story nowadays. In that light, writer/director Scott Stewart's "Dark Skies" does improve on some levels compared to a certain once-hailed-twist-film-maker's (M. Night Shyamalan) version.Though it took a bit to get over a sub(hair)dued "Felicity" (TV Series 1998–2002), Keri Russell, as the Barrett Mother Lacy, she did bring her all to break her WB curse. Josh Hamilton (American Horror Story Coven) was solid as Patrick Wilson from "Insidious 1 & 2" as Daniel (the dad) from "The Conjuring" in the Barrett family story— all Blumhouse films. The eldest kid, Jesse, played by Dakota Goyo (Thor), was good, but I had difficulty taking him seriously at times with those "MMM-Bop" bangs that were the length of his "magnificently-heroic globe nose"-(Alice in Wonderland" 2010 reference). JK Simmons (Terminator Genisys, TV's The Closer) nonchalantly-played awkward, borderline community-registered-hermit "Edwin Pollard" aka Indy-Tangina-Jones, an odd cluster-or variation if you will-on Zelda Rubinstein's character in "Poltergeist" (1982) & Indiana Jones (only for the hat).With composer Joseph Bishara's unsettling score increasing the terror tenfold but in a less-evident fashion than the other Blumhouse pictures he did which are mentioned above, intense lighting, camera work, & sound effects improved this film in more ways than is likely realized by most. The CGI was unfortunate, but it is so subtly-featured in a limited number of shots, it does not trash this unique shift on the haunted house genre…especially because it is not one. A few decent scares and a whole lot of tension-building are sadly downplayed by how much emphasis is placed upon crushing the () family's reputation & sanity to a breaking point no sane person would reach without snapping. It might be an "alien" concept for some, but "we all go a little mad sometimes". Check it out! You may enjoy it like me!