# fantastic / family drama / aliens / abduction / small town / mystery / Polish premiere
A close encounter that will hurt like no other
It’s 1982. A peaceful, loving and completely ordinary family from Pennsylvania is affected by a tragedy. Their 8-year-old daughter disappears under unexplained circumstances. One year later, the immediate family and their relatives are still nursing their wounds and despite all of their efforts are unable to lead a normal life. During an evening spent with his family, Ray notices mysterious lights and an unusual object in the sky. Accompanied by half of his family- two brothers, a son and a nephew – he sets off into the woods to see what has happened. All at once, the men are confronted by mysterious lights, rays of light and other disturbing phenomena. The whole family – or at least those who have not yet been abducted – hide in a house that turns into a trap. Surrounded by unnatural colours, strange noises and crazy electronic equipment, they are getting ready for their first contact, and the struggle for survival is not even an option. But is there a danger behind the lights? Or maybe the attempt to contact the visitors may result in something completely unexpected?
In his second feature film, Carl Strathie once again explores the stars and classic cinema motifs. This time, the close encounter with a foreign civilization does not end in the classic Hollywood style. In ‘Dark Encounter’ there are no lasers, no mucus, no White House getting blown up. The director tells a subtle, surprising and beautifully produced story. It interweaves close cosmic encounters with family drama, confuses clues, and the story itself is told in a perverse way. Here everything is in its place – from acting, through special effects, to building tension and dramaturgy. The ending, on the other hand, hits our sensitive points so hard that no cosmic probing can be compared to it.
WORLD PREMIERE: FrightFest 2019
Age restrictions: 15+
LUBLIN: 11.12 (Wednesday) / 18.00 / Centre of Culture / BUY TICKET
director: Carl Strathie writer: Carl Strathie director of photography: Bart Sienkiewicz editor: Carl Strathie cast: Laura Fraser, Mel Raido, Sid Phoenix, Grant Masters, Nicholas Pinnock music: David Stone Hamilton language: English subtitles: Polish
