Event Horizon - Am Rande des Universums

Die Dichte der bedrückten Stimmung und das psychedelische Entsetzen in den ersten zwei Dritteln dieses Films gehören zu der Spitze der Science-Fiction-Horrorfilme. In diesem Genre dominiert natürlich Alien - Das unheimliche Wesen aus einer fremden Welt. Die Szenen mit Sam Neill, der durch die engen grünen Tunnel irrt, sind brillant. Dasselbe gilt auch für andere visuelle Tricks, einschließlich der sich drehenden "Vertigo-Aufnahme" am Anfang (ich habe sie auf der Leinwand gesehen und mir war wirklich schwindlig). Leider wird aus dem Film später eine Actionshow eines Drehbuch-Schunds, wie wir es von Paul W.S. Anderson kennen. An die ersten zwei Drittel erinnere ich mich aber so gern, dass ich dem Film 4* gebe. (26.04.2005)

It's a very bizarre disgusting thing, which is brilliantly filmed and probably won't make you feel very well. There aren't many films like this. I applaud Paul Anderson for always pushing the envelope hard, regardless of audience reaction, and not giving a damn about disgusting the average viewer. I wonder what the original unedited version, which is 40 minutes longer, looked like. It must have been cool. (19.06.2002)

Great sci-fi horror and also a brutal spectacle for something form the late 90s. The atmosphere does let down by the end, but never to the point that would affect the overall impression. The premise (a spaceship returns after being lost in the cosmos, bringing something with it) is awesome and I don’t think it could have been developed better. Hands down, Paul Anderson’s best work, even if students of physics would not agree. (29.05.2008)

Etwa zwei Drittel des Films lang waren wir überzeugt, dass Anderson etwas absolut Einzigartiges gelungen ist. Die Atmosphäre, die in Event Horizon - Am Rande des Universums herrscht, hat mich völlig überwältigt und mir sehr unangenehme psychische Zustände beschert. Der Zauber des unbekannten Bösen funktioniert perfekt - wir befinden uns in den morbiden Eingeweiden eines lange verschollenen Schiffes, wissen nicht, was um uns herum vor sich geht, und ahnen nur, dass jeder nächste Schuss Schrecken und entsetzliche Brutalität bringen kann. Anderson spielt herum, zieht spannende Momente in die Länge, erhöht dann den psychologischen Druck mit Abkürzungen, spart nicht mit Blut, sondern lässt das Böse in einer verstörenden Anonymität verharren... bis zum Ende. Dann wird plötzlich ein Zauberstab geschwungen und der Film wird zu einem B-Movie-Krimi mit einem augenlosen Ganoven, und die ganze sorgfältig aufgebaute Spannung ist dahin. Schade, dass Event Horizon sich nicht mit dem Erahnten begnügt und stattdessen einen Faustkampf mit dem Bösen, aber Greifbaren serviert. Einmal mehr wurde mir bestätigt, dass Anderson ein Regisseur ist, der zwar talentiert ist, dem es aber an einem gesunden Urteilsvermögen mangelt. Ich habe einen Film gesehen, dessen Hauptteil das Werk eines cleveren Strategen und dessen Pointe das Werk einer B-Movie-Routine ist. Könnte es sich um eine gespaltene Persönlichkeit handeln? Die besseren Sachen werden mir aber noch lange in Erinnerung bleiben, zusammen mit Michael Kamens guter Musik, guten Darbietungen (nur der gutmütige Nigga... warum zum Teufel schon wieder?) und sehenswerten Tricks. Dies hätte ein denkwürdiger Science-Fiction-Horrorfilm werden können, aber am Ende ist es ein Sieg, der im letzten Drittel verspielt wird. Extrem schade! (06.10.2004)

A rather unbalanced picture with huge potential, a horror clone of Solaris. It starts out boringly, then becomes a great movie with a chilling atmosphere which rather curiously becomes a B-grade sci-fi full of plotholes, illogical behavior of characters etc. On the other hand, someday I would like to see the director’s cut, since Anderson subsequently distanced himself from this version. A shame that he has been stringing us along about how great it will be, but nothing has come from it (the question is whether a 45-minute longer version ever existed). For the time being, Event Horizon is an average movie that remains, however, the best thing that Paul has ever made. Which is sad. (22.03.2005)

The stormy atmosphere of Neptune and a space ship spewed from the depths of hell didn’t give me a moment of rest for the whole 92 minutes. Anderson can do it if he wants (the faultless dizzy beginning) and if it weren’t for the slightly over the top ending I would easily give it 5*. But now I can only remember the perfect build up of atmosphere in the first two thirds, the superb acting performances of Laurence Fishburne and Sam Neill, the very decent effects and the idea which, if it had been developed right could have satisfied my dark side. (08.12.2009)

It starts as a smart and atmospherically charged film, but it gradually becomes poorly staged horror without a hint of sense or logic. Laurence Fishburne is flawless as the captain, and the other crew members are also decent. The futuristic-looking sets will please every fan of dark sci-fi, but the closer the film gets to the end, the more you shake your head. There is literally no twist, blood pours like crazy – and completely unnecessarily – and all the carefully built atmosphere of mystery vanishes. Skip half an hour, replace it with a meaningful ending and maybe a bit of unpolopathically explained philosophy and it would be a very decent addition to the scifi genre. Like this, it's just a controversial bloodbath. (07.05.2005)

I have a bit of a weak spot for this film. It's great to see that Anderson is a very fine filmmaker, and the first act, for example, can easily be put among the of best sci-fi horror, even though, the lack of fear is not exactly appropriate. Fear radiates from the stuffy atmosphere, and even though the film gradually shifts to pure action, the unpleasant feeling in the pit of the stomach persists. Other major strengths are the special effects hand in hand with the gloomy setting of the huge (abandoned?) ship, the director's feeling for the right amount of violence and, of course, the actors. I've known for a long time that Lawrence Fishburne is awesome, but Sam Neill was so much better here and his villain, with Pavel Soukup's excellent dubbing, was truly unforgettable and terrifying. If they made more quality B-movies like this, I wouldn’t be mad. 80% (29.05.2012)

The fact that this is without a doubt the strongest contribution to the discussion since Paul W.S. Anderson's automatische doesn't mean it's a very well made spectacle, but the premise is exactly what I look for and need in a science fiction film. The constant strobes, retarded jump-scares, and sweat-soaked zooms are thankfully outweighed by a gutted Jason Isaac, decompressed crew members, and cute visions of hell. The fact that 40 minutes of mostly gore scenes were cut and lost from the original 130-minute long cut is the biggest crime with this film. Otherwise, Andrei Anastasov would have been happy. (07.09.2015)

Paul W. S. Anderson embarked on a path of action B movies and in some cases genuine oddities, such as "The Three Musketeers". However, with the film "Event Horizon" he created one of the best science-fiction horror films, where neither genre predominates and the film is a perfect combination of both. It is a sci-fi that is at least interesting for fans of this genre, but it is also a horror that will not disappoint any horror fan, because the atmosphere is simply there. (09.01.2015)