Event Horizon.

Caleb introduced me to the movie Event Horizon.  We had each browsed through all that Netflix and Amazon Prime had to offer us.  In the end, I handed him the remote, closed my eyes, and said "pick anything."  I was, of course, a bit nervous because I was sure this was going to be a really stupid movie, but I was wrong.  It was great!  Well, it was sort of stupid but in a good way.

Event Horizon, directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, came out in 1997.  For a film that came out that long ago, I am impressed with its CGI capabilities.  Normally, as you might know, I am not a fan of computer graphics but this is a case where it's necessary and it works.  Paul Anderson is probably best known for his Resident Evil movies.  He wrote, directed, and produced them.

The film is about a rescue crew, of sorts, that investigate a lost space ship called the Event Horizon.  It got lost in a black hole that it created and now something sinister is hiding on board.  It's a great horror/sci-fi and I'm not always a huge fan of sci-fi.  Though, I do seem to like most of the sci-fi movies I see, I just wouldn't pick them to watch myself.  But if it's someone else's idea, then why not?

You will probably recognize Sam Neill as Dr. William Weir.  Neill has been in tons of stuff like Jurassic Park, Daybreakers,  and The Horse Whisperer.  He's talented and versatile, though in my opinion he plays creepy the best.

Then there's Captain Miller, the captain of the rescue team, played by Laurence Fishburne.  He is best known for being in The Matrix and taking over as lead on CSI.

Those are the two main leads and the biggest names of the movie.  But shout-out to the supporting cast: Kathleen Quinlan, Joely Richardson, Richard T. Jones, Jack Noseworthy, Jason Isaacs, and Sean Pertwee who all did great.

According to IMDB, there are a lot of neat facts about Event Horizon and I feel the need to share them.  Because this blog is supposed to be about how the movie is made and interesting things that most people don't know about them.  However, I get too excited while I write and totally stray away.  Oops!  So, here's some neat stuff!:

• The space suits worn by the actors weighed 65 pounds each.  Due to the weight, standing upright in them for longer periods could lead to back injury, but sitting down was not possible either due to the backpack. Special "hanging poles" were constructed on the set, so the actors could rest on them between takes.
•  The Event Horizon was modeled on Notre Dame cathedral. Its long corridor resembles a church nave, and its interior is filled with cruciform shapes, columns and vaults. Also, its engines resemble rotated church towers. 
• When the Lewis and Clark first docks with the Event Horizon, the number of the main airlock is briefly visible: 13. 
• The Event Horizon was named after the theoretical boundary surrounding a black hole, within which gravitational attraction is so great that nothing, not even radiation, can escape because the escape velocity is greater than the speed of light. Technically, it is where the physical universe ends and physical laws no longer apply. So the ship's name is symbolic for its journey beyond the borders of the known universe.
•  Philip Eisner wrote the movie after a family tragedy. He had recently entered a multi-picture writing agreement, and in an effort to force himself to get back to work he pitched the idea of "The Shining in space" to the studio, who were very receptive. 
• The rotational shot of the space station over earth took nearly a third of the film's budget.  
• Some of the lost footage includes a great deal more of the Bosch-influenced Hell sequences and of the orgiastic video log that was found in the Event Horizon. This was shot by both director Paul W.S. Anderson and Vadim Jean, mainly on weekends. 
• The shot where Sam Neill stares out of a window which then pulls back to reveal he's on the deck of a spaceship orbiting Earth took the digital special effects house Cinesite 10 weeks to achieve. The shot lasts for 45 seconds. 

What I take from all the trivia is that Event Horizon is a complex movie.  I really did enjoy this one!  It's streaming right now on Netflix and I think you should check it out if you haven't seen it already.  If you have, then maybe you should watch it again for old time's sake!  It's a great horror/sci-fi so if you like those genres then this is a good movie for you!  Enjoy!

Watch the clip below for an intense scene between Captain Miller and a crewman.  I love how he listens to the whole thing and his face is like "Yeah, this doesn't surprise me."