My Review Of “Vanishing On 7th Street”

“Vanishing On 7th Street” is very surreal viewing experience if you have the same obsessions about shadows, darkness, and inner dimensional demons as I do! First not all shadows are just light hitting a solid object, some are physical holes in the thin veil between our world and a much darker and sinister one that is only hidden because of its powerful repulsion on the light. Second shadows represent a subconscious and primordial bond to the darkness that existed before man was given breath in this world. The darkness moves and breathes with more life than all the universe and feeds, on emotion, thoughts and actions and grows with every vapor of breath that flows throughout reality. These two things combine to become the barrier and protection of a creature so ancient and unexplainable in human language that we can only call them demon. They can manipulate shadow and darkness and sometimes break free into our world for short periods. Trust me we are the meat on the menu for a lot of things out there whether we believe or not. The food chain stretches far beyond our concept of life. That is what held me tightly and threatened to consume me with this film.


“Vanishing…” is a flat out play out of what would happen if those things beyond the darkness where able to break into our world of their free will. They would be more than cannibalistic in their nature. They would consume without warning and dare not stop until every human was consumed and they were forced to move on to the next world. They can manipulate our minds and sight with things that have came and gone in our reality that are specific to individual experiences in life. Our loved ones and comrades that have passed before us will become like lures in the great sea of black that will envelope our world.

This vision directed by Brad Anderson takes an almost somber approach by not having a big scene that gives reason to the irrational. Instead the story begins almost in the middle of a “plague of darkness” that draws you into each character without companionship until they find their way to the last light left in the city and to each other. The scenes are straight forward and dramatic in the sense that emotion and panic are all you feel and a urgency to survive the moment. Plus Hayden Christensen is easy on the eyes and manages to captivate with his short and to the point dialog. Thandie Newton gives a strong emotional performance that makes you feel sympathetic about the gut wrenching scenario she finds herself in and the whole film my heart just kept breaking for Jacob Latimore.


This film does what it sets out to do. Pull you into a thought of how would you deal and survive if these shadow demons brought on a world of darkness that devoured every man woman and child out there and all you could do is run for more light and hope to survive, even if that where seeming to be a futile attempt! This is not a major action blasting monster movie and no one should go into with that thought. This is a more dramatic and theatrical approach to an old mythical warning that “a world that was cast out of darkness will one day be cast back into the darkness”.