Vanishing On 7th Street (2010)

Featured Audience Ratings

• John M

  
  A very interesting premise i think . .lets see the Dark kills you? I guess it wasnt too bad. Wasnt too original and Hayden wooden actor Christensen still cant act. Watch this one when really bored and ready to go to sleep :)

• Film C

  
  Completely bewildered as to what the hell was going on in that movie, the shadows werent explained and the light wasnt explained, infact nothing was explained. If the writers and directors made this film entirely on the bases that they wanted to be mysterious and to make people wonder… More
  Completely bewildered as to what the hell was going on in that movie, the shadows werent explained and the light wasnt explained, infact nothing was explained. If the writers and directors made this film entirely on the bases that they wanted to be mysterious and to make people wonder then they succeded but thats pretty much all they succeded at, as this movie is a complete waste of time!

• Melvin W

  
  I didn't have that high of expectations going in, but I thought I'd give it a shot since Brad Anderson directed it. My low expectations weren't even met by this disgrace of a movie. The cliché use of whispering in the background was really starting to piss me off about… More
  I didn't have that high of expectations going in, but I thought I'd give it a shot since Brad Anderson directed it. My low expectations weren't even met by this disgrace of a movie. The cliché use of whispering in the background was really starting to piss me off about a half hour in. Add a horrible performance by Hayden Christensen and you got one of the worst movies I've seen in awhile.

• Conner R

  
  Vanishing on 7th Street had all the promise to be an amazing movie, but it completely collapses in the second half. The ending is completely ridiculous as well and makes you feel as though you've completely wasted your time. However, the first half is really well done. Showing… More
  Vanishing on 7th Street had all the promise to be an amazing movie, but it completely collapses in the second half. The ending is completely ridiculous as well and makes you feel as though you've completely wasted your time. However, the first half is really well done. Showing all of Detroit completely empty is really effective and creepy, especially when you have the clothes of victims scattering the ground. The introduction to each of the three main characters was also really well done and exactly the kind of characterization that is necessary for an apocalyptic type movie. Hayden Christensen, John Leguizamo and Thandie Newton are all really good in their roles; if only the kids would've been left out it would've been such a better movie. Visually it's really interesting because it's mostly dependent on stylized lighting and simple effects shots. Overall, it's just a mixed experience that is somewhat still worthwhile, but extremely disappointing in terms of it's final message and result.

• Bruce B

  
  A real good film about people being taken by what appears to be the shadows in the darkness. Cool idea. Plenty of suspense. Its worth 4 stars.

• ♥˩ƳИИ &

  
  Cast: Hayden Christensen, John Leguizamo, Thandie Newton, Jacob Latimore, Taylor Groothuis Director: Brad Anderson Summary: No one can explain the mystery when residents of a vibrant urban center begin disappearing one by one. But it seems to have something to do with the… More
  Cast: Hayden Christensen, John Leguizamo, Thandie Newton, Jacob Latimore, Taylor Groothuis Director: Brad Anderson Summary: No one can explain the mystery when residents of a vibrant urban center begin disappearing one by one. But it seems to have something to do with the shadowy figures they come into contact with right before they vanish. My Thoughts: "No chills or thrills here I'm afraid. Just a waste of time and effort. I really wanted to turn it off about thirty minutes into it. But I'm a trooper and always finish what I start, even bad films like this one. Was it creepy? Yes a bit. But the suspense was lacking, well truthfully, non existing. Concept was OK. But there were so many things wrong with the film. There are so many potholes you end up lost in the dark with the characters. There isn't very much going on to keep your attention. The film got boring very quickly. You don't know the characters because there is no character developement. You only get few seconds of flashbacks so you don't really care when one disappears. In the end you expect some type of an explanation but it never comes. In some films that sometimes works, but no so much for this film. You needed some things explained and you never get it. It was just a big disappointment."

• Lewis C

  
  No doubt about it, this is a pretty terrible flick. Don't let the semi-interesting trailer fool you into watching Vanishing on 7th Street like it did me. The movie goes downhill from nearly the very beginning, with some of the most terrible acting that I've seen in quite a… More
  No doubt about it, this is a pretty terrible flick. Don't let the semi-interesting trailer fool you into watching Vanishing on 7th Street like it did me. The movie goes downhill from nearly the very beginning, with some of the most terrible acting that I've seen in quite a while. Hayden Christensen is the main culprit, but even generally good actors like Thandie Newton and John Leguizamo give poor performances thanks to the miserable script. Everyone consistently overacts so badly that it almost seems intentional. And the characters are poorly written, unlikable, annoying, and stupid beyond logical belief. Let's not bother with the story. It tries to be mysterious, deep and frightening, and it fails. Hard. Imagine The Happening, but even more nonsensical. Do yourself a favor and skip this.

• E.J. B

  
  There is a great movie buried somewhere in Vanishing on 7th Street. But the story resorts instead to cliche characters reacting to cliche situations. If you've ever seen a movie where a man wakes up to a completely abandoned city after a massive catastrophe, you can pretty much… More
  There is a great movie buried somewhere in Vanishing on 7th Street. But the story resorts instead to cliche characters reacting to cliche situations. If you've ever seen a movie where a man wakes up to a completely abandoned city after a massive catastrophe, you can pretty much predict how the story will unfold. Hayden Christensen plays the anti-hero, a man with a troubled past looking for redemption. Thandie Newton plays the grieving mother. And John Leguizamo plays the man who's only purpose is to briefly explain to the audience what is going on. None of these characters are particularly smart, and will do many things that will have you rolling your eyes. Director Brad Anderson takes a major step back here. He's never been a director that has been able to revive or reinvent genres, but he's given us some interesting genre fair with Session 9, The Machinist, and Transsiberian. Here, he doesn't have a grip on the material, and his movie seems like it was plagued with problems in the production, from the uninspired sets, poor lighting, narrative twists that are never fully explained, and a rushed ending. We've all seen this before. A cool concept ruined by a bad movie.

• Dead A

  
  My fear towards dark have increased! I actually loved the beginning. The idea was very spooky and new to me (well not completely, it was kinda similar with <i>I Am Legend</i>, kinda). The ending was a bit disappointing since it doesn't have any explanation to… More
  My fear towards dark have increased! I actually loved the beginning. The idea was very spooky and new to me (well not completely, it was kinda similar with <i>I Am Legend</i>, kinda). The ending was a bit disappointing since it doesn't have any explanation to anything. You'll be left with loads of questions <i>unanswered.</i>

• Lorenzo v

  
  <i>"Stay in the light"</i> When a massive power outage plunges the city of Detroit into total darkness, a disparate group of individuals find themselves alone. The entire city's population has vanished into thin air, soon the daylight begins to disappear… More
  <i>"Stay in the light"</i> When a massive power outage plunges the city of Detroit into total darkness, a disparate group of individuals find themselves alone. The entire city's population has vanished into thin air, soon the daylight begins to disappear completely, and as the survivors gather in an abandoned tavern, they realize the darkness is out to get them, and only their rapidly diminishing light sources can keep them safe. <center><font size=+2 face="Century Schoolbook"><b><u>REVIEW</u></b></font></center> Brad Anderson's (The Machinist, Transsiberian) "The Vanishing on 7th Street" opens with an interesting concept. One night a power outage hits New York City and when the lights come back on, almost everyone has disappeared. The victims have vanished leaving nothing behind but their clothing. Disquieting events are happening as the structure of the day disintegrates and daylight hours grow very short. Lurking in the shadows is an unsettling whispering presence. The story is that of four survivors who attempt to escape the darkness engulfing the city and overwhelming their psyche. Is this an alien attack or a punishment from above? Luke (Hayden Christensen) one of the survivors, is a famous news reporter who is forced to overcome the events and save the day. He scourers the city in hopes of finding others. Despite Christensen's efforts to create a powerful character, the script lets him down. Among the people he finds is Paul (John Leguizamo) a lonely projectionist, James (Jacob Latimore) a gun wielding boy guarding his mom's bar and Rosemary (Thandie Newton) a distraught women searching for her lost lover who has apparently been swept of in the ominous night. A strong cast but unable to really capture the audience because of the weak script and the lack of convincing theatrical suspense.

• Robert C

  
  A pretty solid film, to spite it's biblical undertones. Once you get past those (though I suppose there are some who will embrace them), it's much easier to enjoy this simple but totally creepy post apocalyptic story. It's sort of like a Twlight Zone on acid. My… More
  A pretty solid film, to spite it's biblical undertones. Once you get past those (though I suppose there are some who will embrace them), it's much easier to enjoy this simple but totally creepy post apocalyptic story. It's sort of like a Twlight Zone on acid. My only complaint is with the "and the meek shall inherit the earth" ending. I feel like there is a point about five minutes prior that SHOULD have ended the film. It would have been much more powerful, but probably too bleak for test audiences.

• Pedro H

  
  <i> Stay in the Light </i> <b> usual, typical thriller </b> A very predictable plot of a apocalyptic thriller about the vanishing of people who stay in the dark. A group of survivors do their best to find out what caused this vanishing and make sure that they… More
  <i> Stay in the Light </i> <b> usual, typical thriller </b> A very predictable plot of a apocalyptic thriller about the vanishing of people who stay in the dark. A group of survivors do their best to find out what caused this vanishing and make sure that they are always in the light. Although typical this movie is rather fun, its able to keep you anxious the entire time. Overall not new actors but people we have seen before but never really noticed like Newton and Leguizamo do a good job but nothing spectacular. However this contains bad graphics and a really bad soundtrack which both are necessary in order to make this movie work, therefore overall a typical kind of boring little thriller. <u>Chicago Reporter</u> : <i> "It can trick you, Stay in your light force" </i>

• MisterYoda ?

  
  two stars and a half star

• Martin B

  
  Wondering why this film premiered on "On Demand" instead of in theaters or even DVD? The opening scene was genuinely creepy, it really grabbed me and got me interested. Then the film spent the next 90 minutes being repetitive, nonsensical, and pointless. Still, I was… More
  Wondering why this film premiered on "On Demand" instead of in theaters or even DVD? The opening scene was genuinely creepy, it really grabbed me and got me interested. Then the film spent the next 90 minutes being repetitive, nonsensical, and pointless. Still, I was curious to see where it was going. So I watched... and waited... as it went... nowhere. The ending is, well, not even and ending. Nothing is resolved, nothing explained. I'm not the kind of guy who has to have every tiny question answered or every loose end tied up, but I do expect an actual ending. Don't go looking for one here. p.s. The little girl who was surviving so long on her own. Anyone else feel like she was a Newt rip-off? I totally expected her to say "They mostly come out at night... mostly."

• Brian D

  
  Starts pretty well and some nice performances but the story is lacking and leaves you at the end with so many questions that really isn't good.The ideas is not original but we all love a mystery.But the filmmakers either can't come up with a solution to answer the main… More
  Starts pretty well and some nice performances but the story is lacking and leaves you at the end with so many questions that really isn't good.The ideas is not original but we all love a mystery.But the filmmakers either can't come up with a solution to answer the main mystery or they couldn't be bothered. In the end the movie keeps you watching but you will be short change and wanting more or answers!!

• Eric H

  
  Three of the worst actors working today are Hayden Christensen, Thandie Newton, and John Leguziamo. Somebody thought it would be a good idea to put all three together in one movie. They were wrong. Brad Anderson is one of modern cinema's "nearly men". His low budget… More
  Three of the worst actors working today are Hayden Christensen, Thandie Newton, and John Leguziamo. Somebody thought it would be a good idea to put all three together in one movie. They were wrong. Brad Anderson is one of modern cinema's "nearly men". His low budget debut "Session 9" was an atmospheric thriller that petered out to an unsatisfying climax. He followed it up with "The Machinist", an atmospheric thriller that petered out to an unsatisfying climax. A couple of years ago he gave us "TransSiberian", an atmospheric thriller that petered out to an unsatisfying climax. With his latest the petering begins about five minutes in. This is an uninspired, unoriginal B-Movie. It's this years "The Happening". Boy does Leguziamo need a new agent. We've seen this "where is everyone?" scenario played out hundreds of times, from "The Last Man On Earth" to countless "Twilight Zone" type TV shows. Now I for one am a huge fan of this scenario, it's very hard not to make it somewhat atmospheric. Even "I Am Legend" was watchable for forty minutes or so. The main problem here is that Anderson never creates a sense of how things were before the incident. It's set in Detroit, a city that very few viewers would be familiar with so we don't get the sensation of "Wow, look at Times Square, there's nobody there" that would have been created by using say New York or Los Angeles. What he adds into the mix is a villain. It's a villain as preposterous as the evil plants in "The Happening", it's darkness itself. If anyone steps into a shadow they are instantly erased from existence. Now it might be a preposterous scenario but still one that should generate suspense in the right hands. There's a great "X-Files" episode with a similar premise so if it can be done well on TV why can't Anderson pull it off? Another movie I was reminded of was the great fifties B-Movie "Target Earth" in which a similar bunch of strangers hole up in a bar during an apocalyptic event. Like "Knowing" and "I Am Legend" this movie ends with a horrible quasi-religious coda which left me wanting to puke. Anderson was a film-maker I previously watched with interest. That interest is officially over.

• Walter M

  
  So, where were you when the lights went out? Paul(John Leguizamo) was working as a projectionist in Fairlane Center in Dearborn. Rosemary(Thandie Newton), a physical therapist, was in a hospital, along with the poor bastard on the operating table. Luke(Hayden Christensen), a… More
  So, where were you when the lights went out? Paul(John Leguizamo) was working as a projectionist in Fairlane Center in Dearborn. Rosemary(Thandie Newton), a physical therapist, was in a hospital, along with the poor bastard on the operating table. Luke(Hayden Christensen), a television reporter, was waiting for his girlfriend(Erin Nicole Brolley) in their apartment. Three days later, almost nobody remains, except for their clothing, left out for the universe's dry cleaner. And the day has given way for perpetual night which has also killed almost all the electricity.(On the plus side, cell phones don't work.) Luke finds a bar with the lights still on where he enjoys a stiff one and meets 12-year old James(Jacob Latimore) whose bartending mother is now missing, too. While I generally applaud any movie that gets off to a fast start like "Vanshing on 7th Street," I also cannot recommend one that is as illogical or cannot decide where to go from there in mixing up its religious symbolism(notice the characters' names) and Hiroshima imagery, as this one.(Between the multiplex opening and product placement, I would have to say we are already in hell.) What does it say when the movie is set in Detroit, a city with a population that is disappearing as we speak? And that's not to mention this kind of thing has been done before and much better, namely the "Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead" episodes of "Doctor Who" that were truly frightening. Before that there was "Pitch Black" which admittedly I only got as far as when the creatures wearing the human bibs started appearing. And that's not to mention the obvious debts to so many "Twilight Zone" episodes or any other story where there are only a limited amount of survivors left. So, all we are left with is to watch events play out in perfunctory fashion. It's a shame because director Brad Anderson has rocked genre conventions before, especially with the claustrophobic "Session 9."

• Todd S

  
  Vanishing On 7th Street had a lot of possibilities, but it was done so narrow-mindedly, that the film just becomes a complete waste of time. First, we are rushed into the heart of the story, without any background or character development. Then, within twenty minutes, we're… More
  Vanishing On 7th Street had a lot of possibilities, but it was done so narrow-mindedly, that the film just becomes a complete waste of time. First, we are rushed into the heart of the story, without any background or character development. Then, within twenty minutes, we're thrown ahead three days, leaving us with many questions that are never answered. Finally, after an hour of typical frantic people stuck in an impossible situation, we get an ending that just doesn't fit. I was attracted to this film by its clever title and by Hayden Christensen, who I believe to be a very underrated actor, but I was highly disappointed. Vanishing On 7th Street is rushed, sloppy, predictable, and full of plot holes. To me this seemed more like a rough draft than a full length feature film, it really just wasn't very good.

• Ryan M

  
  5.0/10 For what it is, I guess "Vanishing on 7th" street can't really be called "bad". It has good intentions - and yes, ALL OF THEM are good - but such things can only go so far before you need to bring some actual creativity into the… More
  5.0/10 For what it is, I guess "Vanishing on 7th" street can't really be called "bad". It has good intentions - and yes, ALL OF THEM are good - but such things can only go so far before you need to bring some actual creativity into the equation. I was hoping to be one of those few, but respected people that enjoyed the flick. I tried, I tried, and I tried; but kept drawing blanks when it came to why this movie might be considered good. Some people might like the fact that it's a horror film that keeps the horror from ever truly being seen; limiting atmosphere to whispers, voices, echoes, and jump scares. Not that there's any problem with that, really; the film, directed by Brad Anderson, has all the qualities of something ambitious and actually quite affective, but it stumbles when it comes to mixing artistry and overall effectiveness to make something genuinely frightening. I can appreciate it, but I can't say I enjoyed myself too much. Anderson made the fantastically creepy "Session 9" and the highly thrilling "Transsiberian" before he made this mediocrity fest. He's a skilled filmmaker who has been able to summon apprehension and fear pretty easily in the past, but here, he appears to have nearly lost his marbles; and possibly even his taste. If there was any director - anyone at all - that I'd imagine making a film such as this one work, it would be the guy who actually ended up making it; Brad himself. I guess the problem was that he trusted some of the wrong people to write his film; to the point where even his skill and craft can't save the final product from simply vanishing from the minds of most who view it. The lives of a movie-theater projectionist (John Leguizamo), a news reporter (Hayden Christensen), a physical therapist (Thandie Newton), and a gun-toting bartender's son (Jacob Latimore) come together when on a random night, darkness unexpectedly falls on every last inch of the un-lit earth, and people begin to disappear. Their cloths are left behind; but their bodies are nowhere to be found. The remaining survivors are granted the gift of living into the next day; where they wait for the night. This is when the fight for survival ultimately begins. It would appear that the darkness itself is closing in on humanity; whipping it out from all existence. Why this is happening we don't know, and by the end, we haven't exactly gotten enough answers. The characters are forced to lock horns with each-other, test their wits, and stay in the light. They spend most of the film in a bar; where they do a lot of talking and a lot of hiding; as well as plenty of remembering. The darkness makes for a good movie villain, especially in a horror film or a thriller. It's difficult to escape those dark corners of the earth; where evil tends to dwell. Here, a new kind of evil prospers; and it is taking those on earth...somewhere otherworldly. Of course, the film takes its time to set up its atmosphere, but not so-much its subjects. Or its characters. Or its drama. Or its story, even. I don't think it quite works because the writing isn't terribly conclusive. You often feel like you're watching a half-finished film in spite of the admirable amount of effective creepiness and fantastic cinematography. The idea of the film is appealing, but what the filmmakers make of it isn't anything terrifically impressive. Still, you might want to see it just to see it; I can't stop you. Brad Anderson is a competent filmmaker of everything eerie or silently morbid. This is definitely his movie. It just isn't a very good one. The actors do their jobs and nothing more (Christensen is particularly bland, while Leguizamo is fantastic as always, but lacks a persona for his own projectionist character). In short, I feel there are some good elements here; but plenty of ones that "just don't work" as well. Is it bad? Not really. Is it good? Nope. Does it matter? That's up for you to decide. "Vanishing on 7th Street" understands the formula of dealing with the things that go bump in the night, as well as a very important rule regarding them (never show the damn things!), but I just can't recommend it. All due respect to Anderson, who must have worked hard on it; but...I can't say the same for his screenwriter, who basically made the film as disappointing and forgettable as it is.

• Christopher H

  
  When they say "Vanishing on 7th Street", they mean only 7th street. The film takes place pretty much in one city block and that lack of depth ends up hurting the story. The acting is sub-par, the plot is not as original as it seems, and a some sort of an attempt at an… More
  When they say "Vanishing on 7th Street", they mean only 7th street. The film takes place pretty much in one city block and that lack of depth ends up hurting the story. The acting is sub-par, the plot is not as original as it seems, and a some sort of an attempt at an explanation would have been fantastic.

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