Review of Beyond the Black Rainbow (2010) by Mike K — 28 Oct 2013

This is not a film for everybody, and not easily understood. This is a film for fans of experimental films, low budget horror or science fiction (not big-budget PG-13 horror, sci-fi/action or sci-fi/fantasy), psychedelia, or hypnotic slow-moving narratives.

However, it may take a few watches to really get into everything that's going on. The film is clearly not meant to give us all of the answers. We're supposed to get our minds working and draw the conclusions for ourselves. And sometimes, we need a film to do that. Not everything can be clear-cut and concise, nor should it be. That's where I feel that most of you reviewers here missed the point entirely. Was "2001" clear cut? Or "The Shining"? Or "Altered States"? I'm not saying everybody should like this film, but it shouldn't be judged so harshly.

The cinematography, direction, set design and sound design are all first rate, and for a film that only had a budget of a little over $1 million, the solid work put into those aspects easily best many of those same qualities in many modern big-budget productions. This is clearly a film that was made with a lot of careful attention to detail and love by everyone involved, and not just something thrown together by a bunch of stoners in a weekend, like others have suggested.

The score by Jeremy Schmidt of Black Mountain & Sinoia Caves is, in my humble opinion, one of the best original film scores I've ever heard, which also makes this film a must-watch for Black Mountain fans or fans of psychedelic or progressive rock or electronic music in general. It's as much a listening experience, as it is a visual one.

So, my opinion may be heavily biased, since this film appeals to me on so many levels, and those levels may not appeal to everyone else, which is fine. As I've said before, it's not a film for everybody, but it is a film that was made by people who clearly love what they're doing, which honestly, you can't say the same about a lot of other films these days. So, if you haven't seen the film yet, but you want to see it, keep everything I've said here in mind. Hopefully, I've painted a fairer picture of what this movie has to offer more than the scores and reviews above already have.