''Dark Floors – The Lordi Motion Picture'' is a 2008 English-language Finnish
horror film
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...
that features members of the rock band
Lordi
Lordi () is a Finnish Rock music, rock band. Formed in 1992 by the band's lead singer, songwriter and costume maker Mr Lordi (Tomi Petteri Putaansuu), Lordi are known for wearing monster masks and using horror elements with pyrotechnics during c ...
playing the monsters. Band frontman
Mr Lordi
Tomi Petteri Putaansuu (born 15 February 1974), known professionally as Mr Lordi, is a Finnish musician, businessman, make-up artist, special effect make-up artist, songwriter, painter, comics artist and graphic designer. He is best known as the ...
also designed the film's logo. The film was released in February 2008 and stars
William Hope William Hope may refer to:
* William Johnstone Hope (1766–1831), prominent and controversial British Royal Navy officer and politician
* Sir William Hope, 14th Baronet (1819–1898), British Army officer
* William Hope (VC) (1834–1909), Scottis ...
,
Leon Herbert
Leon Herbert is a British actor. Herbert is known for appearances in films including '' Salome's Last Dance'' (1988), ''Scandal'' (1989), ''Batman'' (1989), ''Alien 3'' (1992), '' Double X: The Name of the Game'' (1992), ''Point of No Return'' ...
,
Philip Bretherton,
Ronald Pickup
Ronald Alfred Pickup (7 June 1940 – 24 February 2021) was an English actor. He was active in television, film, and theatre, beginning with a 1964 appearance in ''Doctor Who''. Theatre critic Michael Billington described him as "a terrific st ...
, and Skye Bennett. A new Lordi song, ''
Beast Loose in Paradise'', is featured in the end credits of the film.
Plot
A young,
autistic
Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing di ...
girl at a hospital holds the key to defeating other-dimensional monsters that seek to kill everyone.
[Solar Films](_blank)
Cast
Production
Budget
The full budget of ''Dark Floors'' reached $4.3 million (U.S.), making it one of the most expensive films made in Finland. Most of the budget was spent on special effects design, set construction, and a large marketing campaign, along with the post-production process.
Scenery and special effects
The sets were the largest constructed in Finland, taking up 1,700 square metres during the basement carpark scene. It was originally planned to shoot the film on location in the Baltics, but
Oulu
Oulu ( , ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of North Ostrobothnia. It is located on the northwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Oulujoki, River Oulu. The population of Oulu is approximately , while the Oulu sub-regio ...
was chosen instead, with special effects used to replicate a city when necessary. The production team visited hospitals to research the workings of an X-ray, thereby adding both credibility and authenticity to the CGI-rendered X-rays shown. When principal photography was completed, the extended post-production phase was launched, including the insertion of Awa's ghostly appearance.
Release
Marketing
The film was originally intended to premiere in 2007, at the Eurovision song contest in Helsinki, whose opening number, featuring Lordi, with a performance of "
Hard Rock Hallelujah
"Hard Rock Hallelujah" is a song by Finnish rock band Lordi. It in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006, held in Athens, resulting in the country's only ever victory in the contest. It reached the 1 spot in Finland and reached the top 10 in eight o ...
". Unfortunately, the team could not finish their tasks in time; moreover, Lordi were already putting final touches on their ''Bringing Back the Balls to Europe'' tour. Post-production was therefore expanded into May of the same year, and was eventually rescheduled to December.
The press conference was held at the
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world.
Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
the weekend of 19 and 20 May 2007. Lordi appeared personally, as did director Pete Riski, producer Markus Selin, and virtually all the leading actors. All involved responded to questions, and shared unusual anecdotes on making the film.
''Dark Floors'' was slowly 'leaked' by way of a marketing campaign, and the press were permitted to witness the production of Kita's lift scene, although everything else was kept under wraps.
Home media
The film was released in the United Kingdom on DVD (
region 2) by Metrodome Distribution on 20 April 2009.
[DVD Times – Metrodome in April](_blank)
/ref> The release includes several extra features, listed as "Behind the Scenes of ''Dark Floors''", "Cast & Crew Interviews", and "''Dark Floors'' World Premiere featurette including Q&A with Lordi, the cast and crew and a live Lordi performance". The film is rated 18+ by the BBFC
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of films exhibited at cinemas and video works (su ...
for "strong bloody violence and horror".[BBFC – Dark Floors classification information](_blank)
/ref>
Reception
Derek Elley of ''Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' called it "a cultural oddity with an OK concept" that will perform well on video. Bloody Disgusting
Bloody Disgusting is an American independent multi-media company, which began as a horror genre-focused news website specializing in information services that covered various horror media. The company expanded into other media including podcast ...
rated it 3/5 stars, and wrote, "Even though it's plastered in heavy clichés and predictable plot-twists, has no sense of mood or tempo, and features some of the least scary monsters ever to grace the silver screen, it's still remarkably entertaining." Joshua Siebalt of Dread Central
Dread Central is an American website founded in 2006 that is dedicated to horror news, interviews, and reviews. It covers horror films, comics, novels, and toys. Dread Central has won the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for Best Website f ...
rated it 2.5/5 stars and called it a boring, uninspired film that is "not nearly as fun or cool as it should've been". Todd Brown of Twitch Film
ScreenAnarchy, previously known as Twitch Film or Twitch, is a Canadian English-language website featuring news and reviews of mainly international, independent and cult films. The website was founded in 2004 by Todd Brown. In addition to films, ...
called it "a tightly plotted, exceptionally well shot thrill ride". Ian Jane of DVD Talk
DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman.
History
Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...
rated it 1.5/5 stars and wrote that the film does not exploit its visuals or interesting premise. David Johnson of DVD Verdict
DVD Verdict was a judicial-themed website for DVD reviews. The site was founded in 1999. The editor-in-chief was Michael Stailey, who owned the website between 2004 and 2016, and the site employed a large editorial staff of critics, whose revie ...
wrote, "Straight out of Finland—ghosts, demons, autism, and heavy metal combine for one of the more interesting and out-there haunted hospital movies to come around in quite some time."
References
External links
Solar Films's ''Dark Floors'' site
The Finnish Film Foundation's ''Dark Floors'' page
Nordisk Film International Sales: ''Dark Floors''
Kaleva newspaper's ''Dark Floors'' gallery
*
*
Lordi.fi
– band website
{{Autism resources
2008 films
2008 horror films
2000s monster movies
Films about autism
Finnish horror films
English-language Finnish films
2000s supernatural horror films
Finnish zombie films
2000s English-language films
English-language science fiction horror films
2000s Finnish films