The Dark Side of the Sun (1988) Reviews

• This film was made in 1988 (article contains spoilers)

  vande2003-01-09

  Brad Pitt fans please note that this Yugoslavian film was first made in 1988 and edited for re-release in 1997 due to Brad Pitt's popularity. This film, I feel would fall into that so-bad-it's-good category. The acting from Guy Boyd as the father is nothing less than terrible, and Cheryl Pollak, although an attractive presence could have done slightly better too. There are also strange surreal scenes which really do not fit it and distract from the poignancy of one boy's story, eg a scene with an old man stamping on condoms (don't ask) and a long scene of Pollak singing to Pitt's dad! Apart from these faults it is actually a very enjoyable piece of tosh. Brad Pitt's performance can not be faulted as a young man who has been forced to live his entire life inside a leather shell with only two tiny holes for his eyes and one for his mouth. (No mention was made about how he goes to toilet, or bathes come to that!). Pitt put across well to the viewer the internal emotional torture that his character felt by not being able to go out in the world and do normal young man things, and showed that although he was wearing the suit to stop the external torture of the sun blistering his body, his inner feelings which are actually more important in a lot of ways were constantly hurting. On doing some research after the film I found that the skin disease isn't actually medically right, but it seemed real and I am sure there must be similar conditions. Pitt's character falls in love with Pollak's character in the story, so decided to take off the suit and live a few days of happiness with her out in the sun, despite it meaning the end of his life. He then gets hurt even more when he tries to kiss her and she turns away, realizing that she only fancies him back when he is in the suit. So it is more the air of mystery and the fascination on her part which makes her like him, not him as a person. She actually asks him where his masked "friend" is. When Pitt comes along in the mask she decides to allow him to make love to her, but of course this has to be done in the dark. She doesn't realize who he is until he leaves a locket behind for her to see. The ending is then extremely poignant but I will say no more in case you do ever get to see it. In summary I would definitely recommend that all Pitt fans and even males who are just interested in rare movies lol give this a go!

• An observer of life has the chance to finally live it-love, music, violence and the serious need for sun lotion.

  ashlayton872005-11-12

  "I want to live! But sometimes I wish I had never been born" are the opening lines of 'Dark Side of the Sun'...bit melodramatic. Some might feel that some excellent performances are marred by the occasional desire by some actors to add a bit of heightened drama to what is a relatively simple film. For instance Guy Boyd's performance as the father is superb though there are some moments such as towards the end where he talks to his mentally ill wife that his performance goes a bit day time TV-ish this though was probably more to do with Nikolic's (director) need to make sure the audience don't get bored with what is essentially a film about life, namely the difference between observing it and participating in it: "I am just an observer of life" says Brad Pitt's character… yes Brad Pitt: Fight Club, Mr. and Mrs. Smith etc…only this is Brad Pit at a young age before he'd been noticed in Thelma and Louise (although 'Dark Side Of the Sun' itself wouldn't be released until six years after when all the footage had been rescued from war torn Yugoslavia, it then went straight to video so you'll probably only see it on late night TV or amongst such classics as Rambo 12 or whatever in the bargain bucket ) so expect more of a Leonardo Dicaprio in Romeo and Juliet performance than Achilles in Troy. Rick (Pitt) has been stuck in a world of darkness all his life moving across the world to find a cure for his disease the next and final hope is a Yugoslavian healer, a man who Rick's dad has complete faith in to find a cure. It ain't happening basically and Rick is getting jaded with it all. The character is very much a poet and philosopher and there are plenty of high angle shots to suggest a superior quality in this pasty faced hero. "People can hide without using a mask' there's a lot of this sort of half wise half pretentious dialogue in this film which could be easily mistaken for a student work …in fact there a lot of pants bits here but hey if you like Pitt or nice little unheard films go for it; splash out a quid/dollar for it I've slatted it a bit but its alright give it a watch.

• Bizarre, surreal love story

  Falconeer2013-03-24

  This obscure film from Yugoslavia would probably be even more obscure if it didn't star the then-unknown actor Brad Pitt. And undeservedly neglected, as "Dark side of the Sun" is quite a beautiful, and utterly surreal piece of filmmaking. The young Rick suffers from a rare skin disease; if he is exposed to sunlight, or any bright light, his skin will quickly deteriorate and he will die in just a matter of days or weeks. because of this, Rick must wear a bizarre, S&M style leather body suit, and matching black leather mask, all the time! Nobody can see his face, and he rides a motorcycle, so as not to appear too strange in his leather suit. A chance encounter with a beautiful American girl, (Rick is also American, but lives in Yugoslavia) forces Rick to re-evaluate his own existence. He decides that a week living life as a normal kid is worth a lifetime of living separated from the World. This film has a lot going for it, such as the beautiful Yugoslavian scenery and glimpse into their culture. Filmed just before war broke out in this land, the film provides an opportunity to see how wonderful and peaceful Yugoslavia was before the late 1980's. The story is unabashedly romantic, and tragic, and possesses a rare innocent quality to it. The director wisely decides to score the film with beautiful classical music, which adds much intensity to the already emotional tale. Filmed mostly in a gorgeous mansion by the sea, "Dark side of the Sun" has a distinctly "foreign film" style to it, which i wasn't expecting. American films from this period usually have a very dated look to them, but this movie has aged well. I believe director Bozidar Nikolic cast a physically beautiful actor in the main role intentionally, making the fact that he must live wearing a mask that much more tragic and sad. "Dark side of the Sun" possesses a surreal quality. It plays out much like a Greek tragedy, or some bizarre fairy tale, and it's conclusion is not exactly a happy one, but considering it's a story of a young person living out their dream, you don't feel depressed at the films end. Although it is difficult to see Rick's physical beauty destroyed. Not surprisingly this movie did not score too high here; it is strange and not for all tastes. Recommended though, for fans of foreign film, or just bizarre and unique cinema.

• A movie where 80% of the cast has names that end in 'VIC'!

  vertigo_142004-05-03

  Filmed in and around Yugoslavia, Dark Side of the Sun is quite a nice little film. Brad Pitt plays Rick, a young man born with a serious skin condition which forces him to shield himself from any sort of lighting. He lives in the dark and travels in the daytime in a 'Blackout New' kind of leather face mask. At home, he can only remove the protection so long as he remains in absolute darkness. Rick is tired of this, and humors his father who travels with him around the world in search of medical specialists that may be able to provide his son a cure. But Rick soon decides that enough is enough, and decides that he doesn't care about the consequences, if in fact the potential extent of damage done by his exposure to the sun is even a reality, given how rare his disease is. He gets rid of the mask and get's to experience so many things in a different way, even interacting with people he may not have before. Rick experiences a rejuvination. In doing so, he meets a young American actress who was staying with a group that was performing in the town square festivities. And he falls in love with her. But she adores Rick as a friend, while she is keen on the 'dark masked rider' she happened to meet at a party one evening. And that is who she is in love with, not knowing that Rick is the same person. Rick plays something of a double life, like Cyrano de Bergnac style, but as one person. Rick doesn't tellt he girl that he and the masked rider are the same person. He just seems to enjoy her company and, I suppose, doesn't want her to feel pity for him and ruin everything if she were to know that his exposure to the sun would mean imminent death. He doesn't want to spoil how great he feels about everything. Dark Side of the Sun turned out to be a very good movie, though it is a sad story. There is some minor flaws in the film. As one viewer previously mentioned, if they were to get rid of the leather suit to "live again", they wouldn't put it on just to play a double life to charm a girl. I would definitely agree. He didn't seem to detest the suit much so long as he could be with the girl. But I would think that his convictions for "living again" would be so strong (as they are throughout the movie) that he wouldn't even want to lie to the girl. But like I said, it was probably also a matter of his not wanting her to consistingly look upon him with guilt or pity. Also, for a young man who spent so much time in a full leather mask, I would expect that he would not only be pale and thin, but probably have very thin hair or little hair at all. It is very uncharacteristic of Brad Pitt films nowadays, but in this, as young Rick, he's a natural about it. Everyone else is good, too. And the setting, what little you get to see of Yugoslavia, is gorgeous. It seemed like it would have been better, however, had it been a foreign picture, and you even get this impression from the beginning with the folk music introduction and relatively old looking titles. But, it's definitely worth seeing.

• Cheesy movie with very cheesy acting.

  JT-12001-06-16

  This is a wannabe "The Boy in the Plastic Bubble," but Travolta did a much better job than Brad Pitt in that role. I'm a big Pitt fan, but he's really lame in this one. When he's wearing the mask, he is very melodramatic. Maybe the director told him to exaggerate his voice, since he does not have the benefit of facial expressions. Whatever the reason, it doesn't work. The sad thing is, Pitt's performance is probably the best in the movie. The other actors are even worse. The whole film has a B-movie feel. For example, there's a fight scene where a guy is knocked out by a slap to the face.