While I'm not a huge fan of horror movies or the Finnish Metal band Lordi, I was slightly intrigued when I saw that a movie had been made with the band as supporting characters. Costing nearly three million euro to produce, this was not meant to be a cheap flick. The plot revolves around a father (Noah Huntley from 28 Days Later) and his autistic daughter (Skye Bennett, Torchwood) trying to escape from a hospital after an MRI goes wrong. Upon entering an elevator with four other people they become trapped in the dark hallways of what is now an empty hospital. Dead bodies litter the floor as the group attempts to make its way to freedom.

In the beginning I was highly impressed with the production values. Special effects and relatively decent acting kept my attention for a while. The movie initially did a great job of making me fear the unseen. I never knew what was going to be around the next corner or what tricky mind game was going to be played next. Unfortunately, my mind began to wander as things began to fall apart.

When the Lordi band members in their full stage garb begin popping up, the movie becomes forced. The monsters are un-original; they seem like band members trying to scare people. Also, we have seen this plot before in the Silent Hill series of games and the Silent Hill movie. The characters are never fully developed so we aren't given the chance to bond with them in a way that makes us care about them or their predicament. And come to think of it, you never really discover the reason behind why their monstrous tormentors are chasing after them.

For all of the imperfections in this movie, there is one main theme that kept my interest throughout. We learn early on that the only way out is for the father to sacrifice his daughter by giving her over to their pursuers so that he and the other people might live. While I've heard THAT story before, I'm always interested in how it's going to be interpreted by others on the big and small screens.

For me, it helps to have an actor play out the anguish of a parent mulling over the painful decision of having to give up his child for the well-being of others. I think that it allows us to see, through the material world in which we live in, a spiritual truth that at times may be difficult for us to grasp. We all know that the sacrifice God made through his Son was not an easy one for either being. The choice was inherently difficult for both. We have often seen the trials and anguish that Jesus was put through, but the pain of the Father can be subtly displayed for us through movies such as this.

While not the perfect movie, Dark Floors does have a few redeeming values. From the intensity of the fright in the beginning of the movie to the spiritual lessons it attempts to convey, this movie keeps itself afloat long enough for you to finish it and continue to ponder how you yourself would react to situations such as this.