From the most productive period of his filmography, Filipino maverick Khavn turned to the biblical for inspiration in crafting a new digitally-shot thriller about the end of days and the demons to be unleashed from there. Crafting the venture in three days of shooting mainly in his summer home and filled with controversy from the rating system that drew offense to its graphic sensuality and lurid content, there are some worthwhile aspects on display that belie that efficiency of the production.
After what starts as an ordinary day, Kimberly (Katya Santos), Michiko (Gwen Garci), and Isabel (Precious Adona) awaken one day when the apocalyptic prophecy happens. The girls are trapped in their home as the Three Days of Darkness descend on the Earth and they must cope and try to fend off the demons that have come to take them. A chilling vision of God's Wrath or of people imposing God's Wrath on one another, the film frightens with its questions as much as it does with its sounds and visuals.
For the most part, “3 Days of Darkness” is pretty enjoyable. Khavn tends to bring about tons of atmospheric flourishes throughout the first half as the ensuing darkness approaches and everything gets spelled out. As we go through the empty house and get an idea of what they're going to be living in for the rest of the film, it brings a strong ambiance that's in play throughout their time stuck inside. The strong undertones of their religious practices, not only with the everpresent candles and paraphernalia but the visit to the priest and numerous discussions they engage in throughout the day, adds nicely to that feel. With the rainclouds and blowing winds outside creating even more of a biblical presence, that works to add an eerie vibe here.
When the main days of darkness start and the girls are aware of what's going on, there's a lot to like here where the religious hysteria adds nicely to the general chaos and confusion they're experiencing. Since those explanations make sense yet still find themselves as reaching for something to rationalize the strange situation, that nicely escalates into some great scenes where they're forced to confront their past as well as their feelings for each other. Turning into a series of sensual lesbian couplings between each other or frantic strange creature attacks in the darkness, the finale is enjoyable and holds this one up overall.
While “3 Days in Darkness” has some enjoyable elements, there are also a lot of flaws. The most obvious factor here is the useless time-wasting filler padding out an incredibly weak and simplistic storyline. The visit to the house party showing the group performing discordant heavy metal endlessly feels like hours before they're done, especially without when they're not important to the overall plot of the film. Other scenes, including showing the daily-life of the citizens in the city or the girls going about preparing their day, simply serve to add more running time here so that the main biblical prophecy involving darkness raining on them starts way too late after this filler.
The other main problem here is that since the majority of the film takes place under the cover of darkness, it's nearly impossible to make anything out. Since we have Kimberly's candle to provide the majority of the light as the prevailing darkness is a major factor once it's introduced, things mostly turn into vaguely recognizable shapes interacting throughout the house without much chance of seeing what's going on. Other scenes are just total blackness with their voices speaking for long stretches of time, furthering how hard it is to tell what's happening, since this is repeated frequently throughout the film. These aspects are what hold this one down overall.
Despite some overlong padding and way too much difficulty at times telling what's going on, “3 Days of Darkness” still has enough going on with the atmosphere and general craziness of the situation that is watchable in the long run. It's straightforward enough that fans of Khavn's previous works will be entertained here.
