Clickonline writes: "The characters, if you can call them that, are barely drawn and so chronically stupid that you’ll quickly find yourself rooting for the mutant antagonists. A typical exchange involves one of their number showing up (somewhat inexplicably) with a leg that’s basically hanging off. His girlfriend's response, a straight faced 'he needs a doctor.'"
Bluray.com: Bearing an uncomfortable resemblance to Craven's 1977 shocker, "The Hills Have Eyes" (which spawned a marvelous 2006 remake from Alexandre Aja), the creators of "Chernobyl Diaries" have a lot of explaining to do. Of course, pinching a premise from a cult classic is the least of the cinematic offenses found in this stillborn horror creation, as the wretched acting, moronic dialogue, and general void found in the picture causes far more irritation than simple déjà vu. The cure for insomnia, "Chernobyl Diaries" is yet another 2012 chiller with nothing to offer its hungry audience beyond a few cheap scares and a miserable attempt at mystery. Considering the spread of death and disease following the actual 1986 disaster at Chernobyl, the film is borderline tasteless too, turning unimaginable human suffering into a playground for Hollywood stupidity.
Chernobyl Diaries is the sophomore project of Paranormal Activity’s Oren Peli and is about a group of tourists who decide to take a venture into “extreme tourism” (yes, they actually called it that) by wandering out in a bus with one tour guide to a town called Pripyat, which housed the workers from Chernobyl, and is completely abandoned.
Nicholas of Movies Hate You Too writes:
Last week was filled with great new and catalog Blu-ray releases including Prometheus (3D), ET: The Extra-Terrestrial, and Dial M for Murder 3D. This week isn’t quite as strong, but there are still some noteworthy releases including Wes Anderson’s newest film, the highest grossing film of all time finally gets a wide 3D release, a new season of AMC’s highly rated ad drama, and some classic animation. Unfortunately it’s not all good news; Adam Sandler’s latest cinematic abortion is also being unleashed which should be avoided at all costs.
