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You take a bad boy, make him dig holes all day long in the hot sun, it makes him a good boy. That's our philosophy here at Camp Green Lake. So says Mr. Sir, the overseer of a bizarre juvenile correction center that sits in the middle of the desert, surrounded by countless holes, each one 5 feet deep and 5 feet wide. It is the fate of the boys sentenced there to dig one hole a day, day after day; like Sisyphus, who was condemned to forever roll a rock to the top of a hill so that it could roll back down again, they are caught in a tragic loop.

"Holes," which tells their story, is a movie so strange that it escapes entirely from the family genre and moves into fantasy. Like " Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory ," it has fearsome depths and secrets. Based on the much-honored young adult's novel by Louis Sachar , it has been given the top-shelf treatment: The director is Andrew Davis (" The Fugitive ") and the cast includes not only talented young stars but also weirdness from adults such as Jon Voight , Sigourney Weaver , Tim Blake Nelson and Patricia Arquette .

In a time when mainstream action is rigidly contained within formulas, maybe there's more freedom to be found in a young people's adventure. "Holes" jumps the rails, leaves all expectations behind, and tells a story that's not funny ha-ha but funny peculiar. I found it original and intriguing. It'll be a change after dumbed-down, one-level family stories, but a lot of kids in the upper grades will have read the book, and no doubt their younger brothers and sisters have had it explained to them. (If you doubt the novel's Harry Potter-like penetration into the youth culture, ask a seventh-grader who Armpit is.) The story involves Stanley Yelnats IV (Shia LaBeouf) as a good kid who gets charged with a crime through no fault of his own, and is shipped off to Camp Green Lake, which is little more than a desert bunkhouse surrounded by holes. There he meets his fellow prisoners and the ominous supervisory staff: Mr. Sir (Jon Voight) and Mr. Pendanski ( Tim Blake Nelson) report to The Warden (Sigourney Weaver), and both men are thoroughly intimidated by her. All three adult actors take their work seriously; they don't relax because this is a family movie, but create characters of dark comic menace. Voight's work is especially detailed; watch him spit in his hand to slick back his hair.

"Holes" involves no less than two flashback stories. We learn that young Stanley comes from a long line of Yelnatses (all named Stanley, because it is the last name spelled backward). From his father ( Henry Winkler ) and grandfather ( Nathan Davis ), he learns of an ancient family curse, traced back many generations to an angry fortune teller ( Eartha Kitt ; yes, Eartha Kitt). The other flashback explains the real reason that the Warden wants the boys to dig holes; it involves the buried treasure of a legendary bandit queen named Kissin' Kate Barlow (Arquette).

There is a link between these two back-stories, supplied by Zero ( Khleo Thomas ), who becomes Stanley's best friend and shares a harrowing adventure with him. Zero runs away, despite Mr. Sir's warning that there is no water for miles around, and when Stanley joins him, they stumble upon ancient clues and modern astonishments.

LaBeouf and Khleo Thomas are both new to me, although LaBoeuf is the star of a cable series, "Even Stevens." They carry the movie with an unforced conviction, and successfully avoid playing cute. As they wander in the desert and discover the keys to their past and present destinies, they develop a partnership, which, despite the fantastical material, seems like the real thing.

The whole movie generates a surprising conviction. No wonder young readers have embraced it so eagerly: It doesn't condescend, and it founds its story on recognizable human nature. There are all sorts of undercurrents, such as the edgy tension between the Warden and Mr. Sir, that add depth and intrigue; Voight and Weaver don't simply play caricatures.

Davis has always been a director with a strong visual sense, and the look of "Holes" has a noble, dusty loneliness. We feel we are actually in a limitless desert. The cinematographer, Stephen St . John, thinks big, and frames his shots for an epic feel that adds weight to the story. I walked in expecting a movie for thirteensomethings, and walked out feeling challenged and satisfied. Curious, how much more grown up and sophisticated "Holes" is than " Anger Management ."

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

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Film credits.

Holes (2003)

Rated PG For Violence, Mild Language and Some Thematic Elements.

111 minutes

Jon Voight as Mr. Sir

Henry Winkler as Stanley's Father

Patricia Arquette as Kissin' Kate

Tim Blake as Dr. Pendanski

Shia LaBeouf as Stanley

Byron Cotton as Armpit

Khleo Thomas as Nelson Zero

Brenden Jefferson as X-Ray

Jake M. Smith as Squid

Sigourney Weaver as The Warden

Directed by

• Andrew Davis
• Louis Sachar

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Faithful to its literary source, this is imaginative, intelligent family entertainment.

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'Holes' Review: Forced Labor Never Looked This Fun

As Collider looks back at classic films, a first-time watcher reviews ‘Holes,’ Disney’s wacky comedy starring Shia LaBeouf and Sigourney Weaver.

Based on the book of the same name by Louis Sachar , who also penned the script, Holes is a rare family movie with something for everyone. Mixing slapstick comedy with dark explorations of racism in the US, Andrew Davis ' cult movie is an unexpected story that’s part neo-Western, part prison break, and a whole lot of fun. In addition, one could think forced labor would be a touchy subject, but here is Holes , making a wacky family-friendly adventure out of it.

RELATED: The Best Children & Family Movies on Netflix Right Now

Disney has made strange movies in more than one hundred years of history. Still, Holes might take the prize for the wildest story ever coming from the House of the Mouse. This is a family film that opens with a suicide attempt. Less than five minutes later, we meet Henry Winkler playing a kooky inventor determined to find a cure for smelly feet. That's not the end of it, as we soon get a close shot at a mattress stained with teenage fluids. And let's not forget the entire movie is about a forced labor camp for teenagers. And that's just in one of the three intertwined storylines of Holes , which also finds a way to include ancient curses, arranged marriages, and Wild West thieves. To say this movie is weird would be an understatement. And yet, it works somehow.

While adapting a novel into a film is always challenging , Sachar knew the story inside out, being the author of the Holes novel. As a result, nothing goes to waste in Disney’s Holes , as every minor plot element will be tied up elegantly right before the credits roll. At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be much in common between a fortune-teller in Latvia and the brutal prison system in Texas, but Sachar still creates meaningful connections essential to telling Holes ’ story.

Of course, something always gets lost in translations, and the constant dives back to the past hurt the movie’s pacing. That’s even more true because some of these flashbacks won’t be important to the main plot until we reach the final half-hour of Holes . As such, viewers might wonder why we are making detours through stories that seem unrelated to the labor camp where the main plot unfolds. Even so, we are pattern-seeking animals, and it just feels good watching all the pieces fall into place to form a beautiful figure with absolutely nothing missing. It’s curious that the movie is called Holes because the narrative structure is all about how different storylines can fill the gaps of each other, showing how we are all connected by fate, fortune, and family affairs.

While Sachar’s script is a wonder without plot holes or unused elements, Holes still works after two decades because this is one of the best-acted family films ever. Even though most of the cast comprises teenagers with little acting experience, everyone is on top of their game. Each convict in Green Lake Camp has their own story, and it’s fantastic that Holes gives them enough time to tell them, adding emotional layers and singularities to what would otherwise be a bland and uniform group. Of course, the stars of the show Shia LaBeouf ’s Stanley and Khleo Thomas ’ Hector, whose journey exposes the failures of a prison system based on punishment and dissent to reintegrate individuals who committed crimes. Instead, Stanley and Hector will learn how mutual support is the only way to find true freedom.

There’s some praise to be given to the adult cast too. As always, Sigourney Weaver turns everything she touches into gold. And in the case of Weavers’ malicious Warden, she manages to let the woman’s desperation slip through the cracks of her hard shell, proving that even the most despicable villains are also victims of the circumstances. This philosophy pervades every second of Holes , which turns out to be a lot more complex than one could imagine. While family-friendly movies tend to give heroes and villains clear moral compasses pointing in opposite directions, Holes is concerned with fleshing out every single character, exposing their flaws, and showing that what makes people good is how they decide to deal with their own mistakes.

It’s been twenty years since Holes hit theaters, but it was ahead of its time. Every scene of Holes is risky since it avoids easy answers and exposes some uncomfortable truths about the justice system. So, it’s easy to understand why executives might be scared to try out something so bold in the current political climate. Still, the fact that Holes managed to do everything it does while still appealing to children proves we shouldn’t underestimate the younger members of the family, even more since complex stories can also catch adults’ attention.

Holes is currently available on Disney+.

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

A wrongfully convicted boy is sent to a brutal desert detention camp where he joins the job of digging holes for some mysterious reason. A wrongfully convicted boy is sent to a brutal desert detention camp where he joins the job of digging holes for some mysterious reason. A wrongfully convicted boy is sent to a brutal desert detention camp where he joins the job of digging holes for some mysterious reason.

• Andrew Davis
• Louis Sachar
• Shia LaBeouf
• Sigourney Weaver
• 380 User reviews
• 82 Critic reviews
• 71 Metascore
• 3 wins & 9 nominations

• Dr. Pendanski

• (as Steve Kozlowski)

• Bus Driver …

• Carla Morengo

• Asst. Attorney General

• Texas Ranger #1
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia The onions that Stanley and Zero eat towards the end of the movie are actually apples wrapped in an edible cover.
• Goofs The angles of sunlight throughout the film change from phases of mid-day to afternoon/evening/morning constantly between shots in the "hole field".

Zero : I'm not stupid, I know everyone thinks I am, I just don't like answering stupid questions.

• Crazy credits At the very end of the credits, Hector "Zero" Zeroni quotes the curse his great-great-great-grandmother made with her accent and speech patterns. He grins at the camera before it cuts to black. After which, the Walt Disney Pictures logo is shown.
• Connections Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Good Guys Gone Bad in Film (2014)
• Soundtracks Dig It Written by Mickey Petralia , Michael Fitzpatrick, Doug E. Fresh , Byron Cotton , Brenden Jefferson , Max Kasch , Shia LaBeouf & Khleo Thomas Produced by Mickey Petralia Performed by Byron Cotton , Brenden Jefferson , Max Kasch , Shia LaBeouf & Khleo Thomas Courtesy of Walt Disney Records

User reviews 380

• galaescobar
• Aug 13, 2006
• How long is Holes? Powered by Alexa
• What is "Holes" about?
• Is "Holes" based on a novel?
• How did Stanley get the nickname "Caveman"?
• April 18, 2003 (United States)
• United States
• Official site
• Cuddeback Dry Lake, California, USA
• Walt Disney Pictures
• Walden Media
• Chicago Pacific Entertainment
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $20,000,000 (estimated)
• $67,406,573
• $16,300,155
• Apr 20, 2003
• $71,406,573

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 57 minutes
• Black and White
• Dolby Digital

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More swearing, bullying, and lying than i remember and poor role models, there's actually 2-4 suicide attempts but only one of them is lethal. only a fun family movie if your children are ready for it., touches on many important themes, violence, bullying.

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Holes Review

By Sean O'Connell

Facts and Figures

Year : 2003

Run time : 117 mins

In Theaters : Friday 18th April 2003

Box Office USA : $67.3M

Distributed by : Buena Vista Pictures

Production compaines : Chicago Pacific Entertainment

Contactmusic.com : 2 / 5

Rotten Tomatoes : 77% Fresh: 103 Rotten: 30

IMDB : 7.1 / 10

Cast & Crew

Director : Andrew Davis

Producer : Andrew Davis , Lowell D. Blank , Cary Granat , Mike Medavoy , Teresa Tucker-Davies

Screenwriter : Brent Hanley , Louis Sachar

Starring : Sigourney Weaver as Warden Walker, Jon Voight as Marion Sevillo, Tim Blake Nelson as Dr. Pendanski, Patricia Arquette as Miss Kathryn Barlow, Shia LaBeouf as Stanley Yelnats/Caveman, Khleo Thomas as Hector Zeroni, Jake M. Smith as Squid, Byron Cotton as Armpit, Brenden Richard Jefferson as X-Ray, Eartha Kitt as Madame Zeroni, Siobhan Fallon as Stanley's Mother

Also starring : Andrew Davis , Cary Granat , Mike Medavoy , Teresa Tucker-Davies , Brent Hanley , Louis Sachar

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Planet of the Apes In Order: How to Watch the Movies Chronologically

When it comes to Apes , the Planet doesn’t turn, it twists. That’s because the reveal at the end of the original 1968 Planet of the Apes is one of those iconic shots from movie history, known and parodied the world over, guaranteeing you’d never look at a 150-foot woman the same way ever again. With the Planet producers predicting nothing topping that twist, for the sequels they went for more lore. Maybe a time paradox or two.

“What if the first movie was just scratching the surface?” asked Beneath the Planet of the Apes .

The next sequel, Escape from the Planet of the Apes , transported the series to contemporary time: 1973. So if you wanted to watch the original series in story-chronological order, you’ll want to start with Escape , and then follow it with the final two sequels, 1972’s Conquest and 1973’s Battle . This trilogy is all set before the original duology’s timeline.

In 2001, a reboot was launched. It did its own thing (actually, it adapted more of the Pierre Boulle novel than the original movie), it didn’t carry on after that, but it did mark the end of the original Tim Burton weird era.

A new series and continuity began in 2011 with Rise of the Planet of the Apes , which takes a ground-level look at the eventual ape uprising. The film’s serious tone and exemplary special effects were polished further for 2014’s Dawn and 2017’s War . All together, not only was the reboot run a success, but represents a rare trilogy where critical reception kept improving upon the last.

With War making significantly less money than Dawn , and the story relatively concluded, 20th Century Studios let the series go underground again. But it’s back after seven years with Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes , set many generations after War where humans have regressed to a primitive state, clubbing predators with fax machines and subsisting off natural springs of Crystal Pepsi.

Planet of the Apes (1968) 86%

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Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) 82%

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) 91%

War for the Planet of the Apes (2017) 94%

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024) 80%

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Review: The simians sizzle, but story fizzles in new 'Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes'

The issue of humans and simians in existential conflict arises again in a new “Planet of the Apes,” this time with a coming-of-age sci-fi adventure that’s a piece of visually stunning world-building more thoughtful than coherent.

“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” (★★★ out of four; rated PG-13; in theaters now ) is a sequel to the stellar “Apes” trilogy led by Andy Serkis’ iconic chimpanzee leader Caesar, set in a landscape where people have gone feral while super-smart apes rule thanks to a man-made virus. Director Wes Ball ( “Maze Runner” ) is a proven commodity in the post-apocalyptic space, and “Kingdom” aims to bring big ideas into a sprawling blockbuster atmosphere, though that gambit winds up weighed down by its own ambitions. 

The new “Apes” is set “many generations later” after the death of Caesar, a kind and compassionate sort who believed humans and apes could one day live together. His specter looms large over “Kingdom,” which centers on a naive young chimp named Noa (played via performance capture by Owen Teague) and an Earth where nature has reclaimed the land. Noa and his friends, Anaya (Travis Jeffery) and Soona (Lydia Peckham), ready for a big day in their lives among the Eagle Clan – so called because of the birds they raise. But the peaceful existence in their village is disrupted by a brutal attack from a horde of masked apes, who burn Noa’s home and leave him for dead.

Noa wakes, battered and vowing to save his friends and family who’ve been taken, and he first falls in with Raka (Peter Macon), a wise orangutan who lives by Caesar’s idealistic beliefs. They meet a young human named Mae (Freya Allan), who’s at first distrustful of her new allies until they save her from the same big bad apes that torched Noa’s village.

The trio learns these villains are goons for the tyrannical bonobo Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand). Ruling a coastal kingdom of apes, Proximus has taken Caesar’s name yet twists his words to force his prisoners to crack a large vault and plumb the mysterious human treasures within. He’s both a fan of mankind and a symbol of our innate cruelty in ape form.

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Just like the previous films, the main draw is the apes themselves, computer-generated simian wonders who immerse audiences into their world. They look better than ever, with Noa’s tearful eyes delivering so much fragility and emotion in a close-up after a tragic scene, and the performance-capture wizardry, a signature aspect of these new "Apes" movies, feels more groundbreaking than ever.

At the same time, none of the major players in "Kingdom" reach the same level of acting or personality as Serkis’ Caesar. That is an extremely high bar, though, and there are some pretty great apes: Teague's Noa grows on you because of his plight while Macon makes Raka a scene-stealing hoot with a kind soul. Allan, a regular on Netflix’s “The Witcher,” also shines in a meaty role as a human who’s more complicated than she appears.

The early “Apes” movies from the ‘60s and '70s were defined by genre innovation and shock endings, and the Caesar movies were simply a great tale well told. “Kingdom” is less confident in its storytelling: It explores themes of legacy and species coexistence with a metaphor-laden plot that feels too long at 2½ hours, and it begs for more exposition at the beginning before overdoing it later on. The movie ultimately does satisfy by its end, even as it emphasizes philosophy and message over logical narrative choices.

“Kingdom” checks most of the boxes for longtime “Apes” fans, and newbies don’t need to any prior homework as a standalone story that mostly explains itself. And as humans, you do commiserate with the onscreen apes themselves, because everything felt a little better back when Caesar was around.

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After “Ticket to Paradise” and “Shotgun Wedding” showed us the different ways in which calamity ensues when planning weddings abroad, Netflix releases “ Mother of the Bride ,” which combines the essential elements of both those recent romantic comedies into one passable package. The far-off setting emphasizes the lavish and luxe, though the narrative is cheaply woven and fairly threadbare. While “Mean Girls” director Mark Waters ’ latest fails to add anything unique to the conversation, it does scrounge up a modest amount of heart when it comes to its saccharine sweet message of never giving up on happily ever after.

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Interpersonal relationships between the couples don’t hold a modicum of complexity, providing varying degrees of dampened, rushed resolutions. The audience rarely feels the pull of their emotions or the weight of their decisions. The inclusion of a gay couple is welcomed, though the filmmakers don’t do much with that couple, utilizing Clay and Scott primarily to aid Lana’s arc rather than giving them any internality.

Waters falters in exhibiting the nimble visual dexterity of previous projects. There’s no feeling connoted through aesthetic stylization, as when Regina George’s betrayal dawns on Cady in “Mean Girls” or the curse transference between mother and daughter in “Freaky Friday.” There are few grand movie moments to match the heart-swells in “Just Like Heaven” or the red dress reveal in “He’s All That.” The closest we ever get to something of tangible value are a sunset slow dance between the former lovers and copious drone shots of the sprawling resort property in travelogue-style transitional sequences. Perhaps the peppy, occasionally swoony soundtrack married to the perfectly lit imagery is supposed to inspire our connection to the material, but it doesn’t.

Even so, there are a handful of highlights within its algorithm-aided box-checking. Emma is empathetic to her mother’s extenuating circumstances, which is refreshing to see reflected in Robin Bernheim Burger’s writing and Cosgrove’s nuanced, thoughtful performance. Janice’s horny double-entendres (which Harris blessedly delivers with campy aplomb) are hilarious, especially since she’s never even shown kissing someone she’s hitting on, let alone getting her groove on with them. Shields and Bratt have a chemistry that sparks in their stolen looks and vulnerable intimacies, despite an overall lack of burning desire and heat conducted by their connection. It’s fun to see them stretching their muscles by incorporating genre-mandated physical comedy (via recurring clumsy pratfalls) as it helps to endear this cute couple to us.

Still, with its stale sentiments on social media’s toxic culture of likes and superficial depth exploring second chances at true love, the film’s more palatable qualities are needlessly subdued. In fact, it goes out of its way to not offend anyone with delicate sensibilities, whether it be over-explaining motivations or providing forgettable, reductive scenarios. And while a gentle, light-hearted romp is indeed welcomed in these taxing times, there’s much left to be desired from our journey with these likable but under-developed characters.

“Mother of the Bride” is now streaming on Netflix.

Reviewed on Netflix, May 5, 2024. Running time: 88 MIN.

• Production: A Netflix release of a Motion Picture Corporation of America production. Producer: Brad Krevoy. Executive producers: Brooke Shields, Oliver Ackermann, Galen Fletcher, Robin Bernheim Burger, Amanda Phillips, Jimmy Townsend, Vince Balzano.
• Crew: Director: Mark Waters. Screenplay: Robin Bernheim Burger. Camera: Ed Wu. Editor: Travis Sittard. Music: Caroline Ho.
• With: Brooke Shields, Benjamin Bratt, Miranda Cosgrove, Rachael Harris, Sean Teale, Chad Michael Murray, Michael McDonald, Wilson Cruz.

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‘dark matter’ review: joel edgerton and jennifer connelly in apple tv+’s relentlessly glum take on ‘it’s a wonderful life’.

Blake Crouch adapts his own novel in this nine-part dimension-spanning sci-fi drama also featuring Alice Braga and Jimmi Simpson.

By Daniel Fienberg

Daniel Fienberg

Chief Television Critic

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Have you ever watched It’s a Wonderful Life and wished that Frank Capra had paused to show us Clarence the Angel explaining to George Bailey how he was able to present him with the experience of a world in which he was never born?

Dark Matter

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Joel Edgerton plays Jason Dessen, a Chicago-area physicist living an unremarkably content life with his wife Daniela ( Jennifer Connelly ), an art gallery something-or-other, and teenage son Charlie (Oakes Fegley). At one point, Jason had dreams of making big discoveries and winning big prizes, but in prioritizing his family, he chose a life that has him giving lackluster lectures to uninterested college students. In familiar TV/movie fashion, we happen to meet Jason as he’s trying to explain Schrödinger’s Cat and the paradox of “superposition” to a class; he’ll spend much of the rest of the series repeatedly trying to explain the same to us.

Jason’s friend Ryan (Jimmi Simpson), who does other science-guy stuff, has won some big science-y prize and Jason is semi-secretly resentful — something about the path not taken and the life not lived.

It might sound as if that summary, as well as the trailer for Dark Matter , is spoiler-y. It isn’t. One or two unexpected things happen in Dark Matter , but what I described was the premise, and the show is generally without twists. Also, it might sound from that summary like Dark Matter is a confusing show. It isn’t. All confusion in the story comes either from the characters on the screen functioning five steps behind the audience or from intentional decisions by the directors/editors to present simple things in confusing ways as an odd substitute for presenting confusing things in entertaining ways. This is not Counterpart , the short-lived Starz drama about the intersection between parallel worlds that may have been too smart for its own good. It’s more like Discounterpart .

The impressive line that Capra walks in It’s a Wonderful Life allows us to simultaneously see all the failures in George Bailey’s life and yet still know, even without Clarence telling him or us, that it was a good life. It’s both at once! Talk about superposition. Dark Matter wants to do something similar, which you’d probably understand even without the multiple winking nods and then the not-so-winking nod of a character running through a snowy street and past a movie theater showing It’s a Wonderful Life . Yet it fails.

It’s exactly the wrong way to start a series, because it puts the immediate emphasis on shadowy mystery, and we only then witness Jason1’s life and it, too, is muted. If the series doesn’t establish Jason1’s life in a way that makes us understand why he’s eager to get back to it, we’re only invested in his journey in a perfunctory way. We spend nine episodes watching Jason1 attempt to get his life back because cosmic disorder is bad, not because there’s any warmth to what we’re introduced to. Over the three episodes Verbruggen directs, there are almost no smiles, no jokes, no colors in the cinematography, nothing Capra-esque.

This is clearly what Crouch, creator and showrunner, wanted in his take on his own novel, because even after subsequent directors take over for Verbruggen, a downcast affect reigns. Multiple episodes occur in a conceptual realm known as The Corridor, a manifestation of the multiverse, a concept that Jason1 keeps needing to talk Amanda through, as if the Marvel Cinematic Universe didn’t exist in Jason2’s universe.

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an actor taking less visible pleasure in a project that lets him play two different versions of the same character than Edgerton here. Edgerton keeps both men similarly intense and mumbly, so much that it’s nearly a thought experiment in anti-entertainment. If Jason1 didn’t acquire some facial wounds as part of the initial abduction there would be no distinguishing between the characters 95 percent of the time. The other five percent of the time, Jason2 has a “hard edge” so obvious that you want to shout at Daniela and Charlie for missing it.

Although she gets to try on several different hair styles — Jason isn’t the only character to exist in multiple realities — there’s little in Daniela to require an actress of Connelly’s stature. She has one meltdown in a later episode that’s so earned and so well-executed that I wished she’d been given more. Still, she has a bounty compared to Braga, who, for her part, at least gets a small mid-season arc, compared to several key characters from Jason2’s world so comically underdeveloped that their “storylines” are resolved in a closing montage after they’ve already been gone for three or four full hours. A show with this many actors playing this many alternate identities should be a smorgasbord of acting opportunities. Dark Matter is not.

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