Terror of the Lost Time
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Director: David F. Sandberg
Writer: Billy Cruder
Cast: Maika Monroe, Alexandra Shipp, Isabelle Fuhrman, Hadley Robinson, Liana Liberato, Virginia Gardner, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Brandon Micheal Hall
Plot: It's finally Friday. Emily (Maika Monroe) stretches lazily in bed, the sun streaming through her curtains caressing her face. A light chirping of birds accompanies her awakening. She gets up and walks over to the window, peering out. The sky is clear with a few clouds and a light breeze shakes the leaves of the trees. An unusual feeling of excitement pervades her soul. It is the beginning of the weekend that she will spend with her friends in her grandparents' country house, a place full of happy memories of her childhood. She turns to the bed, where a neatly folded pile of clothes waits to be stuffed into her bag. A pair of comfortable jeans, a hoodie for cool evenings, a swimsuit for the lake in case the weather is good and some other spare clothing. While the girl is putting things in her bag she realizes that she is late. Shortly after she hears the ringtone, it's her best friend Sarah (Alexandra Shipp) who warns her that she and her friends are down in the parking lot waiting for her. At that moment Emily hears a honk and giggles. Before joining her friends, the girl pauses for a moment on an old framed photo on the bedside table. It portrays her and her grandparents in front of the country house, smiling and happy. A veil of nostalgia clouds her eyes, but soon after she clears her throat and she focuses on the present, smiling.
The minibus speeds along the dirt road, surrounded by lush greenery. The seven friends, Emily, Sarah, Zoe, Kate, Vivian, Amber and Laura, are finally on their way to the country house. The fresh air coming in through the open windows brings with it the scent of earth and wild flowers. Kate (Hadley Robinson), behind the wheel, sings a pop song at the top of her lungs, infecting the group with her infectious energy while Sarah, sitting next to her, smiles and claps her hands in rhythm while laughing while occasionally glancing at her best friend Sarah. Behind them Zoe (Isabelle Fuhrmman), the nerd of the group who is immersed in the umpteenth time of Michael Crichton's novel "Jurassic Park". Her friends tease her good-naturedly, but she doesn't get upset while Vivian (Virginia Gardner), the vainest of the group, takes selfies with her smartphone, immortalizing every moment of the trip. Every now and then she complains that the bumpy road is ruining her makeup, but she doesn't give up on documenting every moment with a photo or video. Amber (Liana Liberato), the shyest of the group, is silent and limits herself to listening to the others' conversations, with a shy smile on her lips. Laura (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) instead chats animatedly with Emily about her imminent wedding. Her face is radiant with joy and hope for the future that awaits her. The friends confide in each other their dreams and fears until suddenly Laura realizes that she has forgotten her asthma medication. Obviously they are almost there and can't go back to get it so she calls her future husband Brandon (Brandon Micheal Hall) who would probably reach her in the evening with the drug.
After about ten minutes they arrive at their destination. The girls come in, Emily and Sarah say they came by a couple of weeks ago to tidy up and clean up a bit. After settling in, some begin to explore the house while Amber and Laura begin preparing dinner. In the attic, they find an old trunk full of their grandparents' clothes and belongings. Meanwhile, an old trunk in the attic that holds secrets and stories from the past is ready to be opened and revealed. Zoe, the most curious of the group, immediately dives into the trunk, pulling out vintage clothes and extravagant accessories. The girls have fun dressing up, laughing and joking like little girls. Emily instead finds an old wedding dress that belonged to her grandmother. She wears it delicately in front of her mirror, imagining her grandmother on her wedding day. Sarah, however, finds an old diary that belonged to Emily's grandfather. She begins to read it quickly, intrigued by the elegant calligraphy. Shortly after Amber yells at everyone that dinner is ready. The girls chat happily over dinner. Kate and Vivian stand up holding the bottle of wine in their hands inviting the others to raise their glass to make a toast for Emily who has finally signed on to her dream of working in a famous fashion chain. During the toast a sort of distant roar is heard for a moment until a moment later the floor begins to shake due to an earthquake that shakes furniture and windows. The girls tense up and quickly run outside where they see a blinding flash in the sky and it hits everything.
Emily opens her eyes still dazed, a rain with a strange taste falls from the sky. A persistent buzz hammered her temples and the ground beneath her almost vibrated faintly like a distant drum. She looks around her, confused, trying to focus on the indistinct shapes surrounding her. Her friends, she realized a moment later, some still motionless on the ground, others moving awkwardly, trying to get up. A darkness that seemed unnatural enveloped her house, a darkness that drowned out the dim light of the moon and stars broken only by the faint lights outside the house. Emily puts a hand to her head, trying to sort through her confusing thoughts. A vague memory of an earthquake, a blinding flash, then nothing. Kate's curses bring her back to reality. Her phone showed no signs of life, like all the others. Zoe ventures the hypothesis of an electromagnetic storm of epic proportions even if she didn't seem too convinced. A sudden little scream from Amber pierces the silence, startling everyone. Laura was kneeling on the ground, pale and breathing heavily but still conscious. They lift her bodily and carry her to the old rocking chair in the attic where there is a breeze that can comfort her. Emily lingers for a moment, scanning the darkness with wide eyes with the strange sensation that something was watching her. A sudden bellow makes her jump, her eyes widening in terror and she staggers backwards almost falling to the ground.
At the same time Brandon is stopped with the car on the dirt road a couple of kilometers from the house. He too began to regain consciousness after being hit by that glow. He tries to start the car but it won't start so he exits the car and ventures on foot towards the dim lights outside of the house. A little further on, while he is trying to get his phone to work, he hears hissing noises coming from the sides of the road. The noises become louder and seem to surround him. At that moment something suddenly attacks him, throwing him to the ground, dragging him into the tall grass.
The rain that previously fell calmly now comes down in torrents, an incessant deluge that turns the ground into slippery mud. Emily stares at the creatures advancing towards the house. They are enormous, their silhouettes, illuminated at times by the flashes of lightning, take on ghostly shapes. Zoe, in a faint voice, whispers: "Edmontosaurs...". Emily doesn't know what to say, her mind is in turmoil like that of all the other totally stunned girls. They all take a few steps forward except Laura who remains in the rocking chair. Dinosaurs, prehistoric creatures that roam around her. A small group of Pachycephalosaurs, with their thick, rounded skulls, roam among the Edmontosaurs. Two of them clash in a head game, their bony horns ringing in the night. On the rafters of the house, some winged creatures, similar to pterosaurs, observe the scene with yellow eyes that glow in the darkness. Sarah and Kate ask Zoe what they are but the girl shakes her head making it clear that she doesn't know. Suddenly her surprise is replaced by a terror that tightens her throat. Some words begin to echo: Upper Cretaceous, Hell Creek Formation, Prey and Predators, Tyrannosaurs. Utahraptor. While the other girls admire her creatures she begins to look around quickly, she has the strange attention that something is observing them. At that moment she notices the herbivorous dinosaurs raise their heads as if they were sensing danger. At that point Zoe suddenly turns towards her friends, ordering the others to enter the house immediately. But at that moment a creature makes a very rapid leap past her and pounces on Laura. Nobody has time to do anything, a moment later Laura was gone. Instead of her, a stain of blood. The girls, in a panic, quickly enter the house, closing the door. The girls huddle together, trembling with fear. A deafening silence falls inside the house. Only the sound of the rain hitting the windows and the girls' heavy breathing fill the air. Some of the girls collapsed on the ground with tears streaming down their faces not believing what was happening and wondering what had happened to poor Laura. Meanwhile Zoe, Emily and Sarah peek out the window. The pouring rain makes it difficult to understand the whole situation but they manage to understand that a hunt is taking place. A group of Utahraptors attacked the herbivores and they managed to land one of them and are tearing it to pieces.
The girls are sitting on the sofa or on the floor in the darkness, occasionally illuminated by flashes of lightning. They had avoided turning on improvised lights to avoid attracting unwanted visitors. Suddenly Kate, with a look that betrayed her trepidation, jumped up saying that they couldn't stay there dazedly waiting for certain death. Amber, with a voice broken by her crying, shakes her head, it was dark outside, it was raining and there were those monsters. A heated debate broke out among the girls. Sarah, rational and pragmatic, supported the idea of barricading herself in the house and looking for a way to communicate with the outside. Kate, on the other hand, pushed for immediate action, to seek a safe haven or a way to return to their time. As they argued heatedly, Emily jumped up saying they didn't have time to argue and she managed to calm the situation. Armed with courage, the girls agree to search the house looking for anything that can help them survive. Kate and Vivian should have been in the upper floor, Zoe and Amber should have been in the dark and damp basement while Emily and Sarah agree to venture in the dark into the shack next to the house where there are certainly tools to use as weapons.
While Kate and Vivian venture upstairs with their hearts in their mouths exploring every room desperately searching for any useful item. Occasional flashes illuminate their worried expressions as they carefully proceed through the menacing shadows. Suddenly, an ominous creak interrupts their pace, making them jump. They stop suddenly, holding each other, as the sound gets closer and closer. Then, from a dark corner, thin, hairy tentacles emerge. An enormous scolopendra almost two meters long, with its segmented body and tusks, rushes towards them with impressive speed. Vivian manages to avoid her while Kate trips and is attacked. Vivian grabs an old agricultural tool hanging on the wall and tries to hit the creature, but the scolopendra is agile and moves with frightening speed. In an instant, she grabs Kate with her fangs, ripping her away from Vivian who was trying to defend her. The girl falls to the ground with a strangled scream of pain as the scolopendra begins to inject her with its venom.
Meanwhile, Zoe and Amber explore the damp basement. The dim light of the flashlight barely illuminates the outlines of the old boxes and accumulated objects. The air is humid and heavy, the sound of their breathing resonates in the damp brick walls. Suddenly, a strange rustling makes them shiver. They turn to watch as a host of small scolopendras climb from the cracks in the floor. The girls desperately search for a way to avoid the tide of insects. They run towards a rusty ladder that leads to some kind of trap door that leads outside. Zoe knows it's not a great idea given the dangers outside but the horde of insects pursues her relentlessly, their sharp legs scratching the rotten wooden floor as they close menacingly. Zoe and Amber reach the ladder and start climbing, but the scolopendras don't stop. Some of them lunge at the girls, trying to bite them with their fangs. Zoe feels something brush her ankle and turns to look. A scolopendra has grabbed her shoe and is trying to pull it down. Zoe screams and tries to free herself, but the scolopendra is tenacious. Amber sees her in difficulty and holds out her hand, trying to help her. But another scolopendra jumps on her and bites her arm. Amber screams in pain and drops the flashlight, which goes out. Now they are in the dark, surrounded by ravenous insects. Zoe finally manages to take off her shoe and kick the scolopendra away. She grabs hold of Amber's hand and pulls her up the ladder, ignoring her pain. The two girls reach the top of the ladder, break the window and fly outside, falling onto the muddy ground.
Emily and Sarah venture into the shack next to the main house, proceeding carefully and making as little noise as possible. They arrive at the shack after a few seconds and while they hear noises from their friends coming from the house they notice the door of the shack broken down. They enter carefully and rummage through the rusty tools and supplies of wood, looking for something that could serve as a weapon or as a means of communication. Suddenly, a dull, heavy noise makes them jump. They turn around suddenly, their hearts pounding. A menacing figure emerges from a dark corner of the shack. Emily and Sarah are paralyzed with fear as the creature approaches them. In front of them is a dinosaur almost two meters tall, with a long neck, a small head and a toothless beak that vaguely resembles an ostrich. Its body is covered in brown fur and its hind legs are long and muscular. Its front paws are short and end in three clawed toes. It has two large black eyes that stare at her with curiosity. Emily and Sarah don't know what to do. They have never seen a dinosaur before. They don't know if it's dangerous or not and there's no Zoe to tell them what kind of dinosaur it is. Emily and Sarah try to calm down, try to reason. The two whisper to each other about how they can run away, hide or distract him. They try to move slowly, trying not to scare him and trying not to provoke him. However, the dinosaur is very fast. He reaches them in a flash and grabs them with his beak pulling them back. Emily and Sarah struggle, trying to free themselves, but the dinosaur holds them tight. He doesn't bite them, he doesn't scratch them, he doesn't hurt them. He just holds them still, as if she wants to play with them.
Zoe and Amber stand up, shivering and covered in mud as the rain continues to fall. They are out of the basement but in the back part of the house. They don't feel safe because they know there are other dangers waiting for them. Zoe looks at Amber's wound and sees blood dripping from her arm. Amber feels the scolopendra's poison, which even though she is not an adult, is burning in her veins. Zoe tries to be strong and advises her to quickly disinfect the young scolopendra's poisonous and painful wound with earth. She tells her that she will be fine, that they will make it and that they will be saved but before she can finish speaking, a sudden noise interrupts them. The sound of heavy, fast footsteps. Zoe and Amber turn and see a Utahraptor. The raptor looks at them and smells them and in an instant Zoe sees the dinosaur pounce on Amber and rip out her throat and then start eating her. Zoe runs away never looking back crying and hoping there weren't others around her.
Vivian doesn't have time to think. She drops the tool and runs towards Kate, hoping she can save her. But the scolopendra has no intention of letting go of her prey. With a growl, he turns to Vivian and throws another tentacle at her. Vivian dodges just in time, but she feels his fangs graze her leg. Vivian tries to reach Kate, but the scolopendra blocks her way. The girl looks around, looking for something to fight with. She suddenly sees Sarah and Emily coming to her aid. Emily grabs the flashlight and turns it on, pointing it at the scolopendra's eyes. The blinding light causes the creature to step back and let out a hiss of anger. Sarah takes advantage of this and grabs an old candlestick, using it as a weapon. With a cry of defiance, she throws it at the scolopendra, hitting it squarely. The scolopendra screams in pain and recoils, letting go of Kate. Vivian runs to her and picks her up and drags her away from there. The scolopendra recovers and prepares to chase them, but Vivian throws the torch at her. A blaze lights up the room. The four girls breathe a sigh of relief. Emily talks about how they escaped that weird dinosaur they encountered in the shack and then they start wondering about Amber and Zoe. At that moment, however, Kate's condition worsens in a few seconds, with the venom of an adult scolopendra of that size probably too potent for a human being. The girls do everything they can to save her but they fail. As the girl takes her last breath Zoe appears full of mud and her hair wet from the pouring rain. When she sees the scene she falls to her knees and starts beating her fists on the floor in anger.
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