The story: While a group of scientists are testing out a device dubbed the Eruptor, it becomes damaged and starts leaking dark matter into Earth's atmosphere (this is a bad thing). At the same time, Doctor Daniel Grey comes into contact with a batch of dark matter and develops several stunning abilities.

Meanwhile, the scientists learn that someone is trying to sell the Eruptor to the highest bidder, meaning it could it become a dangerous tool in the wrong hands. As if that weren't enough, the dark matter is starting to destroy cities. Can it be stopped or is it the end of the world as we know it?

"Dark Storm" masquerades as a disaster flick, but in reality very little disaster is actually seen. A few lame $10 dollar f/x shots of buildings being totaled is the extent of the action. Instead, we get lots of badly delivered dialogue about ridiculous scientific gobbeldy gook that no one has any clue about. It's all meant to sound serious and important, but how can one be expected to invest in this when logic is virtually non-existent? I somehow doubt we'll ever see a real-life man running around with dark matter running through his blood.

While the movie is a complete bore, I got a good laugh out of watching Stephen Baldwin's performance, especially when he delivers lines such as "What Duh?" If you can believe it, his role as a Doctor is even less convincing than Denise Richards in "The World Is Not Enough." In fact, nothing about Baldwin's performance is convincing in the least. He can't even sleep or take off his glasses realistically. I never thought I'd witness a performance so utterly fake and devoid of any emotion whatsoever, but Baldwin is proof.

Speaking of performers, what is the Cigarette Smoking Man (William B. Davis) from "The X-Files" doing here? He's better than this (and "Stargate" for that matter). Someone put this guy in quality films or shows please.

The DVD

Video:
The 1.78:1 widescreen video transfer left a bad taste in this reviewer's mouth due to severe amounts of grain, poorly lit scenes, and the cruddy F/X.

Sound: The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track contains a lot of muffled dialogue and wimpy sound f/x. In other words, it's mediocre. A Dolby Digital 2.0 track has also been included.

Extras: English/Spanish subtitles and trailers for "Bug," "Alone In The Dark," "The Dresden Files," "The Lost Room," and "Dead Zone: Season 5." These are the same trailers that have appeared on virtually every recent Lionsgate disc. As you can imagine, I'm quite tired of seeing them.

Final Thoughts:
Early on in "Dark Storm," a character exclaims "I want this travesty to disappear." Truer words were never spoken. Avoid this and every Sci-Fi channel movie.

Film and television enthusiast Nick Lyons recently had his first book published titled "Attack of the Sci-Fi Trivia." It is available on Amazon.com.