"Being shot on Fuji 35mm adds a pleasant, rich texture throughou"

If Channel 4 Dispatches ventured into the foray of filmmaking, A Dark Reflection would seemingly be one of the more conceivable outcomes. The latest brainchild of pilot-turned-filmmaker Tristan Loraine is a logical transition from exposé documentaries (Welcome Aboard Toxic Airlines) to a full blown investigative thriller debut.

Carrying on from the pragmatic themes of his 2007 documentary, Loraine once again divulges the detrimental truth behind the underreported side effects of prolonged exposure to aero toxins being routinely re-circulated into commercial airline cabins.

Helen (Georgina Sutcliffe) is a high profile journalist whose fatally disastrous Middle East mission lands her back in sleepy Sussex to be closer to air traffic controller boyfriend Joe (TJ Herbert). When Joe is seemingly suspended for alleged misconduct, Helen is precipitously immersedinto a world of negligence cover-ups surrounding synthetic oils and toxic organophosphates. This poisonous aviation malpractice is incessantly kept out of the public eye by ruthless JaspAir owner Charles Jaspar (Nicholas Day) alongside government and health officials alike.

Being shot on Fuji 35mm adds a pleasant, rich texture throughout, though questionably hammy soap opera acting and ill-judged dialogue quickly dampened Loraine’s campaigning theme.

A reality-sobering question of ‘corporate profit or public safety?’ is the beating morality heart of this shockingly culpable business tale. Although every commendation must be given to ‘A Dark Reflection’ for raising this unknown danger to the public’s conscious, a more emphatic impact would have likely been gained by transferring this lethal issue to the small screen.