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Darkness

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Darkness (2003)

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Reviews Counted:52

Fresh:2

Rotten:50

Average Rating:2.7/10

Consensus: Yet another predictable variation on the hoary old haunted-house movie, Darkness is an illogical, portentous mess.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for terror/violence and language

Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Theatrical Release:Dec 25, 2004 Wide

Box Office: $22,036,907

Synopsis: Talented Spanish filmmaker Jaume Balaguero's film DARKNESS is a movie in which an ordinary American family moves to a large, creaky Victorian home in the Spanish countryside that, unbeknownst to... Talented Spanish filmmaker Jaume Balaguero's film DARKNESS is a movie in which an ordinary American family moves to a large, creaky Victorian home in the Spanish countryside that, unbeknownst to them, was the scene of some awful experiments on the night of a total eclipse 40 years before. Teenage daughter Regina (Anna Paquin) decides to investigate after unexplained bruises show up on her younger brother (Stephen Enquist), and her father (Iain Glen) displays oddly enraged and erratic behavior. Although her mother (Lena Olin) and her grandfather (Giancarlo Giannini) refuse to believe her, Regina is convinced that something within their new home is the cause of the trouble. As another eclipse looms, Regina enlists the help of her new boyfriend (Fele Martinez) and uncovers truths that could literally destroy her family. Balaguero mixes tried and true cinematic scare devices with his own brand of macabre originality to bring a well-paced, ominous atmosphere to the supernatural ghost story genre. He drains the film of colorful hues and bright light, and effectively uses sound to paralyze and terrorize his viewers. Having thoroughly scared the daylights out of European audiences, DARKNESS is sure to do the same stateside. [More]

Starring: Anna Paquin, Lena Olin, Iain Glen, Stephen Enquist

Starring: Anna Paquin, Lena Olin, Iain Glen, Stephen Enquist, Giancarlo Giannini, Fele Martinez

Director: Jaume Balaguero

Director: Jaume Balaguero
Screenwriter: Fernando de Felipe
Producer: Julio Fernandez
Composer: Carles Casas
Studio: Dimension Films

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Release:

Apr 26, 2005

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Darkness
  • This hit thriller teams Anna Paquin (X-MEN) with Lena Olin (HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE, CHOCOLAT) and Iain Glen (RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALYPSE, LARA CROFT: TOMBRAIDER) as a family whose life forever changes when they move into a new home with an ancient secret! Not long after Regina (Paquin) begins living in her family?s remote country estate, she learns that there?s something horribly disturbing about the old place. Even as her parents dismiss her concerns, strange things begin to happen whenever the lights go out. Soon Regina realizes that a series of escalating supernatural events will unleash the full evil that resides in their house!
  • Source: Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for Darkness

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    1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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    There's the draw from the audience of potential scares and the good cast, but there's nothing ever delivered to us.

    Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
    04/29/09
    Felix Vasquez Jr.
    Felix Vasquez Jr.
    Cinema Crazed

    This baffling, unintentionally sidesplitting horror show has opened just in time to qualify as the worst film of the year.

    Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
    08/07/08
    Mark Halverson
    Mark Halverson
    Sacramento News & Review

    ...ultimately comes off as nothing less than a total disaster.

    Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
    06/22/07
    David Nusair
    David Nusair
    Reel Film Reviews

    All of this, of course, would be forgivable if it added up to a scary movie or made even a lick of sense (chunks appear to have been cut out of a longer cut of the film), but Balaguero manages to disappoint on every possible front.

    Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
    01/08/07
    Ken Fox
    Ken Fox
    TV Guide's Movie Guide

    As in most bad horror flicks, intimations of unspeakable evil are supposed to distract us from the yawning gaps in story logic and character motivation.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
    01/08/07
    J. R. Jones
    J. R. Jones
    Chicago Reader
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Even as the darkness closes in, there is never any real sense of dread. The slow-burning terror soon fizzles out, as does the damp squib of an ending.

    Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
    06/24/06
    Time Out

    Back to horror school for you, Señor Balagueró.

    Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
    04/01/06
    Empire Magazine

    A plodding, portentous horror thriller in which a spooky child figures prominently and people speak in hushed tones about sinister doings.

    Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
    09/26/05
    Nathan Rabin
    Nathan Rabin
    AV Club

    There’s still a lot of European feel to Darkness, which can sometimes be off-putting to American audiences.

    Full Review Source: 7M Pictures | comment Comment
    09/02/05
    Kevin Carr
    Kevin Carr
    7M Pictures

    Too many plot and character lapses for comfort, even in the traditionally logic-flouting horror genre.

    Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | comment Comment
    07/07/05
    Michael Dequina
    Michael Dequina
    TheMovieReport.com

    It's unfortunate that the film is called Darkness because this means it will soon be relegated to the Wal Mart bargain bin next to 2003's stinker Darkness Falls.

    Full Review Source: FromTheBalcony | comment Comment
    06/15/05
    Bill Clark
    Bill Clark
    FromTheBalcony

    A good case of style over substance.

    Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment 1 Comment
    06/10/05
    Jeffrey M. Anderson
    Jeffrey M. Anderson
    Combustible Celluloid

    The film is dark, and a bit slowly paced in parts, but it’s worth watching.

    Full Review Source: International Press Academy | comment Comment
    06/01/05
    Michael Szymanski
    Michael Szymanski
    International Press Academy

    There’s nothing very frightening about this shallow, stupid spookfest.

    Full Review Source: Lessons of Darkness | comment Comment
    05/30/05
    Nick Schager
    Nick Schager
    Lessons of Darkness

    The movie finally degenerates into a hopeless mass of mumbo-jumbo, silliness, and incoherence.

    Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
    04/22/05
    John J. Puccio
    John J. Puccio
    DVDTown.com

    However, the fact that the creepy suspenseful atmosphere builds up to a risible climax where nothing remotely scary happens undermines all the good work that has gone before.

    Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
    04/02/05
    Matthew Turner
    Matthew Turner
    ViewLondon

    Darkness is a ridiculous film choked with genre clichés and stolen scares, yet there’s something genuinely dark and nasty wrapped inside all that ridiculousness...

    Full Review Source: Rue Morgue Magazine | comment Comment
    03/23/05
    Dave Alexander
    Dave Alexander
    Rue Morgue Magazine

    incomprehensibly opaque and moronically over-projected

    Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
    02/22/05
    Robert Strohmeyer
    Robert Strohmeyer
    Filmcritic.com

    Tries to survive on an aura of unknown creepiness, but that's really just a nice way of saying that very little happens of any interest during the film.

    Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
    01/16/05
    Matt Caracappa
    Matt Caracappa
    Boxoffice Magazine

    Click to read the article

    Full Review Source: Associated Press | comment Comment
    01/15/05
    Christy Lemire
    Christy Lemire
    Associated Press
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
     
     
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