Beneath The Darkness

Critics Consensus

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4%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 24

15%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 1,602
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Movie Info

In Beneath the Darkness, Ely Vaughn (Quaid) is a pillar of the community in tiny Smithville, Texas. The town's mortician, Ely has been revered since his days as the high school's star quarterback. But since the tragic death of his wife two years earlier, Ely has withdrawn from his neighbors, while local teens spread stories of supernatural goings on at Ely's mansion-which is also the funeral home. When high school friends Travis (Oller), Abby (Teegarden), Brian (Lunsford) and Danny (Werkheiser) decide to check out the rumors, they are shocked to see the supposedly grieving widower dancing with a mysterious woman behind the curtains of his bedroom window. Their curiosity aroused, the four teens wait for Ely to leave the house before breaking in to investigate. But instead of finding clues to the woman's identity, they stumble on a grotesque, long-hidden secret. The sadistic mortician next door will now stop at nothing to literally bury his past. -- (C) Official Site

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Cast

Dennis Quaid
as Vaughn Ely
Aimee Teegarden
as Abby
Tony Oller
as Travis
Stephen Lunsford
as Brian
Devon Werkheiser
as Danny
Brett Cullen
as Sgt. Nickerson
Dahlia Waingort
as Sylvia Moore
Amber Bartlett
as Rosemary
Sydney Barrosse
as Carolyn
David Christopher
as Sovic
Gabriel Folse
as Russell
Melody Chase
as Elaine
Cameron Banfield
as Collin
Richard Dillard
as Doctor
Timothy Fall
as Jack
Connor James
as Young Travis
Cheryl "Chin" Cunningham
as Nurse Josie
Davi Jay
as Ruben
Steve Larkin
as Rabbi
Alastair King
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Critic Reviews for Beneath The Darkness

All Critics (24) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (1) | Rotten (23)

  • A bore sprinkled with hints of hilarity, soon to be buried like so many of its characters.

    Jan 13, 2012 | Full Review…

    William Goss

    Film.com
    Top Critic

  • You anticipate every scene before it happens and figure out every secret before it's revealed.

    Jan 10, 2012 | Rating: 1/4 | Full Review…

    Rex Reed

    Observer
    Top Critic

  • Dennis Quaid goes Psycho in dull Texas-set thriller.

    Jan 6, 2012 | Full Review…

    John DeFore

    Hollywood Reporter
    Top Critic

  • At times it seems the simple ineptitude of "Beneath the Darkness" surely must mask some undercurrent of deeper sophistication and intention on behalf of the filmmakers. Alas, as it turns out, such things never surface.

    Jan 6, 2012 | Rating: 1/5 | Full Review…

    Mark Olsen

    Los Angeles Times
    Top Critic

  • Even Dennis Quaid's uncharacteristic hamming as a mad mortician in a small Texas town can't save this silly, scare-free horror film...

    Jan 6, 2012 | Rating: 1/4 | Full Review…

    Kyle Smith

    New York Post
    Top Critic

  • The screenplay gets nothing out of the claustrophobic terror of being locked up in that narrow grave, and the "mystery" is obvious from the start.

    Jan 6, 2012 | Rating: 2/4

    Stephen Whitty

    Newark Star-Ledger
    Top Critic
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Audience Reviews for Beneath The Darkness

  • Oct 06, 2013
    It is great to finally see Dennis Quaid play a character with personality again! Lately, it seems like he plays the same scarred, emotionless character, over and over again. It's hard to remember that it's his charisma that made him a star and you can really see it in Beneath The Darkness. Dennis Quaid plays Vaughn Ely, a mortician who is bat shit crazy. To the town, Ely is this great guy who gives back to the community, but only one person can see him for what he really is. Travis (Tony Oller) is a local teenager who works odd jobs for Ely and has always had suspicions about the man, but never did anything about it. One night, the subject comes up while with his friends and they decide to bust into Ely's home to find out what he's really hiding. The story starts out very slowly and I wasn't expecting it to get any better, but it really does. I already mentioned how good Quaid is, but the star of this film is Tony Oller. I've heard him sing, but I've never seen him act, and to say I was impressed is an understatement. Between Quaid's outlandish behavior and Oller's teenage angst, I didn't need much of a story to follow in order to be entertained. Beneath The Darkness is strange and not everyone is going to like it, but it's one of these films that you keep watching, because you want to know what's going to happen. What happens is that it actually turns into a pretty entertaining and respectable film, that features a star in the making.
    Todd S Super Reviewer
  • Feb 05, 2012
    This attempts to do for "Psycho" what "Disturbia" did for "Rear Window", update it for a teen audience, but where the latter film succeeded this fails miserably. Quaid is cast against type as a deranged mortician who lives with the corpse of his wife. When a bunch of uncharismatic "One Tree Hill" type teens catch on to this, one of their number becomes his latest victim. As is usual in these films, the adults of the town don't believe them so they must expose him themselves. Quaid has fun with the role and plays it well over the top but his performance isn't enough to elevate a bland script. The budget for this borefest was seven million dollars and it's hard to see where it was spent. Maybe most of it went to Quaid, it seems the only explanation for an actor of his quality appearing in something as bad as this.
    The Movie W Super Reviewer
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