The Darkness

After watching The Darkness I'd have to place it in the family entertainment bracket as opposed to horror, it lacks any kind of threat at all, it makes The Hole loook like a horror. I really loved the idea, a nice clever twist on the usual formula, and nice to see an autiaaut kid centre stage. The idea was good,but the realisation was a disappointment to say the least, the scares were lazy, unoriginal, but worst of all, it lacked any tension of any kind. It wasn't bad, it's what I'd class a back room film, it was on while I did other things. Well acted, but this is Kevin Bacon, he deserves better then this. 5/10

The Darkness is, in my opinion, a pretty obvious Poltergeist knock off, with an American Indian mythology twist.

This film follows much the same formula made famous by Poltergeist. It makes a few distinctions, by drawing on American Indian mythology but beyond that, its business as usual.

That said, this film is in no way as creepy or frightening, as Poltergeist. The demons, look more like a bunch of bad extras from a cultural festival. Their evil is not really all that evil either. They feel more like bad tenants or squatters, who have personal hygiene issues. Hand washing in particular, is not their thing.

That said, in fairness this is not a bad film. Its moderately entertaining and it has a good cast, including Kevin Bacon, who I have a lot of time for. His performance helps lift this film and is complimented by a capable cast who generally share good chemistry.The family dynamic, in particular, is very believable in a middle aged, kind of yuppie-ish way.

I give The Darkness a six out of ten. Its not exceptional but it is still quite watchable.

I really don't know why people are writing comments slating this film.

It is not a 'hardcore; horror that is likely to make you seek therapy for the rest of your life, but it is not dull or unwatchable either.

The production is good, the acting is good, and it is the kind of film you can watch when you just fancy a 'movie night' with friends or family.

The story is engaging enough to make it interesting.

All these pseudo-intellectual ramblings criticising the film are just that - pseudo-intellectual.

It is probably not the best film you will watch in your life but is it also very far from the worst.

So this kid with Autism is more accessible to the preternatural and disturbs evil native American spirits that decide to disturb him and his family back.

It Reminds me of Stir of Echoes, which also star Keven Bacon, but is nowhere near as good as that movie. in comparison, Stir of Echoes looks like The Exorcist when standing right next to The Darkness.

The story had potential. Some evil native American spirits get their resting place disturbed, by some white folks (shocker), so in return, these spirits decide to unlock these guys inner most demons (mom's an alcoholic, the daughter is bulimic) to split up the family and drive them all crazy.

It was a brilliant idea, but it was done so corny. Even seasoned actor Keven Bacon looked cheesy delivering simple lines and trying to be serious as he reacted to the ghost.

It was a very sad display of what could have been gold. I don't know what went wrong, but I know this: Don't wast your time.

So another example of how IMDb user reviews and ratings have slated another reasonably good film. Clearly everyone has different expectations when it comes to horrors, and for me personally, movies like Insidious, Paranormal Activity, Sinister and Dark Skies etc tick the box. And this was one I would gladly add to that list. Unfortunately with most new movies, the story lines and scares are nothing original and this one is no different. If that is enough to put you off then I suggest you don't watch this. I on the other hand, take a movie for what it is and I was not in any way disappointed. The cast, acting, script and effects were all decent enough and it was all a bit predictable but who cares.... I enjoyed it. Unlike 90% of the reviewers here who seem to be wannabe critics and outright movie boffins, I on the other hand am just a NORMAL person. This film is worth watching if you are not going to dissect every scene from the start to the finish merely to find faults. 7/10