Non avere paura del buio

Every so often a movie comes along that changes an entire genre and becomes something more than just movie, but this is not that movie. Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is a remake of a 1970's film of the same name. Guillermo Del Toro, famous for Pan's Labyrinth, brings us this modern update along with new director Troy Nixey. The movie tells the story of a young girl named Sally that moves in with her architect father and girlfriend Kim who are remodeling an old mansion. Soon after arriving the girl opens a doorway that unleashes a group of small monsters that attempt to kidnap her and eat her teeth!

First thing I should tell you is that the movie isn't that scary. What the movie focuses on instead is telling a good story that relies heavily on atmosphere. One of the best parts of the film is the mansion that they life in. What's interesting is how the mansion is treated almost like a character in that with all the construction that the mansion is undertaking, it changes throughout the movie. Starting from as an old building that holds secrets to a completely renovated mansion that is more than what it seems. From a comfy lit room to a dim lit nightmare, the mansion becomes the perfect set piece. I must give credit to the director for the attention to detail in every set and the eerie coldness that the movie makes you feel.

The acting is good but nothing to write home about. Katie Holmes does a fine job playing Kim, the interior decorator and love interest. Guy Pearce does an amazing job playing a father you really want to strangle at the end of the movie and Bailee Madison does a good job playing Sally. The little creatures, which are all CG done look fantastic in the film, which is something expected when I see the name Guillermo Del Toro attached to the film.

While everything sounds good and great and the movie does a great job at being a good classic horror movie with the usual or unusual twist ending, I still have a problem with the movie that is more an issue with the genre. That problem I have stems from the utter stupidity from the characters in the film. If some little monsters try and attack you or someone you know why wouldn't you do everything in your power to stay away from the house or at the very least be with someone at all times? Why is it that once everything is going to hell that all the characters decide to split up instead of forming a party? I mean seriously, it just pains me to believe that all these characters could be so very stupid. You know the little monsters are there but you still decide it would be a great idea to take a shower at night? Seriously?

OK, I think my little rant is done. Overall I enjoyed the film even though I am not a big fan of horror movies and I think that if you want to see a horror film is that more creepy than scary than Don't Be Afraid of the Dark will satisfy your needs.

Written by Steve Cienfuegos for MovieFloss.com

The idea behind DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK has potential. It's a remake of one of those classic 1970s TV horrors with Guillermo del Toro as one of the scriptwriters, no less. It starts off with potential, featuring a leading role from Guy Pearce (always a favourite) and some great set design and dressing in the form of a huge, crumbling old mansion complete with hidden rooms and passageways.

And slowly, bit by bit, the potential ebbs away, leaving this a soulless and artificial experience. It ends up being overexposed and under-written, a jumble of pointless scare sequences and endless CGI nonsense as the inhabitants of the household are repeatedly put at the mercy of some unwelcome critters. In some ways it's like a modern day GREMLINS, and it has a very childish feel to it despite the adult rating. There are parallels to other del Toro fare like PAN'S LABYRINTH but this is nowhere near that kind of calibre. The only thing it makes me want to do is track down the original.

The film I most likened it to was, in fact, an obscure early '90s B-movie called LITTLE DEVILS: THE BIRTH, which was much better in terms of pure, unashamed fun - the effects were better too. DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK is just lazy, with cheesy CGI and only one good scare all the way through. Finally, the cast is underwhelming: Pearce is a sleepwalker, Katie Holmes embarrassed, and Bailee Madison once of the most irritating child actors I've seen in a while. Still, at least Pearce got to team up with NEIGHBOURS' Alan Dale (aka Jim Robinson) for a couple of scenes...

When I first heard about the plot of the "Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark" remake, I was disappointed that they decided to add the unnecessary element of a child to the story. Ironically, the portrayal of the daughter by Bailee Madison was one of the few highlights this movie had to offer. With all the creepy Gothic imagery, spiderwebs and shadows, this movie failed to create any of the suspense generated by the fairly moderate surroundings of the original. The CGI demons were absolutely ridiculous, and with complete certainty I can state that the raisin- faced-doll demons of the 40-year-old original TV movie were much creepier. Katie Holmes, although likable, must be one of the world's worst actresses, unable of conjuring up any emotion other then a perky turned up nose for all occasions. It is truly remarkable to see her constantly upstaged by the child actress in this film who forces you to believe everything she is feeling. I can only recommend this as a starter horror film for young children, or background TV while you pay your bills online - you won't miss anything.

Well. Where to start?

This is a film that starts badly, and save two relatively well executed scenes, gets worse. If you have seen the original seventies TV movie you will be sorely disappointed. What made the original frightening was the bareness of the plot, the ordinariness of the location and the bleakness of the ending. All of these elements have been removed. The story is over written, the location of overly ornate, and the ending, although quite nasty, is not as disturbing as it should have been. Add to this the frankly deplorable CGI and iffy direction. Well...

The kid is good though (that's where the 4 points comes from)

Verdict: Don't be afraid of avoiding don't be afraid of the dark

It's funny but in the 1970s and 80s I don't recall Hollywood constantly remaking horror films from the 40's and 50's and when it was done it was done pretty well 1978s Invasion of the body snatchers and 1982s The Thing come to mind. But since the new millennium it seems the only offerings from the horror genre have been pointless remakes to smart and SCARY classics from yesteryear. We had to revisit the likes of The step ford wives, A nightmare on elm st.,Halloween I AND II,Black Christmas,Friday the 13TH, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,When a stranger calls, The Fog, The Amityville Horror,Hills Have Eyes,The Hitcher,Last house on the left,Dawn of the Dead, another body snatcher remake The Invasion and in the late 90s remakes of Psycho and The Haunting and not to mention the almost blasphemous remake of The Omen! The formula is always the same take an intelligent blockbuster, recast it with a politically correct ensemble(usually with arrogant, annoying teens),saturate it with play station worthy cgi effects and rewrite it so that it's familiar to an MTV/reality show audience with the attention span of a fly. And I'm sure there are more on the way....When is Hollywood gonna produce an original horror script that doesn't insult my intelligence? After all isn't that why they're paid millions and millions of dollars? Don't be afraid of the dark is no exception to these new rules and frankly from this writer and director I expected better. The 1973 creepy original which terrified me as a child starred Kim Darby as a young wife who inherits a gloomy mansion infested with demonic creatures and cannot get her executive husband Jim Hutton to believe her despite warnings from an ominous handy man. This version centers naturally around a young girl instead of a young wife (hence the annoying arrogant teen, kid rule) and a back story (hence the rewritten to the Mtv/reality/dancing with stars attention span crowd) the bottom line if an original is a known as a "classic" always stick with the original, if they must make remakes remake a crappy film and make that one better not vice versa believe me there are enough to choose from or remake a film that is not well known what Gauls me the most is todays young audiences are being jipped into thinking that some of todays garbage are the originals. If this trend continues I suppose in 2040 there will be remakes of Saw,Insidious,Silent Hill,Hostile and the 2040 generations will think they're the real deal. Please don't let my rant prevent you from making up your own mind we all have different tastes if you wanna go see it and if you enjoy it, dandy , this is simply one humble mans opinion.