Rating of
2/4
Weak Remake
MovieMike - wrote on 12/22/11
‘Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark’ [DBAD] is thriller remake from sophomore director, Troy Nixey. Also attached to this project as one of the principal writers is Guillermo del Toro (‘Hellboy’, ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’), who is as famous for projects he turned down (‘Chronicles of Narnia’, ‘I Am Legend’) as the ones he has participated in. DBAD was originally a 1973 made-for-TV movie starring Kim Darby (the original ‘True Grit’) and Jim Hutton (‘Ellery Queen’ TV series) In the earlier film, a couple (Darby and Hutton) inherit an old mansion that turns out to be inhabited by these small malevolent creatures that want to turn Darby into one of their own.
In del Toro’s version, he provides a prologue set in a similar mansion during the late 1800’s. We learn from this snippet that these creatures feed on children’s teeth! The reworked story has the focus on an 8 yr old Sally (Bailee Madison) who is shipped off to her divorced Dad (Guy Pearce as Alex) and his girlfriend (Katie Holmes as Kim). Alex and Kim happen to be in the middle of a large-scale renovation project of a mansion that consumes most of Alex’s attention. As Sally struggles to adjust to her new situation, she begins to encounter the creatures. Her attempts to warn the adults are passed off as reaction to her parents’ divorce and being displaced.
Bailee Madison (appearances include ‘CSI: NY’, ‘Terminator: Sarah Conner Chronicles’) has a fairly long acting pedigree for her age and her performance here shows the range she is developing. Guy Pearce (‘Memento’, ‘L.A. Confidential’, ‘The Proposition’) does a decent job here as the preoccupied Dad who has no clue in dealing with his daughter. Katie Holmes (‘The Ice Storm’, ‘Batman Begins’) turns in a good performance as well, portraying the girlfriend who is trying to fit Sally into their lives despite Sally’s resistance.
Some of the movie styling and special effects of DBAD reminded me of a few of Director Tim Burton’s previous offerings (‘Edward Scissorhands’, ‘Sleepy Hollow’). The main thing that keeps this updated version from being above average is del Toro’s failure to truly define the intent of his evil creatures. Unlike the original film, where the victim is targeted for assimilation, this version hints at both murder and/or some type of transformation. There are a few good scares along the way, and the depiction of the creatures is pretty creepy. I did enjoy this, but just wasn’t wowed by it. If you do decide to see this, you may find yourself rethinking the whole tooth-fairy concept.
