Dark Shadows (2012)
I had no expectations coming into this film, except that maybe it was supposed to be a comedy. If it was a comedy, it was pretty dark and I didn't laugh once. Then, half way through, I started thinking it was a tragedy, but then it was a little too light for that. I'm not sure how to classify this movie. It's from Tim Burton, so, really, I'm not sure you can classify it.
I wasn't impressed with this film. It was way too long and not a lot happened. It's the story of Barnabas Collins, a rich kid from England who moves to America with his family and find wealth beyond their means establishing a fishing town. Barnabas refuses to love Angelique, a servant and a witch, so she puts a curse on him. He gets locked in a coffin for 200 years before he is inadvertently freed.
The Collins family has endured since then, but not well. They've fallen on hard times and are losing their wealth. The curse has carried on through the generations. Of course, it comes to light that Angelique is responsible for all of the hardships and bad things that have happened to them.
It was really hard for me to get into the film. I didn't care enough about the characters. It was hard for me to feel sorry for Barnabas and his plight. He was supposed to be pining for his lost love, but when he finds her again in a different form, the film barely focuses on that. The love story is secondary to Barnabas restoring his family. If you ask me, that should have been the focal point of the film. After all, Angelique felt slighted because Barnabas didn't love her, and Barnabas lost his love because of Angelique's jealousy. I suppose you could argue that the love of a family is greater than anything, but that didn't seem to be the message either.
Don't even get me started on the Collins family. Talk about misfits. But there is nothing earlier in the film to set up that expectation, it just happens at the end. David talks and sees ghosts (there is hints earlier in the film that this is going on, but his mother actually makes an appearance later) and all of a sudden, Carolyn is a werewolf. It felt tacked on. Almost like a side note.
I've never watched the original series, so I can't do a comparison. I doubt I'll ever watch the originals, though. There wasn't enough intrigue for me. I suppose if you're a huge Johnny Depp fan the movie is worth it.
I also had the pleasure of watching part of The Avengers this weekend. I'm not really a Marvel fan, I am a DC girl, but the film was really good. I'll review it when I get the chance to see the whole thing!
