Lights Out

I first found out about the "thriller" Darkness while on a visit to a well known national retail chain a few months ago. Since the film got next to nothing in the way of a theatrical release, I decided to do a little research, via the internet, before taking a look. I was surprised to learn the film was really not "new" having a 2002 copyright! As regular readers of this blog can attest, horror is one of my favorite genres, this despite the fact that these films are replete with cliches even on a good day. Having watched the film, I can honestly say that Darkness is one of the worst horror films I have ever seen, of this, or any other year.

The film follows an ordinary American family as it moves into a large, creaky Victorian home located in the Spanish countryside that, unbeknownst to them, was the scene of some awful experiments on the night of a total eclipse 40 years before. Teenage daughter Regina (Anna Paquin) decides to investigate after unexplained bruises show up on her younger brother Paul(Stephen Enquist). This, as their father Mark (Iain Glen) displays some oddly enraged and erratic behavior. Although her mother Maria (Lena Olin) and her grandfather (Giancarlo Giannini) refuse to believe her, Regina is convinced that something within their new home is the cause of the trouble. As another eclipse looms, Regina enlists the help of her new boyfriend Carlos (Fele Martinez) and she begins to unravel the mysteries that threaten her family.

Believe me, the description of the film sounds way more exciting than the film itself. Spanish drector Jaume Balaguero, who also collaborated with Fernando de Felipe on the script, puts all sorts of visual imagery and quick cuts hoping to induce "terror" All this does though is occasionally take you out of a trance of boredom. The film creates no suspense and everything comes off flat and too dull for us too care or have fun watching. Plainly put I was bored stiff. Poor Paquin looks like really distracted here as the headliner. No wonder the film stayed under the radar for so long.

The only real extra on the DVD is a (thankfully) brief making of featurette with the film's director. The guy has a lot of really insightful things to say about film making, and heralds finding more creative ways to scare us. The problem here is that he doesn't speak English, and thus the volume of his words has been dialed down low, so that he can barely be heard over the flat translator for him in English. The passion for whatever it is that he's saying is completely lost. Given how the film turned out, it really doesn't matter in the end. Sneak peeks for other studio releases round out the disc.

Darkness, first and foremost isn't scary at all. I would even take it more in stride if it were a film of horror campy fun. Be afraid Be very afraid