The Darkness (2016) Reviews

• It is light viewing and a decent story

  mjsreg2016-06-20

  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.

• Not THAT bad 7/10

  ajp-061262016-06-05

  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

• The Darkness (2016)

  samgiannn2016-05-22

  Sometimes, a bad horror movie can have some redeeming quality to make it at least watchable for its runtime even if you'll forget about it the next day. Then, about once a year, the stars align, Wes Craven rolls in his grave, and a movie like The Darkness limps into theaters, a horror flick that's so inept at everything it tries to accomplish that it only triggers catcalls from the audience. In The Darkness, the whitest family I've ever seen goes on a family trip to the Grand Canyon, and by some ridiculous series of events, the son brings back five rocks that have Native American demons inside them. The family is now haunted by some incredibly convoluted curse, and demon stuff happens. I can't even say anything specific because nothing really scary happens to this family. Every single scare is just a door opening, the faucet turning on, a dog nonchalantly walking down a hallway, or handprints appearing on the wall. There aren't any scares because every time something that resembles a shock comes along that thing isn't scary! It's a faucet! The only thing that came out of the faucet was a little bit of water, they didn't even try to put blood or black crap coming out of it or anything! And then in an effort to save this god forsaken atrocity, they try to put some stupid family drama in the plot that's referenced once and never mentioned again. The daughter has bullimia? Who cares, put black handprints on her! Mom has a drinking problem? Might as well have the faucet turn back on! Not to mention there are several characters that enter the plot for two scenes and then mysteriously disappear. I've never seen a horror movie so incompetent at every single basic aspect of filmmaking. I can't pinpoint one exact reason why I hate this movie so much other than the sole reason that it exists. I could name about fifty other movies that I've given bad reviews that I would rather watch than this train wreck. I think I can now give every other horror movie the benefit that it's not as bad as The Darkness.

• Moderately entertaining Poltergeist knock off with an American Indian mythology twist

  s32761692016-06-05

  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 found it effective

  disdressed122016-10-11

  I actually enjoyed this supernatural thriller.i found it very suspenseful and eerie at times.the music was great.and the acting was good all around.Kevin Bacon Plays Peter Taylor.Radha Mitchell plays his wife Bronny.Lucy Fry plays their daughter Stephanie,and David Mazouz plays their son Michael.Mazous is a stand out here.the plot is basically this.Peter Taylor(Bacon) and his family return from a camping trip at the grand canyon.almost from the moment they arrive home,strange things begin to happen.little things at first,which slowly escalate to more serious events.the low rating here(4.2/10)is unjustified,in my opinion.while I wouldn't call it a masterpiece,i think it was still effective.for me,The Darkness is 7.6/10