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When I first heard that Tim Burton and Johnny Depp would be reuniting, yet again, for a reboot of the 1960s gothic TV show, Dark Shadows, my response was mixed.
Despite my love for the pair’s earlier films such as Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood and Sleepy Hollow, I was concerned that Dark Shadows would rely heavily on the recent Burton-Depp trademarked costume parties, like Alice in Wonderland, which failed to engage any emotion out of me and was a huge letdown, in my opinion.
Although Depp is once again seen pale faced and dressed up, their eighth collaboration finally offers a return to Burton’s gothic form and doesn’t try as hard to stray from a conventional style of filmmaking.
The film opens in 18th Century Liverpool, with Barnabas Collins, (Depp), as the son of an entrepreneur who built a fortune in the fishing industry. When his family moves to Maine, Barnabas steals the heart of a witch. He spurns her, which results in the witch killing his parents, placing a curse on his family, transforming him into a vampire and burying him alive.
Cut to 1972 and he wakes from a 196-year nap. Paler and sourer, he reunites with his descendants and plots his return in the family business after its fortunes have fallen into disrepair.
The modern Collins family are a self-indulgent bunch of characters. With Michelle Pfieffer playing Elizabeth Collins, the mother of the weakened dynasty, her teenage daughter Carolyn, her brother Roger and his ‘mental’ son, David.
The family hires a nanny named Victoria to take care of David and she bares an uncanny resemblance to Barnabas’ long-lost love. Despite being the opener into the film and giving a background into her character, she disappears for most of the movie and only returns at the end, when she’s needed, to evoke emotion from the viewer.
As mentioned, the movie is loosely based on the TV show of the same name, that ran from 1966 to 1971. Therefore, much of the first act was devoted to those, like myself, who have never seen the programme, summarising the 1,225-episode show into a 113-minute movie, which was confusing and, at times, boring.
Depp gives one of his typical exaggerated performances, yet I found myself in a state of hypnosis by the use of his hands. They brilliantly captivated the audience and added a mesmerising creepiness to his character.
In addition, with audiences accustomed to a story of painful love and the agony of ethics in the modern day film, Dark Shadows moves away from your typical Twilight movie and allows the thirsty vampire to feed on friends and their desires, with startlingly gruesome attacks.
Moreover, the use of cameos by the original TV Barnabas as well as Alice Cooper, added to the film’s under-nourished storyline and humour, diverting your attention from the lack of extreme action. “Ugliest woman I’ve ever seen!” states Barnabas after witnessing Cooper’s performance.
With the movie’s wit and twisted love for the 1970s, I thought it was mindlessly entertaining.
Dark Shadows is hardly a memorable collaboration for the Burton-Depp collection, but I would rather watch a sequel to Dark Shadows than another Twilight film – vampires just shouldn’t sparkle in the sun, they should burn!
With the amusement of Dark Shadows being its trial and error, in the end it collapses into a beautiful mess.
