Dark Shadows | |
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Directed by | Tim Burton |
Produced by | Richard D. Zanuck Graham King Johnny Depp Christi Dembrowski David Kennedy |
Screenplay by | Seth Grahame-Smith |
Story by | John August Seth Grahame-Smith |
Based on | Dark Shadows by Dan Curtis |
Starring | Johnny Depp Michelle Pfeiffer Helena Bonham Carter Bella Heathcote Eva Green Jackie Earle Haley Jonny Lee Miller Chlo? Grace Moretz |
Music by | Danny Elfman |
Cinematography | Bruno Delbonnel |
Editing by | Chris Lebenzon |
Studio | Village Roadshow Pictures Infinitum Nihil GK Films The Zanuck Company |
Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 113 minutes[1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $150 million[1] |
Box office | $238,727,149[1] |
Dark Shadows is a 2012 American horror comedy film, based on the gothic soap opera of the same name that was produced for television between 1966 and 1971. The film is directed by Tim Burton and stars Johnny Depp as Barnabas Collins, a 200-year-old vampire who has been imprisoned in a coffin. Collins is eventually unearthed and makes his way back to his mansion, now inhabited by his dysfunctional descendants. Collins also discovers that his jealous ex-lover, Angelique Bouchard, played by Eva Green, has taken over the town's fishing business that was once run by the Collins family (Bouchard is a witch who was responsible for transforming Collins into a vampire). Michelle Pfeiffer also stars as Collins' cousin, Elizabeth Collins Stoddard, the reclusive matriarch of the Collins family.[2][3]
The film had a limited release on May 10, 2012,[4] and was officially released the following day in the United States.[5]
The film was a fair box office success, making over $238 million, but received mixed reviews from critics, many of whom praised its visual style, but felt it lacked a focused or substantial plot and developed characters.[6] The film marks Richard D. Zanuck's last as producer; he died on July 13, 2012. It also featured the final film appearance of original series actor Jonathan Frid, who died before Zanuck on April 14. He shared a cameo in the movie with former co-stars Kathryn Leigh Scott, David Selby, and Lara Parker.
In 1760, the Collins family migrates to America from Liverpool and sets up a fishing port in Maine, naming it Collinsport. Some years later, the son, Barnabas (Johnny Depp), seduces his family's maid, Angelique Bouchard (Eva Green), who is a witch. When he tells her he doesn't love or want her, Angelique kills Barnabas' parents. Barnabas then falls in love with Josette du Pres (Bella Heathcote). In a fit of jealousy, Angelique bewitches Josette into leaping from a cliff to her death. Barnabas leaps after her in grief, but he survives because Angelique turns him into an immortal vampire. She rouses a mob to capture and bury Barnabas alive in a chained coffin in the woods and curses his family.
One hundred ninety-six years later, in the year 1972, construction workers accidentally free Barnabas from his coffin, who slakes his two-century hunger by feeding on and killing his rescuers. He makes his way back to his manor to find it inhabited by his dysfunctional descendants and their servants?the family matriarch Elizabeth Collins Stoddard (Michelle Pfeiffer); her brother Roger (Jonny Lee Miller); her 15-year-old daughter Carolyn (Chlo? Grace Moretz); Roger's 10-year-old son David (Gulliver McGrath); Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter), David's psychiatrist; Willie Loomis (Jackie Earle Haley), the manor's caretaker; and Victoria Winters (Heathcote), David's newly-hired governess and Josette's reincarnation. Upon convincing Elizabeth of his identity by revealing a secret treasure room behind the fireplace, Barnabas is allowed to stay under the condition that he never reveal either the room or the fact that he is a vampire to the rest of the family. He must also pretend to be a distant relative from England who has come to restore the family's business and reputation in town. He soon becomes very deeply attracted to Victoria, whom he briefly mistakes for his lost Josette, and immediately begins to pursue her.
As Barnabas helps revitalize the Collins' fishery and manor, he is approached by Angelique, who has used her powers to establish a successful rival fishery called Angel Bay. She tries to win him back, later convincing him to make wild, passionate love with her, but he still rejects her, telling her that he loves Victoria instead. He restores his family's name by inviting the entire town to a party at the manor featuring Alice Cooper, where Victoria reveals to Barnabas that her parents committed her to an insane asylum as a child because she could see and talk to Josette's ghost. They kiss and confess their feelings to each other, unknowingly enraging Angelique who has witnessed the scene. Meanwhile, Dr. Hoffman has discovered Barnabas' true nature after hypnotizing him. She convinces him to try to turn himself back to a regular human via blood transfusions, but her real intent is to use his blood to turn herself into a vampire to avoid aging. Upon discovering this betrayal, Barnabas drains her to death and dumps her body into the ocean. Barnabas catches Roger trying to find the secret room and exposes Roger's lack of interest in his son. Barnabas then gives him a choice of either staying and being a good father to David or leaving the family. Roger chooses to leave, deeply wounding his son's feelings. Soon afterward, Barnabas rescues David from a falling disco ball and stumbles into a beam of sunlight, burning his skin and exposing his secret to the horrified children and Victoria.
Later that night, Angelique calls Barnabas into her office, coaxes him into confessing Dr. Hoffman's murder, and traps him in another coffin that she leaves in his family's crypt. She then burns down the Collins' canning factory and plays a recording of the murder confession to the police and gathered townsfolk, once more turning them against the family. Angelique leads the mob to Collinwood manor to arrest the family, but Barnabas is rescued from the coffin by David and he shows up at the manor and attacks Angelique in front of the mob, thereby exposing both his and her true natures. As the townspeople disperse, Angelique sets fire to the manor and admits her role in the family's curse, including turning Carolyn into a werewolf and killing David's mother at sea. Barnabas and the Collins family fight Angelique until David summons his mother's vengeful ghost. The ghost gives a single scream which knocks Angelique into a chandelier. Before she dies she pulls out her heart and offers it to Barnabas; he refuses the heart and it shatters as Angelique dies. Barnabas then discovers that Angelique has bewitched Victoria into jumping off the same cliff Josette did. Barnabas arrives moments before Victoria is about to jump and breaks her hypnosis, but she reveals she wanted to fall. She pleads with him to make her a vampire so that they can remain together forever, but he refuses. She then casts herself off, forcing him to follow and bite her to save her life, and Victoria wakes up as a vampire. As the two kiss on the rocks in the waves, the film ends with an underwater scene showing a school of fish swimming away from Hoffman, who suddenly revives because she's a vampire .
At the San Diego Comic-Con 2011, it was also confirmed that four actors from the original series appear in the film. In June 2011, Jonathan Frid, Lara Parker, David Selby and Kathryn Leigh Scott all spent three days at Pinewood Studios to film cameo appearances. They all appeared as party guests during a ball held at Collinwood Manor.[14][15][16] Frid died in April 2012, making this his final film appearance.
In July 2007, Warner Bros. acquired film rights for the gothic soap opera Dark Shadows from the estate of its creator Dan Curtis. Johnny Depp had a childhood obsession with Dark Shadows, calling it a "dream" to portray Barnabas Collins, and ended up persuading Burton to direct.[17] The project's development was delayed by the 2007?2008 Writers Guild of America strike. After the strike was resolved, Tim Burton was attached to direct the film.[18] By 2009, screenwriter John August was writing a screenplay for Dark Shadows.[19] In 2010, author and screenwriter Seth Grahame-Smith replaced August in writing the screenplay.[20] August did, however, receive story credit with Smith for his contribution to the film. Filming began in May 2011. It was filmed entirely in England, at both Pinewood Studios and on location.[7] Depp attempted to emulate the "rigidity" and "elegance" of Jonathan Frid's original Barnabas Collins, but also drew inspiration from Max Schreck's performance in Nosferatu.[21]
Additional crew members and Burton regulars are production designer Rick Heinrichs, costume designer Colleen Atwood, editor Chris Lebenzon and composer Danny Elfman.[7] French cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel?? known for his work in Am?lie, A Very Long Engagement and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince?? worked on the project.
Dark Shadows: Original Score | ||||
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Film score by Danny Elfman | ||||
Released | May 8, 2012 | |||
Recorded | 2011?2012 | |||
Genre | Orchestral | |||
Length | 52:45 | |||
Label | WaterTower Music | |||
Dark Shadows music chronology | ||||
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The film was scored by long-time Burton collaborator Danny Elfman. An album featuring 21 tracks of compositions from the film by Elfman was released on May 8, 2012.[22]
Dark Shadows: Original Score | ||||||||||
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No. | Title | Length | ||||||||
1. | "Dark Shadows Prologue" (Uncut) | 7:52 | ||||||||
2. | "Resurrection" | 2:54 | ||||||||
3. | "Vicki Enters Collinwood" | 1:21 | ||||||||
4. | "Deadly Handshake" | 2:14 | ||||||||
5. | "Shadows (Reprise)" | 1:08 | ||||||||
6. | "Is It Her?" | 0:43 | ||||||||
7. | "Barnabas Comes Home" | 4:18 | ||||||||
8. | "Vicki's Nightmare" | 1:26 | ||||||||
9. | "Hypno Music" | 0:47 | ||||||||
10. | "Killing Dr. Hoffman" | 1:14 | ||||||||
11. | "Dumping the Body" | 0:58 | ||||||||
12. | "Roger Departs" | 2:33 | ||||||||
13. | "Burn Baby Burn / In-Tombed" | 2:49 | ||||||||
14. | "Lava Lamp" | 2:17 | ||||||||
15. | "The Angry Mob" | 4:40 | ||||||||
16. | "House of Blood" | 3:38 | ||||||||
17. | "Final Confrontation" | 2:20 | ||||||||
18. | "Widows' Hill (Finale)" | 3:47 | ||||||||
19. | "The End?" (Uncut) | 2:42 | ||||||||
20. | "More the End?" | 1:55 | ||||||||
21. | "We Will End You!" | 1:09 |
Dark Shadows: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | ||||
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Soundtrack album by various artists | ||||
Released | May 8, 2012 | |||
Recorded | 1966?2012 | |||
Genre | Progressive rock, psychedelic rock, hard rock, pop, RB, orchestral | |||
Length | 44:43 | |||
Label | WaterTower Music, Sony Music | |||
Producer | Various, Tim Burton | |||
Dark Shadows music chronology | ||||
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The soundtrack features a score of several contemporaneous 1970s rock and pop songs, along with others from later and slightly earlier, including "Nights in White Satin" by The Moody Blues, "Top of the World" by The Carpenters, "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" by Barry White, "I'm Sick of You" by Iggy Pop, "Season of the Witch" by Donovan, "Get It On" by T. Rex and "Paranoid" by Black Sabbath. Alice Cooper, who makes a cameo in the film, sings "No More Mr. Nice Guy" and "Ballad of Dwight Fry". A cover of the Raspberries' song "Go All the Way" by The Killers also plays over the end credits. The soundtrack, featuring 11 songs (including two score pieces by Danny Elfman, and Depp's recitation as Barnabas of several lines from "The Joker" by the Steve Miller Band) was released on May 8 as a download,[23] and on various dates as a CD, including on May 22 as an import in the United States,[24] and on May 25, 2012 in Australia.[25] Songs not featured on the soundtrack that are in the film include "Superfly" by Curtis Mayfield, and "Crocodile Rock" by Elton John.
Dark Shadows: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | ||||||||||
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No. | Title | Artist | Length | |||||||
1. | "Nights in White Satin" (1967) | The Moody Blues | 4:26 | |||||||
2. | "Dark Shadows ? Prologue" | Danny Elfman | 3:56 | |||||||
3. | "I'm Sick of You" (1972/3) | Iggy Pop | 6:52 | |||||||
4. | "Season of the Witch" (1966) | Donovan | 4:56 | |||||||
5. | "Top of the World" (1972) | The Carpenters | 3:01 | |||||||
6. | "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" (1974) | Barry White | 4:35 | |||||||
7. | "Bang a Gong (Get It On)" (1971) | T. Rex | 4:26 | |||||||
8. | "No More Mr. Nice Guy" (1972/3) | Alice Cooper | 3:08 | |||||||
9. | "Ballad of Dwight Fry" (1971) | Alice Cooper | 6:36 | |||||||
10. | "The End?" | Danny Elfman | 2:30 | |||||||
11. | "The Joker" (original song from 1973) | Johnny Depp | 0:17 |
The film grossed $79,727,159 in the United States and Canada, along with $159 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $238.7 million.[1] For a Burton film, Dark Shadows achieved below-average box office takings[26] with many commentators pointing to the domination of The Avengers as the reason why.[27] The film came second to The Avengers in most countries in regard to opening box office takings.[27]
Dark Shadows has received mixed to negative reviews from film critics, with a "rotten" percentage of 38% and an average rating of 5.3/10 on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 218 reviews. Reviewers have praised the visuals, acting and the background stories of the characters, but have negatively received the direction and storyline, with the Rotten Tomatoes consensus reading: "The visuals are top notch but Tim Burton never finds a consistent rhythm, mixing campy jokes and gothic spookiness with less success than other Johnny Depp collaborations."[6] Metacritic gives the film a score of 55% based on 42 reviews.[28]
Some critics felt that the film lacked a focused or consistent plot or genre (as either horror, comedy or drama;[29] with several also questioning whether it intended to reflect the feel of the soap opera or not), pointing to Grahame-Smith's script; and that its jokes fell flat.[30] Some further claimed that Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's collaborations have become tired,[31][32][33] and that Depp overacted in the film.[34] Many of the same, and other reviewers, however, noted its visual style was impressive.[35][36][37]
Positive reviewers, on the other hand, opined that the film did successfully translate the mood of the soap opera,[38] also acclaiming the actors?most notably Depp as Barnabas, who several said was the stand-out character due to his humorous culture shock,[36] as well as Pfeiffer[39]?and their characters; and further, that the film's '70s culture pastiche worked to its advantage.[40]
Roger Ebert offered that "[The film] offers wonderful things, but they aren't what's important. It's as if Burton directed at arm's length, unwilling to find juice in the story." Ebert later noted that "Much of the amusement comes from Depp's reactions to 1970s pop culture," eventually concluding that the film "begins with great promise, but then the energy drains out," giving it two and a half stars out of four.[36] Manohla Dargis, writing for The New York Times, said that it "isn't among Mr. Burton's most richly realized works, but it's very enjoyable, visually sumptuous and, despite its lugubrious source material and a sporadic tremor of violence, surprisingly effervescent," and opined in a mostly positive review that Burton's "gift for deviant beauty and laughter has its own liberating power."[35]
Rolling Stone's Peter Travers gave the film a mixed two and a half stars, claiming, "After a fierce and funny start, Dark Shadows simply spins its wheels," and adding that "the pleasures of Dark Shadows are frustratingly hit-and-miss. In the end, it all collapses into a spectacularly gorgeous heap."[37] In The Washington Post, Ann Hornaday dismissed the film, awarding it just one and a half stars, explaining that "Burton's mash-up of post-'60s kitsch and modern-day knowingness strikes a chord that is less self-aware than fatally self-satisfied. Dark Shadows doesn't know where it wants to dwell: in the eerie, subversive penumbra suggested by its title or in playful, go-for-broke camp."[29]
Richard Corliss in Time pointed out that "[Burton]'s affection is evident, and his homage sometimes acute," and reasoned: "All right, so Burton has made less a revival of the old show than a hit-or-miss parody pageant," but praised the star power of the film, relenting that "attention must be paid to movie allure, in a star like Depp and his current harem. Angelique may be the only satanist among the women here, but they're all bewitching."[38] Peter Bradshaw, in the British newspaper The Guardian, weighed the film in a mixed write-up, giving it three stars out of five, and pointing out his feeling that "the Gothy, jokey 'darkness' of Burton's style is now beginning to look very familiar; he has built his brand to perfection in the film marketplace, and it is smarter and more distinctive than a lot of what is on offer at the multiplex, but there are no surprises. There are shadows, but they conceal nothing."[31]
Dark Shadows was released on both Blu-ray and DVD in the United States on October 2, 2012, the date confirmed by the official Dark Shadows Facebook page, and the official Dark Shadows web site.[41] The film was released on both formats several days earlier in Australia; in stores on September 24, and online on September 26, 2012.[42] The film was released on October 15, 2012 in the UK.
The DVD includes just one featurette, "The Collinses: Every Family Has Its Demons",[43] while the Blu-ray contains a total of nine short featurettes and six deleted scenes.[44] Several worldwide releases of both the DVD and Blu-ray contain an UltraViolet digital copy of the film.
On December 7, 2011, Michelle Pfeiffer told MTV that she is hoping sequels will be made for the film.[45] On May 8, 2012, Variety reported that Warner Bros. may want to turn Dark Shadows into a movie franchise.[46] On the same day, Collider.com mentioned that the ending lends itself to a possible sequel. When Tim Burton was asked if he thought that this could be a possible start to a franchise, he replied, "No. Because of the nature of it being like a soap opera, that was the structure. It wasn't a conscious decision. First of all, it's a bit presumptuous to think that. If something works out, that's one thing, but you can't ever predict that. [The ending] had more to do with the soap opera structure of it."[21]
On November 27, 2012, John August cast doubt on the notion of a sequel on Twitter when he replied to a fan's tweet saying "I would be very surprised if there were..."[47]
There have been two other feature films based on the soap opera Dark Shadows:
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