Quick Review: Dark Shadows
So tonight I went to see Dark Shadows. I must admit that I went in with some trepidation, but I was mildly surprised that the movie was actually good. It's not a great movie, it's not an awesome movie, but it is a good movie and worth a viewing.
The story is googleable easily enough so I won't bore you with that. One thing that struck me about this movie was how NOT Tim Burton-y it was. Yes, you've got your Johnny Depp (and various other actors) in the white makeup, And Helena Bonham-Carter, but the characters in this movie are actually, well, normal. Nobody is quirky for quirkyness' sake in this movie as happens so often in Tim's movies. Everyone is realistically portrayed (Well, as realistic as a family with a vampire and ghost in residence could be) and their motivations are believable.
The place where the movie falls flat is that it tries to be a dark comedy and just isn't. The few one-liners peppered throughout the movie (Most of which you hear in the trailer, unfortunately) do bring a smile occasionally, but nothing that really sets you off. The dramatic elements were riveting enough, and the story captured you well enough, but overall, the movie just falls a bit flat.
Don't get me wrong, I was entertained and I never found myself looking at my watch, but it just needed a little... something more.
so yeah: Dark Shadows, Entertaining, well put together, fairly beautiful, but in the end, just good.
The story is googleable easily enough so I won't bore you with that. One thing that struck me about this movie was how NOT Tim Burton-y it was. Yes, you've got your Johnny Depp (and various other actors) in the white makeup, And Helena Bonham-Carter, but the characters in this movie are actually, well, normal. Nobody is quirky for quirkyness' sake in this movie as happens so often in Tim's movies. Everyone is realistically portrayed (Well, as realistic as a family with a vampire and ghost in residence could be) and their motivations are believable.
The place where the movie falls flat is that it tries to be a dark comedy and just isn't. The few one-liners peppered throughout the movie (Most of which you hear in the trailer, unfortunately) do bring a smile occasionally, but nothing that really sets you off. The dramatic elements were riveting enough, and the story captured you well enough, but overall, the movie just falls a bit flat.
Don't get me wrong, I was entertained and I never found myself looking at my watch, but it just needed a little... something more.
so yeah: Dark Shadows, Entertaining, well put together, fairly beautiful, but in the end, just good.