I always wanted to see the "Dark Shadows" TV-series, but never had the courage to actually start
Six or seven years ago, I was thrilled to have found the first 35 episodes on DVD, but then I discovered there's a total of nearly 600 episodes, so what's the point? I tracked down the two spin-off films instead, hoping hoping that it wouldn't require extended knowledge of the TV-series. Luckily it doesn't, so all of you who're interested in this cult franchise as well, rest assured that the movies stand on their own as solid and creepily entertaining Gothic horror classics. Produced and directed by the multi-talented Dan Curtis, "House of Dark Shadows" delivers plenty of macabre atmosphere, sinister decors and filming locations, intriguing characters and a surprisingly big amount of typically late 60's/early 70's graphic gore. You know the type of gore I'm referring to, don't you? The thick and flashy red blood that spurts out of peoples' chests when they're impaled by wooden stakes! The plot of "House of Dark Shadows" is simple, efficient and actually very reminiscent to Bram Stoker's legendary tale of "Dracula" only with different character names and a contemporary New England setting. 19th Century vampire patriarch Barnabas Collins is resurrected from his tomb and mingles with his present day descendants by pretending he's a distant relative from another continent. The beautiful Maggie Evans immediately catches Barnabas' attention, since she looks exactly like his long lost lover Josette. But poor (?) Barnabas is too popular with the ladies, as also young cousin Carolyn and the acclaimed female Doctor Julia Hoffman fall in love with him. Carolyn gets turned into a vampire and terrorizes the area, while Dr. Hoffman intends to cure Barnabas' vampirism through a series of medical injections. The latter sub plot is definitely the freshest and most inventive part of the film because, as said, the rest is fairly similar to "Dracula". Maggie Evans is more or less Mina, her fiancée Jeff is Harker, Carolyn is Lucy and Professor Eliot Stokes is a bleaker version of Prof. Van Helsing. This is merely an observation, not so much a point of criticism since I was very much amused by "House of Dark Shadows" from start to finish. Jonathan Frid's performance as Barnabas Collins is inarguably one of the film's major strongpoints. He depicts the vampire character as a crossover between a despicable monster and a troubled romanticist; which is a style that became often copied in later vampire movies. It's a fun flick, with creepy music and settings as well as a devoted cast and crew! Very much recommended to horror lovers young and old (but preferably a tad bit older, since this doesn't resemble nowadays rubbish such as "Twilight" at all!)
Review of House of Dark Shadows
