Dark Shadows Review

Justin and I saw Dark Shadows on May 12, 2012. I knew going into this movie that it was going to be something different, and I was pleased with the results. This movie will be a cult movie, much like the television show in the 1960s was and the reboot they did in the early 1990s which actually featured a young Joseph Gordon-Levitt which is pretty cool to see. The movie shows us some past events to help shape the plot further down the line with Barnabas Collins played very well by Johnny Depp and Angelique played perfectly by Eva Green. Angelique feels jilted by Barnabas for falling for another girl named Josette played by Bella Heathcote who I personally found to be very good in the role. Let me just say that I love this cast in general from Johnny Depp to Eva Green to Michelle Pfeiffer to one of my new favorite Chloe Grace Moretz. Angelique forces Josette to plunge to her death and then gives Barnabas the unholy kiss forcing him to live with the guilt of what happened to Josette. After rejecting her advances numerous times, she orchestrates the town to bury him in a casket wrapped in chains. These events all happened in 1790. We fast forward to 1972 where Barnabas escapes from his prison opneing up a can of...bloodshed on those he first encounters. He makes his way back to his mansion in Collinsport which is named after his family. Their business is in the seafood industry/canning/shipping etc. Angelique has taken over the family business and is trying to erase the entire legacy of the family. Barnabas unites with the family to combat Angelique and restore the family business to its rightful ownership and former glory. I liked the dark nature of Helena Bonham Carter's Dr. Hoffman. In the series, she was looking for an anti-vampire serum. In this, she is using Barnabas's blood to retain her youth and become immortal. Chloe Moretz was great as the angry teenager who listens to really awesome music in my opinion. Bella Heathcote as I said also played the role of Victoria Winters who is a spitting image of Barnabas's former love Josette. I thought she portrayed the naievety and mystery of the character very well. Victoria comes to Collinsport to help care for David (the youngest member of the family-who sees ghosts and people think he has problems). David is played by Gulliver McGrath. Interestingly enough, the ghost I mentioned happens to be Josette. The reason Dr. Hoffman is living at the house is designed to help David as well, however, as I said we would find out that it was a facade. She had been waiting for Barnabas to return. Jonny Lee Miller portrayed the Roger character very well as he is supposed to be somebody that has bad morals and doesn't spend time with his son. I kept thinking about his character on Dexter Jordan Chase every time he was on screen-which is a good thing, because I feel you're supposed to dislike Roger. Depp had great chemistry with everyone, however, all the scenes shared with him and Eva Green were phenomenal. I absolutely loved Eva Green in this movie and couldn't get enough of Angelique. Green made evil look good and her role as a dark witch made it even better. She had the whole town under her thumb to combat Barnabas. I personally enjoyed the story as I liked all the events that happened in the past spilling into the present, and in order to preserve the present, the past has to be addressed. The Tim Burton magic was in full swing in this one and the battle scene at the end was well put together and I loved it's over the top nature. I like how they ended the movie as well with Barnabas and Victoria establishing an eternal bond and it revisited what had happened in the past, so I liked how it connected in that manner. With a movie such as this, I feel you have to make it over the top. I think the story combined with the campiness and somewhat hilarious nature of the movie overall make this a fun watch. I give this movie a 4/5 and a definite DVD buy when it comes out for me. It's definitely an acquired taste movie and I realize not everyone will like this, but I really enjoyed it. I like things like this though.