Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

Rating: 2/5

When I was little, the darkness was my worst enemy. If I saw or heard about anything remotely creepy or frightening at any part of the day, no matter when, it would come back to me at bedtime. I was a kid with an active imagination, and sitting alone in the silent dark let my brain run wild. Honestly, the stuff I came up with back then was scarier than Don't be Afraid of the Dark.

Sally (Bailee Madison) has just moved in with her architect dad (Guy Pearce) and his new girlfriend (Katie Holmes), who are living in a creepy old house that they are refurbishing to sell. In the night, Sally hears voices calling for her, and discovers a basement full of unreleased artwork of the home's previous owner, a famous artist who just so happened to disappear mysteriously. In the basement, Sally finds the source of the voices and sets them free, unleashing 90 minutes of generic and contrived horror scenes.

This film has a simple premise, but in the beginning it has pretty good atmosphere and some interesting setups. Unfortunately, the genuine creativity that the movie promises is outweighed by the stuff that doesn't make sense and the bad acting. I mean, Sally is portrayed as a moody, antisocial, and dark kid, and no background as to why is given. When the creatures that have been heard and built up throughout the first act finally show up, they can't stop hogging the spotlight, and any possible scares are totally destroyed.

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is a good summer horror movie, but not a good horror movie. It doesn't take itself too seriously, but it's rather humorless and inconsistent. I'm sorry, but when a groundskeeper at the house is attacked by the creatures and emerges from the basement covered in blood with scissors in his neck, the excuse "he had an accident" is just silly. The mythology of the monsters is cool, but it's all explained in around two minutes. Don't Be Afraid of the Dark just plays it too safe.

The TV film Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is supposedly one of the scariest ever. A lot of the positive reviews of this movie say it isn't fair to expect the original. That is true, but it is not a good justification for this version's favorites. This movie should not have to stand on anyone's shoulders if it's a strong and modern picture. Surprise, it isn't. Overall, Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is just a bad and forgettable horror movie.