For the
sake of not having to write the same intro a million
different ways throughout the rest of time, just know that
this column avoids the overly long and sometimes dull
process of full film reviews and instead opts to break
things down based on what I thought going in, what happened
while I was there and what I learned at the end of it all.
Thanks for reading!
The
Breakdown - Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark
The Impression:
Guillermo del Toro’s name is scrawled across every poster.
It’s been so long since I’ve had a healthy dose of my main
Mexican horror squeeze, I don’t even need him in the
director’s chair. Hell, he could have fluffer duty on this
film and I’d be front row with a bag of popcorn.
The Reality:
Tory Nixey is a complete unknown to me, but if this film is
indicative of what he’s done or what he’s going to do, then
you can count me as a new found fan. The story’s a classic:
a screwed up little girl (Bailee Madison) is shipped to her
dad’s (Guy Pierce seeming totally out of place playing a dad
with a new visible quirk) new home in rural Rhode Island to
"get better." The house of course is a century old mansion
that has hosted a tiny, evil race of creatures for Lord
knows how long. Nixey doesn’t wait around to introduce his
characters or their propensity for violent naughtiness, no
sir, minutes in and the tiny bone hungry little bastards are
pulling old men through grating systems and hissing.
Emotionally-based genre film may be the trend of the summer,
and Nixey fits right in. Bailee Madison’s Sally is a likable
enough heroine, a little girl too old for her own good that
finds herself in need of a some parental protection when the
fairy beasts choose her as their next meal. Her bouts with
the creatures and with the soulless monster her father has
become form the core of the film, and she manages to make
the character breath on screen, thus giving the film a solid
foundation. Nixey plays in a very similarly gothic sandbox
as Mr. del Toro thus the camera skillfully careens around,
and everything rides the line between beautiful and terribly
creepy. This exactly the sort of popcorn flick I want
Hollywood to continue to pop out ad nauseum - well shot,
well acted, and though not likely to melt your feeble brain,
it left me grinning from one floppy ear to the other.
Oh, did I mention Katie Holmes is in this movie? Well she
is, and she still looks and acts exactly like Joey Potter.
So if you were worried that Scientologies evil grip had
changed her, don’t worry.
The Lesson:
Follow del Toro’s name like the heathens followed Jesus.
- Noah Sanders
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