Darkness

Review by Clint Morris

The horror genre may be alive and kicking again - thanks to, largely, a slew of remakes and revisits from old-time favourites. But that needn't mean there's some fat that doesn't need trimming.

It would have been a good start to take a pair of scissors to the script of Darkness before it even had the chance to become a film - if it were steak, it'd be skirt.

The dimwit cousin of The Shining, if you will, Darkness, filmed entirely in Spain, and also centers on a dad that goes around the twist.

He finds himself chasing after his family with murderous intent - whilst their trapped inside their dwelling.

Apparently the family's new Spanish home was the site of a hellish ritual that went haywire. Seven children were to be sacrificed, but one escaped. The one that kicked off the ritual now seeks closure, and poor pop's (Iain Glen) already halfway gone, so he's tagged involuntary mission-man.

Lena Olin, too good for Alias but good enough for third-rate horror films (she also did Queen of the Damned), is irritably wasted as the dumfounded wife, whilst the great Giancarlo Giannini phones in his performance from the men's room.

Lacklustre, imitative and terribly, terribly, written, Darkness - a film so ghastly, it sat on the shelf for a couple of years - really only has one thing going for it: cute Anna Paquin in a skimpy T-Shirt.

1 out of 5

Darkness
Australian release: Thursday 17st of March, 2005 (limited release)
Cast: Anna Paquin, Iain Glen, Lena Olin, Fele Martínez, Stephen Enquist, Giancarlo Giannini.
Director: Jaume Balagueró.
Website: Click here.

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