Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (Movie 2011)

This week, I went with my friend to go see Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark. I love a good horror movie and they are just so hard to come by these days. I don’t know if it is because I have become desensitized to them of they just aren’t making them as scary as they use to. But when I saw the previews for Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, I asked my girl to go with me (because honestly…she is the only one who likes horror movies as much as I do!)

The movie itself starts off in the past at a spooky looking mansion called Blackwood Manor (heck even the name sounds spooky…Blackwood…aren’t a lot of rich men called Blackwood in movies??) . A maid (a white maid I noticed) is cleaning up when a bell rights calling her to her master. She grabs a candle and walks towards a door leading to the basement. She calls down to Lord Blackwood, but it is silent below. She cautiously begins to proceed down the stairs. You can tell by her steps that Lord Blackwood hasn’t been his usually self lately. Suddenly she over a wire that was stretched across the stairs and falls the rest of the way down. Lord Blackwood rolls her onto her back and sits on her chest. Coming out of her daze she looks up at Blackwood, he begins to apologize to her; he can barely speak because all of Blackwood’s teeth are missing and broken off. He pulls out a chisel and a hammer and as the maid screams he smashes out her teeth.

As the maid lay unconscious on the floor, Blackwood scoots around the floor, insanely, picking up the broken off teeth. He collects them all and puts them into a small offering tray in the fireplace. He begs whatever creatures he is making the offering to, that they release his son. Instead the evil creatures swarm him, pulling him down into the hole…killing him one assumes.

Time passes and the house stands empty for years, until it is bought by an architect.

We meet Sally (played by Bailee Madison) , an 8 year old little girl flying to go live with her father, Alex (played by Guy Pearce) and her father’s new girlfriend Kim (played strangely by Katie Holmes). Kim and Alex wait as Sally’s plane taxis in and we can see that Kim is nervous about meeting the boyfriends kid (but can you blame her…I have been there too…it is not pleasant). Sally gets off the plane, hugs her father and gives Kim the stink eye. Kim, desperate to make peace with the kid offers it a teddy bear, with Sally accepts after some encouragement from her father.

*Side Note – if you can avoid it…don’t hook up with someone who already has a kid. The drama and stress entailed in that type of relationship is serious and should not be taken lightly. And if the kid gets attached (which it will eventually) can really get screwed up if the relationship doesn’t work out. They saw one relationship fail around them, they don’t really need to see another**

The ride from the airport back to the house is brutal. Sally didn’t want to leave her friends and mother and move out with her father and as she sits in the backset you see the mother’s solution to dealing with her daughter….drugging her up….the kid is on Ritalin. Kim sees Sally look at her watch, pull out a pill bottle and pop one. Her father…is oblivious to the situation, his daughter or Kim’s amazement. He is to self-absorbed in making this Manor a success.

Pulling up the Manor it looks freaking haunted. Why you would by a house that creepy looking and not expect something bad to happen is beyond me. Idiots. But the Manor is lively. People are working around the house getting it ready for the debut night where the new couple will put the house on the market and attempt to get their money back and make a killer profit.

As the new patchwork family enters the house, we meet Harris (played by Jack Thompson). He eyes Sally as she arrives in a creepy pedophile way.  (I don’t think that was what they were going for, they were going for wary, but it just came out creepy). Sally looks around the huge evil looking house as she walks in. She wonders off to the office as her father leaves her to explore as he goes to handle some business. Kim desperate to get Sally to like her follows her into the office. Kim tries to get Sally to lighten up and tells her a story about her grandmother giving her a beautiful broche, but Sally just responds with “My mother gave me to my dad.” Surprised Kim is left speechless as Alex comes into the office and leads Sally away to show her the new bedroom the designed for her.  Kim is left speechless. Alex, trying to make his daughter feel at home is surprised when Sally asks when she can go home. Alex stumbles over his words for a second as he tries to explain that basically her mother didn’t want her anymore and dumped her on her father. Dealing with this sudden realization of abandonment Sally runs into the bathroom and locks herself in. Unable to do anything Alex turns on the nightlight (which is a spiffy carousel) leaves the room and goes to bed.

Kim, not sure how to deal with what is happening, tries to talk to Alex. But he just avoids the questions by starting some hanky panky. Luckily for Sally, the bedrooms are attached by an air vent and she gets to hear everything. She covers it up with a pillow and goes to sleep.

Deep in the basement in the fireplace that Blackwood was dragged into we hear evil voices whispering…”Sally…her name is Sally.”

The next day doesn’t start off much better for Sally, she is alone and the only kids. Bored out of her mind she wonders off into the garden. Sally hears whispers come through the trees, and she follows the faint sound of her name deeper into the forest. The garden is beautiful (although it has been years since someone has maintained it). Sally wonders around and ends up in a ring of mushrooms (I am going with magical ring of mushrooms), the wind blows and within the blink of an eye she is next to the house. She moves aside some of the brush and as she sees though a window into the basement, Harris suddenly appears, grabs her up scolding her that it is not safe to wonder off a lone and leads her back to the house. 

By this time Alex has realized that is daughter is not were to be seen and he and Kim are looking for her when they come across Harris and Sally in the woods. Sally explains that she found a basement window, Harris tries to dissuade them from looking, but trying to build up the relationship with his daughter, Alex looks. To their amazement a basement does exist, which is great for them because houses built in this time period didn’t have basements! This will be great for their pocketbook…so they think.

Rushing back into the house, Alex finds the wall that hides the stairway to the basement and Kim, Sally and Harris watch as he smashes his way though. Kim unlocks the door and the basement is reviled to them. Excited they all rush down to explore, but Sally is drawn to the fireplace. She leans close to it and hears voices calling her name. Before she can do anything, Alex and Kim say they have to go back upstairs and will look at it again more tomorrow.

Sally still upset with her father, acts up during dinner and storms off to her room half way through her meal (my mum would have KILLED me if I ever did that!). Later that night Sally hears the voices calling her name again through the vent. They ask her to be their friend and to come play with them. In need of a playmate the next morning Sally takes a wrench from one of the workman’s bags and heads down to the basement. She finds a random tooth lying on the ground and puts it into her pocket. She then works furiously on the bolts and unscrews them all but the last one before her father comes looking for her. He finds her in the basement and she tells him about the voices. Leaning down to listen Alex puts his ear next to the fire place and we see the creatures stick a long sharp piece of metal next to his ear. They pull back and just as they are about to plunge it into his eardrum he moves. Alex and Sally go upstairs, neither of them realizing what almost happened. As they walk away, the voices whisper "She'll be back, they always come back."

Later that night while getting ready for bed, Alex notices his shaving blade is missing. Kim opens her closet only to find her dress for the open house sliced into pieces.

The next morning Alex confronts Sally and yells at her. Sally cries that she didn’t do it. Alex notices Sally clutching an old coin that Sally had gotten from the tooth she had put under her pillow the night before and demands an explanation.  Sally unable to explains run away in tears. Kim confronts Alex on being so harsh.

The next day, still fighting over Alex’s displace of Sally, Kim and Alex head downtown to finalize some business leaving Sally alone with Harris and the cook.  Kim again confronts Alex about how he handles Sally and how she is acting out, but refusing to listen; Alex gets out and walks to the meeting, leaving Kim alone to wonder what is going on with Sally. Back at the Manor things are beginning to go downhill. Sally again sneaks off into the basement with a flash light (seriously, this little girl is asking for trouble). Sally tries to befriend the creatures in the fireplace. She offers them raisins and asks if she can see them. She shines the light into the fireplace, but the creatures hiss back at her saying they don’t like the light, she turns it off and the creatures begin to venture forward…”hungry” the say… “hungry”. Just then Harrison rushes down the stairs with his flashlight and points it at the fireplace sending the creatures plunging back into the deep. He asks Sally who she was talking to and when she replies’s No One he yells at her go get upstairs. Sally rushes out of the basement and as Harris makes his way backwards towards the stairs the creatures begin to come towards him and attack him. Knocking the flashlight out of his hand, they cut him with scissors, a razor, a knife and other objects. The scissors they stick into his collar bone. Harris climbs bleeding out of the basement and collapses in the entry way in front of Sally and the cook. 

Kim and Alex arrive home to see Harris being taken to the hospital. The cook cry’s that she tried to keep Sally from seeing it, but she was to slow. Realizing what Sally must have seen, Kim (NOT ALEX) rushes off to find her.  Kim finds Sally hiding in the tree, after coxing her down Kim takes her to a fountain in the middle of the garden with strange Japans fish in it. Sally tells Kim again that she didn’t cut her cloths. Kim hugs her and says that it’s ok. Thus the Step-mother – child bond begins.

Night comes again (it’s like ALWAYS night in this movie) and the creatures have made their way into Sally’s room and they lay in wait under her bed. Sally sits wide awake in her bed with her flashlight. One of the creature’s craws up under the covers and Sally sees the sheets move at the end of the bed. With her flashlight in had she looks under the bed, only to come face to face with the evil creature. She screams and Alex and Kim come running into the room.  Kim hugs her…Alex’s solution…to call a therapist.

The next day the therapist arrives, but this is not Sally’s first time.  She sits there drawing and answering the doctor’s questions. She tells him about the creatures that she believes are evil fairies. She tells him that they are her friends and that they told her that her parents don’t lover her. The therapist tells Alex and Kim that Sally is imagining the creatures and shows the pictures Sally drew to them. Alex feels better, but Kim questions it, especially after what has been happening.

Alex and Kim go out the next night; Alex is finalizing some more details for the Open House. Kim drops him off and heads to speak with Harris at the hospital. The cook and a few workers are around the house and keeping an eye on Sally. Sally goes and gets into the bath to get ready for work and while she is in the tub the creatures attack her. They shut off the light and remove the doorknob. The creatures start to attack Sally in the tub and she screams for help brining the cook and workers running.  They break through the door sending the creatures running into hiding.

Meanwhile Kim meets with a critically injured Harris who tells her to…Get HER OUT! And instructs her to go to the library and ask for the Blackwood collection.  At the library, Kim asks the librarian to show her the books and writings of Blackwood’s work, explaining that she is working at the house. The librarian leads her into the back vaults and explains to her that Blackwood’s son went missing when he was 8 yrs old and a few days later Blackwood himself went missing.   Surprised to hear this Kim questions the librarian some more. He explains that Blackwood drew some different types of pictures at the end of his life. He drew and wrote about ancient fairies that lived of the boons and teeth of children. In the writings by Blackwood he mentioned that the fairies must take one victim (child or adult) every time they emerge so they can survive until the next. Kim realizes that Blackwood’s drawings are similar to Sally’s. Kim turns to leave but just as she is leaving the librarian mentions that there is a mural in the house somewhere that Blackwood did before he died and he would love to see it if Kim comes across it. Kim is surprised again; she knew nothing of a mural.

Upon arriving home, Kim and Alex hear what has happened to Sally. Running upstairs, they realize that Sally is gone. Alex, undisturbed explains that Sally has done this before. Kim runs down to the basement and pulls back a huge tarp covering the far wall, only to uncover a huger mural of a child being sacrificed to the fairies. Convinced that Sally is telling the truth she tries to convince Alex while they head out to look for Sally. Unbelieving, Alex feels his point is backed when they find Sally walking down the road in the dark. Kim disappointed in Alex doesn’t bring the subject up again.

Later that night Kim is awaken by Sally lying on the end of their bed. Kim carries Sally back into her room (where is the father?? Blind). Sally wakes up and begs Kim not to leave, promising to stay the night they fall asleep together. In the middle of the night Kim wakes up, seeing that Sally is asleep and safe Kim tucks Sally in with the teddy bear and heads back to her room , but the creatures where lying in wait under Sally’s bed.

Once Kim is gone, the creatures come out. They knock over the night light waking Sally up. She grabs the flash light and shines it over the room, seeing the fairies running from the light, Sally screams and Alex and Kim come running.  Holding Sally, Kim (not the father) notices that the night light and teddy bear are broken and torn to pieces. Kim believes Sally.

The next night is finally the open house. Kim is helping Sally get ready and she finds Alex’s razor in Sally’s drawer. Sally’s explains that it is for protection from the fairies. She says that the only thing that hurts them is bright light. Kim gives Sally her camera (one of those really old Polaroid’s – who still has those!). Sally spends the evening taking pictures of the guess, until she hears a small sound in the flowers. It is a fairies. She snaps a picture…giving her proof. She rushing to show her father, but he ignores her and heads upstairs to find out where Kim is. Kim is in Sally’s room packing Sally’s things. They fight and Alex convinces Kim to stay until after the open house.  

At the dinner table, Sally tries to keep the picture safe so she sticks it under her legs, but while Alex is speaking one of the creatures comes and grabs it away. Sally goes under the table chasing it. She follows the creature out the dining hall and into the office/library.  Behind her the door slams and the creatures lock her in. They begin to torment her, pulling her hair, jump on her, Sally desperately tries to keep them away from her by taking pictures. She screams and the guests, Alex and Kim (who is still upstairs) hears her and come running.  Alex is unable to get in the door; Kim push’s her way to the front of the crowd and tries to get the door open. The fairies grab the camera and begin to rush away with it and Sally slides the bookcase into one of them killing it. As the camera hits the ground the door fly’s open. Sally rushes to Kim and embraced, Alex tells the guests it is time to call it a night. Crying Sally shows Kim her “proof” but it doesn’t show the creature, just her.

Alex still doesn’t believe Kim or Sally. He puts Sally to bed, alone, again, while she is crying and goes down to look at the mural. Finally he agrees to leave. He goes to start the car and Kim goes to pack.

Realizing that time is running out the fairies kick it into high gear, in the garage they close the door locking Alex in. They jump down on top of him and knock him out. The fairies go to the power box and cut the wires, plunging the entire Manor into darkness. Kim, now standing in complete darkness takes the flashlight from Sally’s bedside table and starts to look around for Alex. She hears whispering in the dark and as she makes her way down the stairs, she trips on a wire (just like the maid had done all those years ago). Kim hits the ground, knocking herself out.

Sally wakes up as she hears Kim’s unconscious body hit the ground. Realizing the flashlight is gone she takes the camera and goes to find Kim. Seeing her unconscious, Sally rushes up to her but the fairies swarm her. Trying desperately to keep them at bay with the flash from the camera she attempts to revive Kim. In the garage, the worthless father as finally come-too and is trying to get out, but the fairies have locked him in. Breaking the glass he tries to undo the lock. Back at the Manor the fairies knock the camera from Sally’s hand and drag her screaming into the basement. Kim awakes, and hears Sally’s cries. She rushes down the stairs to see the fairies pulling Sally into the fireplace. Kim turns the flashlight on them and they scatter. She tugs on the rope attempting to free Sally. Sally takes the flashlight from Kim and points it at the creatures. Kim begins to desperately try to cut at the rope.

Kim looks at Sally and tells her that once she has cut the rope, she needs to run. The rope snaps and Kim is dragged to the fireplace. The rope is around her knees and as the creatures pull, Kim’s knees snap backwards and she disappears into the darkness of the fireplace. Alex who has finally gotten out of the garage breaks down the doors as he goes he rushes down the basement, but he is too late.  Sally is standing there crying. Suddenly Kim appears at the entrance to the fireplace. Alex rushes over to grab her hand, but she slips and is gone.  Apologizing to the crying little girl he guides he from the house.

Time passes, we don’t know how much, but Sally and Alex return to the Manor during the day. A sign hangs on the door saying Foreclosure. Sally has her hair cut into Kim’s style and she puts a piece of paper down on the group of a picture of her and Kim by the fountain that says “I love you Kim.” They leave the house.

The drawing drifts down into the basement and into the fireplace, which has been re-bolted. You hear the fairies whispering what will they do the house is empty again.  Suddenly Kim’s voice is heard…. "We have all the time in the world," and the other fairies agree saying, "Yes, we have all the time in the world."

This movie wasn’t scary at all. It didn’t have a surprise or twist or anything. To be honest the acting was also pretty pitiful and it just wasn’t very real. It was almost like they acted blindly through it. You never felt like you were part of the movie or amazed by how it took you on an adventure. It was basically a boring move and not something I would recommend to even my worst enemy.

Next is Apollo 18. I hope that is better. I want a good horror movie! Pure Horror!!!