Fear of the Dark (2002)

IT WILL MAKE YOU FEAR THE DARK!!!

First of all, let me say that I do not enjoy slasher movies. In fact, I hate them and refuse to watch them. What I do love is suspense horror. 1408 would be a prime example. I think that this is why there are so many mixed reviews on this movie. Fear of the Dark has a PG-13 rating so it is obvious that this is not a blood fest kind of movie. So, if you are the kind of person who loves flesh cutting flicks, then do not watch this one. As for the other people out there who like to jump because of suspense, then you will love this movie. My family sat down to watch it and by the end of it, we had every light on in the house. July 25, 2008

Keep the lights on!

Had I seen this when I was a kid. There would have been a good chance I spent time in therapy. This isn't a very scary film, but its something I can relate to since I was afraid of the dark as a kid. I did all the basic things the main character did. Keep sometype of light on and keep all my bodyparts under the covers. This was a fun flick for me.

The main character is a 12 year old who has a chronic fear of the dark. Of course he's going to be told its his imagination. But soon others realize its more than that. The dark actually begins to reveal something terrifying. The boy and his older brother struggle against these creatures of the dark.

This movie reminds me of Boogeyman, but with the entertainment value. In which Boogeyman had none at all and lacked in every positive way imaginable. The special effects are low budget but still delivered. The creature designs were actually creepy and cool to see. The movie started out kind of slow but once it got started it never really slowed down. The suspense was always there to me. The faults that I found with this movie has to be the childish dialouge. When the kid explained his story at times he sounded a bit younger than 12. I also didn't care for the ending in the least bit. It could have been done alot better than this.

Fear of the Dark is a decent watch. Some may actually love it. Its very far from a horrible movie to me. You won't see any gore in this. Just your basic campy semi haunted house flick. I think its worth a watch. November 1, 2007

There is fear in "Fear of the Dark"

Okay, I'll admit right off that his film has plenty of silly nonsense in it, moments of bad acting, and poor dialogue; however, there is also plenty to enjoy too.

This story of an older child with an obsessive fear of the dark is enjoyable in spite of it's obvious flaws because we can all relate to this time period in our lives when we feared the "thing under our bed" and the "monster in the closet." Nearly every child has had a fear of the dark at some point in his or her life. This film exploits that fear and does so rather well.

We can also relate to the sibling rivalry and sibling love apparent in this film. The acting can be stiff in places and feel forced, but in most other places it is surprisingly sincere. I blame the director for this inconsistency more than the actors who can obviously act. It's the director that fails to get the best out of them on a few occasions.

By the way, the mother is played by the ageless wonder Linda Purl who was a television stable for two decades and most remembered as Andy Griffth's daughter on the series "Matlock" (sorry, no link as it hasn't been released on DVD yet). In any event, when you see her, you'd swear you were looking at an older, but still beautiful Charlize Theron.

Well, moving right along . . . The storyline is rather clever in spite of the "been there done that" feel to it. The dialogue is less than clever and certainly isn't consistent in quality as it ranges from sweet, sincere, and believable to corny, phony and clichéd. The actors again should be given credit for delivering these lines as best as they could.

The atmospheric direction, photography, and setting are where this story really excels. Nearly every room, closet, mirror, and corner has something lurking in it. This provides terrific suspense and numerous "jump up from your seat" moments.

I was pleasantly surprised with the overall quality of this film and it is rather family friendly for a horror flick. There is no sex, gore, or violence really. The PG-13 rating is for exactly what it says on the DVD box: "For Frightening Images." My kids (11 & 15) jumped and let out a small scream in a few places, but laughed right after that.

Simply put: this film is good popcorn fun for the whole family (ages 10 and up).
September 21, 2007

Great Seller/great movie

I love those movies that have those moments that just make you jump. This movie had a few of those. I enjoyed the movie and the seller got it to me quickly. It was also in great condition. September 21, 2007

Fear of the Dark

What a surprise. I love a good scary movie!! This one was a sensational spooker. Far better than I ever expected. Do not miss it, if you like horror shows. I've seen a whole lot of scarry shows and very few are any good at all, but this movie will keep you glued to the screen. It has some really cool music to go with it,too. I searched all over for its theme, but I never found it. If you miss this show, you'll miss out on a great movie. I've never seen one quite like it. March 17, 2007

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