Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark (2011)

Frightfest 2011 kicked off with Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark, a very old fashioned style horror, but one that has been perfectly timed for a new age.

Sally’s mother thinks its time for a change, and packs her off to live with her father Alex (Guy Pearce) and his new girlfriend Kim (Katie Holmes). Sally (Bailee Madison) is not at all happy with the new set up, or her father’s new girlfriend, and is less impressed with the house; that is until she finds a basement that it seems nobody else knows about. The discovery of the basement leads to some rather unexpected surprises, this includes a horde of tiny creatures that want to be Sally’s friend. Sally unhappy about her situation is more than happy to make new friends, but she soon realises that friendship is not really what the creatures are after.

Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark is remake of a 1973 made for television movie. Producer Guillermo Del Toro stated that as a young boy, maybe 13 years of age the movie scared the living shit out of him. And he was keen later on in life as a producer/director to obtain the rights and remake the movie; the quest took ten years to achieve.Far too busy with a number of other projects Del Toro handed over the director role to Troy Nixey.

The film is really quite delightful, if you can use the words delightful to describe a horror tale. It’s not the usual run of the mill horror fare, there is little blood and gore, although plenty of storyline to keep the film running along and a great pace. By far one of the most disturbing aspects of the film comes pre-credit, and features a deranged man smashing the teeth out from his maid, with a hammer and chisel, not before scraping it over her teeth a good few times.

The film features a fair few jumps or scares if you prefer, usually caused by high-speed action and booming sound. One particular scene involving Sally searching her bed for an intruder, led to the woman two seats away from me screaming out in horror, a real rarity for a horror movie festival screening, but a telling sign as to the impact of the movie.

There is a good mix of humour and suspense, and a really good use of all the cast. It’s 100 minute running time shoots by in a blink of an eye, and is an entirely rewarding experience.

If you’re fed up with the same old horror, then check this out. Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark is due in UK cinemas from in October (at the time of writing) and may already be showing in your country.