"Dark Shadows" is light fun

Rating: 7/10 (18 May 2012)

When I was a kid, I used to watch the Gothic vampire soap opera "Dark Shadows" after school. I was a little apprehensive when I heard a movie version was out, but I am a huge Johnny Depp fan and ventured out to see it.
I was quite pleased. In this version, Depp is the troubled vampire Barnabas Collins, who wakes after being trapped in his coffin for 200 years. He arrives home in 1972, returning to his family's mansion in Maine, and proceeds to attempt to straighten out the mess a curse has brought on his dysfunctional descendants.
What follows is two hours of a predictable plot with some great '70s jokes and sight gags. One thing that makes this movie enjoyable is it is played for laughs without being slapstick or stupid. The other thing that makes it go is the cast. Depp is again amazing as he marries himself to the role. Add in Michelle Pfieffer, Helena Bonham Carter and Eva Green and you have a cast that works well. Also in the mix is a cameo by Christopher Lee and a performance by Alice Cooper under the disco ball. Add it all together and this one gets a good three out of Fordyce. Go and enjoy.
Credit Check: Nothing happens after the credits, but stay and listen for the groovy song by Eric Carmen.