Lighthearted and entertaining

Rating: 6/10 (13 May 2012)

I went to a cinema without high expectations, since I didn't enjoy Burton's latest work 'Alice in Wonderland'; however, I was pleasantly surprised. Sure, it isn't a masterpiece, or as brilliant as some of the Burton's best work, such as 'Ed Wood', but it was entertaining enough. I haven't watched the original series, so maybe I'm not competent enough to judge, but I must say that as a fan of classical vampire movies (and novels), I wasn't disappointed. Yes, it's a comedy, but not a slapstick kind of comedy. And, yes, it actually does have that dark Gothic appeal which is desired in this type of movie.
Depp delivers a standard good performance; however, there is nothing especially new, iconic or unique about it. In my opinion, Eva Green stands out and quite possibly steals the show. As for the rest of the cast, they all did pretty much impressive job, especially Michelle Pfeiffer.
Visuals are stunning, as usual when it comes to Tim Burton. Soundtrack is amazing as well: a perfect combination of Danny Elfman's original score and songs popular at the time.
*SPOILERS BELOW*
I expected this movie to be a typical 'good guy vs. bad guy' (or in this case 'bad girl') flick and one of the biggest reasons why I was pleasantly surprised is that it didn't turn out to be like that. Many characters are 'evil' in different ways and almost all of them have some dark secrets. Sure, Angelique did some pretty nasty stuff, but in the end the audience can sympathize with her (just as they can sympathize with Gary Oldman's Dracula). After all, most of her evil actions were caused by an unrequited love. In the end, Barnabas told her she was incapable of love, but I think that she proved him wrong by (literally) giving him her heart. On the other hand, Barnabas was almost as mean as Angelique. I'm not talking about him killing the construction workers and hippies; after all he's a vampire and that's his way of survival. However, I didn't think what Julia had done was so unforgivable and that he justifiably killed her. Yes, she tried to use him (for both sexual and 'immortal' purposes), but she did that because she was messed up and generally weak, not because she had genuinely evil intentions. Also, using hypnosis on a loyal fisherman in order to change his mind and having sex with Angelique to "save Vicky's honor" (what the!) wasn't very honorable of him. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind Barnabas being mean, I actually like it; I just didn't see that coming in this kind of move.
I find the whole 'Carolyn turning into werewolf' thing somewhat forced and rushed and I wish they had more time to develop that subplot or to remove it completely.
Ending with Vicky begging Barnabas to bite her and him first refusing and then doing it when she's about to die kind of reminded me of those 'Twilight' movies (which I absolutely dislike), but luckily it lasts for only a couple of minutes and doesn't ruin the whole experience. And those who haven't seen 'Twilight' most likely wouldn't mind that scene at all.
In the end, I have to say that 'Dark Shadows' isn't a film that will stay in your mind for a long time or haunt your dreams, but given a fair chance, it can make you laugh and amuse you for two hours.
I give it 6/10.