Am I the only one who liked this?

Rating: 6/10 (28 May 2012)

I have to say, after reading all of the user reviews, it seems like this movie started some sort of angry mob to chase Tim Burton out of film making for good. Seems to me everyone hated this film which apparently lacked depth, storytelling, interest and many other things. However, I feel Dark Shadows was at least an improvement over the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Alice in Wonderland remakes Burton has force-fed us in the past.
That may not sound like a great recommendation, and it's certainly not to suggest this film ranks anywhere near the Burton genius of Big Fish, but I felt the movie was genuinely entertaining to say the least. Unlike my fellow user reviewers, I felt the awkward combination of darkness and comedy was quite refreshing. Just as this movie seems to settle into gentle family comedy, somebody gets randomly murdered and you're left with that great, awkward feeling where you want to laugh but somehow know it's morally wrong somehow. Truly such a laugh is guaranteed in a viewing of Dark Shadows as many of the serious moments come completely out of left field and often left me confused, but amused as well. The genre-bending nature of the film often kept me interested, as the narrative was a far cry from the goofy comedy promised by the trailer.
That being said, it is hard to deny there are significant flaws here. The story has some random, gaping plot holes and several 'deus ex machina' style resolutions to many of the central conflicts, but that almost makes it more endearing and satirical of the soap opera style the story is derived from. Truth be told, I've never seen the soap opera, but my mother assures me it was not funny; rather, it was often creepy. Be that as it may, Dark Shadows is enjoyable enough for a night at the movies, and certainly worth the time contrary to how boring some apparently find it. Quite frankly, this is an entertaining movie you can have fun with and not think too hard about if you don't want to. At the same time, if you enjoy running comparisons to old soap operas and enjoying campy, self-reflexive film making, there's room for that too.