Darkness (2004)

4% of critics liked it
(52 reviews)
37% of users liked it
(28,273 ratings)

Directed by Jaume Balagueró, Darkness follows father and husband Mark (Iain Glen), his wife (Lena Olin), and their two children (Anna Paquin and Stephan Enquist) on their move to an outwardly quaint country home. Though the initial housewarming party is widely celebrated by neighbors, their… More Directed by Jaume Balagueró, Darkness follows father and husband Mark (Iain Glen), his wife (Lena Olin), and their two children (Anna Paquin and Stephan Enquist) on their move to an outwardly quaint country home. Though the initial housewarming party is widely celebrated by neighbors, their houseguests become steadily fewer as a series of creepy happenings indicate that the house is home to more than their family. Sure enough, the lights begin to flicker incessantly on and off, while Mark's Huntington's disease makes a comeback after a ten-year dormancy. Regina (Paquin) expects that the problem stems from the house itself, but no one believes her. Determined to prove her case (particularly after mysterious noose marks begin to appear on her brother's neck), Regina decides to pay a visit to the man (Fermi Rexach) who built the house to begin with. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 42 min.
Directed By: Jaume Balagueró
Written By: Fernando de Felipe
Genres: Horror

In Theaters: Oct 19, 2004 Wide
On DVD: Apr 26, 2005
Studio: Miramax Films

Critic Reviews

J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader
As in most bad horror flicks, intimations of unspeakable evil are supposed to distract us from the yawning gaps in story logic and character motivation.
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
We know that the house is haunted, because the family who's just moved in has to deal with the lights always flickering out. They should have called the movie The Fuse Box Horror.
Matt Weitz, Dallas Morning News
Plot elements exist for their own sake, with little or no explanation or relationship to each other, leaving the story such a muddle that it's hard to tell if the actors are doing their jobs.
Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle
It's unoriginal, frequently incomprehensible and cheaply made, and moviegoers should avoid theaters that show this film just to eliminate the chance of walking in accidentally.
David Blaylock, Village Voice
Moments hint at a metaphoric statement on child abuse, but the film proves mainly to be a commentary on poor electrical wiring.
Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
Although director Balaguero displays a talent for spooky visuals and creating an atmosphere of quietly simmering tension, his screenplay (co-written by Fernando de Felipe) is a compendium of barely connected scenes that ultimately lapse into incoherence.
Felix Vasquez Jr., Cinema Crazed
There's the draw from the audience of potential scares and the good cast, but there's nothing ever delivered to us.
Mark Halverson, Sacramento News & Review
This baffling, unintentionally sidesplitting horror show has opened just in time to qualify as the worst film of the year.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...ultimately comes off as nothing less than a total disaster.
Ken Fox, TV Guide's Movie Guide
All of this, of course, would be forgivable if it added up to a scary movie or made even a lick of sense (chunks appear to have been cut out of a longer cut of the film), but Balaguero manages to disappoint on every possible front.
, Time Out
Even as the darkness closes in, there is never any real sense of dread. The slow-burning terror soon fizzles out, as does the damp squib of an ending.
, Empire Magazine
Back to horror school for you, Señor Balagueró.
Nathan Rabin, AV Club
A plodding, portentous horror thriller in which a spooky child figures prominently and people speak in hushed tones about sinister doings.
Kevin Carr, 7M Pictures
There's still a lot of European feel to Darkness, which can sometimes be off-putting to American audiences.
Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com
Too many plot and character lapses for comfort, even in the traditionally logic-flouting horror genre.
, Empire Magazine
Back to horror school for you, Señor Balagueró.
Bill Clark, FromTheBalcony
It's unfortunate that the film is called Darkness because this means it will soon be relegated to the Wal Mart bargain bin next to 2003's stinker Darkness Falls.
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
A good case of style over substance.
Michael Szymanski, International Press Academy
The film is dark, and a bit slowly paced in parts, but it's worth watching.
Nick Schager, Lessons of Darkness
There's nothing very frightening about this shallow, stupid spookfest.

Read all 23 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

J P

Such a suck ass movie. The acting and script are so awful it makes me nauseous. The entire plot was horribly executed as well. It was such a boring movie. I would also like the punch in the face whoever did the film editing. Some parts were trying to be suspenseful, but the film… More
Such a suck ass movie. The acting and script are so awful it makes me nauseous. The entire plot was horribly executed as well. It was such a boring movie. I would also like the punch in the face whoever did the film editing. Some parts were trying to be suspenseful, but the film editing was so awful it seemed like the movie was having a seizure. In one part where the lights go off, the camera is focused on the father's bleeding hand, then it switches upstairs to the boy's room, then rushes outside and focuses on some swings in the rain (wtf??? so random), then goes back to the father's hand, then goes upstairs, then goes downstairs where the mother is trying to turn on the lights....it's like the movie has freakin ADD. This movie needs some medication. The potential was there, but everything else was not.
Lewis C

Boring does not even begin to describe Darkness. Three times, I've attempted to watch the entirety of Darkness. Three times. The results? A brisk walk out of the movie theater after 20 minutes on attempt number one, a pleasant, unplanned nap after 24 minutes during attempt number… More
Boring does not even begin to describe Darkness. Three times, I've attempted to watch the entirety of Darkness. Three times. The results? A brisk walk out of the movie theater after 20 minutes on attempt number one, a pleasant, unplanned nap after 24 minutes during attempt number two, and a quick trip to the garbage can to make a dvd "deposit" after the 30 minute mark on my final try. Netflix, I'm sorry I threw away your dvd, but I truly think that I did you (and the world) a favor.
Dean !

This is an ok thriller/horror.....but it's one of those that is all about the build up with a slightly disappointing ending. If you like ghost story type films you may enjoy it more.
Jacob P

I thought the story to this was pretty good, but it just got really slow in some parts. But It's still a pretty good horror flick.
Laura C

Too convoluted to be scary or even entertaining.
Jason S

An effective, if not overly spooky. The premise is curious, but the delivery is poorly concieved. The cinematography is great though, and really sets the mood of creepiness and dread.
The S

Not as bad as many critics have said - it is true that it is disappointing in terms of plot and script but there is some creepy atmosphere occurring and the cast are good although outgunned by its weaknesses.
Laurence C

A glacial and derivative horror/thriller that fails to do anything with its interesting (if routine) concept, Darkness is a strictly been-there-done-that inclusion to the Haunted House horror subgenre. While Balaguero manages to stage some briefly frightening moments, the end… More
A glacial and derivative horror/thriller that fails to do anything with its interesting (if routine) concept, Darkness is a strictly been-there-done-that inclusion to the Haunted House horror subgenre. While Balaguero manages to stage some briefly frightening moments, the end result is a hodgepodge of phony dialogue cut in-between pointless creepy moments. There are quite a few unintentional laughs scattered all over, and Balaguero has noticeable trouble in ably directing his performers, but there's nothing really atrocious on display here. Lena Olin and Anna Paquin have unquestionably been a lot better, but they are not bad enough to deserve mockery. Iain Glen, however, kind of sucks. Although I loved the subtle, anticlimactic conclusion, there's not much to recommend here. They tried making a scary movie; they failed. No big deal. Try again, guys.
Janice :

end is really disappointing...