The Gothic Horror Movie With A True Blood Star You Won’t Find On Netflix
The main actress in True Blood who plays Sookie Stackhouse, Anna Paquin, has been in many different movies and TV shows. However, none did quite so badly as Darkness. This film is difficult to find due to its bad reviews but actually might be worth watching if you like horror movies that make you think and build up tension slowly.
The Premise
Not to be confused with Darkness Falls or The Darkness, Darkness is about an American family of four who decide to move back to the Spanish countryside, where the father, Mark (Ian Glen), lived until 40 years ago after he and six other children were kidnapped.
As if reliving history, the daughter Regina (Anna Paquin), notices something is wrong in the house, but her mother, Maria (Lena Olin), doesn’t seem to think anything is really out of the ordinary. Regina works to protect her younger brother, Paul (Stephan Enquist), from the darkness encroaching closer and closer to their family.
Slow Burns
Darkness is directed by Jaume Balagueró, a director known for making viewers uneasy with projects like like REC and Sleep Tight. While many horror movies rely on jump scares to get their viewer’s hearts pumping, Jaume prefers to build up tension with the ever-growing creepy atmosphere and story.
That’s not to say there are no jump scares, the movie does plenty fine without them. The story itself carries most of the horrifying moments and the devolving family gives the viewer a sense of unease in Darkness, similar to Edgar Allen Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher.
Not A Critical Darling
On IMDb, Darkness gets a standard mixed review of 5.4 out of 10. However, the reviews are much more negative on Rotten Tomatoes. Fans on this platform gave an average score of 31 percent, while critics were absolutely against the film with an average score of five percent.
While the general public doesn’t appear to enjoy the film, there are still plenty of people online who do.
One of the positives of Darkness according to fans is the fact that the movie makes you think. It deviates from the standard popular slasher films out there that are just full of blood and gore.
A Great Ending
Additionally, the acting is actually rather impressive. While all the actors do well, Anna Paquin shines in her role as the daughter and the leading actor in the film.
Another thing that fans of the movie praise is its unique conclusion.
Stream It Now
Those who didn’t like the movie said primarily that the story was slow, with poor dialogue and a plot that just doesn’t quite make sense. Some behaviors and interactions have a very forced feeling to them and don’t always make a lot of sense.
Due to its low ratings and lack of a large fan base, it’s not easy to find Darkness. While there are thankfully some streaming platforms that still have it, you do have to pay extra to rent or buy it. Darkness is available on Apple TV, VUDU, and Amazon Video.
