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DARK SHADOWS (2012)Movie Reviews
Comedy horror story about a playboy who is turned into a vampire and buried alive for two centuries, then returns to his family estate in the different world of 1972. Cast:Johnny Depp, Bella Heathcote, Eva Green, Helena Bonham Carter, Chloe Moretz, Gulliver McGrathDirector:Tim BurtonRelease Date:May 11, 2012DVD Release:October 2, 2012From:Warner Bros.Rating:PG-13Length:1 hr. 53 min.
Dark Shadows (2012) played to good not great reviews. • Moira Macdonald wrote in the Seattle Times, "...surreal... You keep wishing that the movie was either scarier or funnier, but it's nonetheless impossible to look away." • And Michael Phillips called the film in the Chicago Tribune, "...extremely familiar and oddly impersonal..." More Reviews Below...
Dark Shadows (2012) Positive Reviews (52 Reviews, reviews below)
Alynda Wheat, People: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...(mostly) succeeds because the actors are so funny and director Tim Burton has an expert eye... Still, after eight films together, the Johnny-Tim act is beginning to wear..."(See all of Alynda Wheat's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 208 words, 05/10/12
Richard Corliss, Time: MODERATE "...less a revival of the old show than a hit-or-miss parody pageant. This could be the pricey video record of a masquerade weekend that a group of bored glamorati spent..."(See all of Richard Corliss's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,500 words, 05/10/12
Christy Lemire, Associated Press: WEAK(cg) "...bogged down with an obsessive eye for period costumes (the work of Colleen Atwood) and interior details rather than offering anything resembling an engaging story."(See all of Christy Lemire's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 630 words, 05/10/12
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: EXCELLENT(cg) "Depp's performance is more than just funny -- it's ghoulishly endearing. He caresses each line with great care, as if it were a piece of candy he's unwrapping..."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 790 words, 05/11/12
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Props to Depp and a game-for-anything cast... But the pleasures are frustratingly hit-and-miss. In the end, it all collapses into a spectacularly gorgeous heap."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 376 words, 05/11/12
Claudia Puig, USA Today: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Burton's offbeat montages are amusing, but the story's slow start and overblown conclusion make 'Dark Shadows' half a good movie."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 374 words, 05/11/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...an elegant production without a central drive. It offers wonderful things, but they aren't what's important.... begins with great promise, but then the energy drains out."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 895 words, 05/11/12
Glenn Kenny, MSN Movies: EXCELLENT(cg) "Depp is having a ball as usual, bringing a balletic grace that's both eerie and funny to his undead man out of time. And raising his eyebrows very amusingly."(See all of Glenn Kenny's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 787 words, 05/09/12
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...the fact that it unearths enough fun while feeling like four films in one is testament to the source's seductive bloodline."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 522 words, 05/11/12
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "...an uncertain combination of elements that unsuccessfully tries to be half-scary, half-funny and all strange... all over the place..."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 836 words, 05/11/12
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: MODERATE(cg) "...feels like a place-holder, a meandering first draft of an adaptation of the supernatural soap opera.... extremely familiar and oddly impersonal..."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 514 words, 05/11/12
David Edelstein, New York Magazine: FAIR "I'm getting tired of the Burton-Depp mix of morbid self-pity and gonzo aggression. It was a great partnership for a while, but Burton needs a new mascot."(See all of David Edelstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,396 words, 05/14/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...an elegant production without a central drive. It offers wonderful things, but they aren't what's important.... begins with great promise, but then the energy drains out."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 895 words, 05/11/12
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "...in under two hours, Tim Burton's 'Dark Shadows' must distill the essence of a 1,225-episode story arc.... less a resurrection than a clumsy desecration."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 697 words, 05/09/12
Peter Howell, Toronto Star: POOR(cg) "It's as if they've given up trying to put on a good show, instead being content to create kooky characters and to move them across the screen like chess pieces on a board."(See all of Peter Howell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 658 words, 05/11/12
Stephen Cole, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "Depp is going for a London art school bohemian sound and look this time... Our vampire apparently wants to join The Moody Blues."(See all of Stephen Cole's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 517 words, 05/11/12
Josep Parera, La Opinion: GOOD(cg) "...nunca da la sensación de que sepa qué quiere realmente contar.... parece un boceto de lo que sería un guión acabado, con bromas que nunca llegan a buen fin..."(See all of Josep Parera's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 540 words, 05/11/12
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...episodic, overstuffed... movies aren't TV shows, and Burton can't keep this many characters in the air without dropping a few. (He's still terrible at pacing, too.)"(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 214 words, 05/10/12
KEY CITIES (13 Reviews)
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post: WEAK(cg) "...alternately antic and deadly dull.... There's little by way of a story... works as a glib, if attractively atmospheric, collage of winks and references."(See all of Ann Hornaday's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 639 words, 05/11/12
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD(cg) "...merrily macabre... Just when the whole vampire thing was beginning to feel old, Depp and Burton have come along to make it feel, well, very 1972 again."(See all of Steven Rea's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 650 words, 05/11/12
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: WEAK(cg) "All dressed up and no place to go.... It's a cool-looking film... But it seems hollow, somehow false, even by its own campy standards.... just doesn't try hard enough..."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 609 words, 05/11/12
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: VERY GOOD(cg) "...doesn't pretend to be anything more than an entertainment, but it recaptures the experience of watching the Gothic daytime soap opera with rapturous comic bliss."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 471 words, 05/11/12
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: MODERATE(cg) "...yes, some of it is very funny. Clearly, they made the movie they wanted to make. It's just not the movie this 'Dark Shadows' fan hoped to see."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 677 words, 05/11/12
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "...when you consider all the pitfalls avoided, and all the laughs and pleasures it provides along the way, 'Dark Shadows' is a satisfying and skillful effort."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 710 words, 05/11/12
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD(cg) "...as gracious and groovy as an 'Austin Powers' parody.... may be too light for vampire purists or fans of the original show, but fresh blood is just what the doctor ordered."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 385 words, 05/11/12
Steve Persall, Tampa Bay Times: MODERATE(cg) "Burton and Seth Grahame-Smith settle into the talky, pedestrian rhythms of the TV show, with subplots amounting to not much, no matter how archly they're presented."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 547 words, 05/10/12
Tom Long, Detroit News: WEAK(cg) "...nothing really catches fire. This has to be the most inert film Burton has ever made. A few fish-out-of-water jokes work, but it's all such tepid stuff."(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 308 words, 05/11/12
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: MODERATE(cg) "...isn't as dull as 'Alice in Wonderland' or as inert as 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,' but this one hurts more than those did because the potential was so great."(See all of Rene Rodriguez's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 653 words, 05/11/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (11 Reviews)
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "...in under two hours, Tim Burton's 'Dark Shadows' must distill the essence of a 1,225-episode story arc.... less a resurrection than a clumsy desecration."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 697 words, 05/09/12
Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend: POOR(cg) "Tim Burton used to be a phenomenal filmmaker. In the early years of his career he was making movies that looked like nothing else on the planet..."(See all of Eric Eisenberg's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 736 words, 05/10/12
Peter Keough, Boston Phoenix: VERY GOOD(cg) "Tim Burton's best film since 'Ed Wood'... features Burton's macabre wit, his fizzy mix of camp, nihilism, and unexpected beauty."(See all of Peter Keough's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 383 words, 05/10/12
Scott Tobias, AV Club: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Burton goes through the motions... as much as he feels at home among this family of misfits and beasts, 'Dark Shadows' doesn't have the conviction..."(See all of Scott Tobias's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 878 words, 05/10/12
Stephanie Zacharek, Movieline: MODERATE(cg) "...suffers from the now-predictable Tim Burton pile-on: Like a matron who's gone mad for garish jewelry, he just doesn't know when to stop."(See all of Stephanie Zacharek's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,125 words, 05/10/12
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...episodic, overstuffed... movies aren't TV shows, and Burton can't keep this many characters in the air without dropping a few. (He's still terrible at pacing, too.)"(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 214 words, 05/10/12
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: MODERATE "...amusing, in fits and spurts, but terribly familiar and fatigued.... Mr. Depp bites off less than he can chew by sampling bits and bytes of former roles..."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 243 words, 05/11/12
Anthony Lane, New Yorker: GOOD "...not very funny. It also fails to scare.... Still, Burton's film has something rare to its credit: it is possessed by magic... Burton is an alchemist of childish fancies..."(See all of Anthony Lane's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 928 words, 05/14/12
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "...an uncertain combination of elements that unsuccessfully tries to be half-scary, half-funny and all strange... all over the place..."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 836 words, 05/11/12
Dana Stevens, Slate: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...just another overcooked late-Tim Burton style-fest, with enough good gags and strong performances to keep the audience from dwelling on the flaws."(See all of Dana Stevens's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 993 words, 05/10/12
Andrew O'Hehir, Salon: VERY GOOD "...sure, it all comes unglued in the final 15 minutes... But it offers potent atmosphere and delirious '70s fashions and hilarious gags and some really terrific performances..."(See all of Andrew O'Hehir's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,530 words, 05/09/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (6 Reviews)
Justin Chang, Daily Variety: FAIR "...an extravagantly empty postmodern artifact, an object lesson in the perils of camping up a property that had no shortage of camp appeal to begin with."(See all of Justin Chang's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,126 words, 05/07/12
Todd McCarthy, Hollywood Reporter: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...the humor slithers between the clever and the sophomoric and the film too often seems willing to settle for mild humor at the expense of hippie-era mores..."(See all of Todd McCarthy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 991 words, 05/08/12
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "...an uncertain combination of elements that unsuccessfully tries to be half-scary, half-funny and all strange... all over the place..."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 836 words, 05/11/12
Emanuel Levy, Cinema 24/7: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a movie of singular touches and beautiful moments.... [but] the stunning images, set-pieces and special effects seldom congeal into a narrative that's coherent..."(See all of Emanuel Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 805 words, 05/08/12
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: MODERATE "...amusing, in fits and spurts, but terribly familiar and fatigued.... Mr. Depp bites off less than he can chew by sampling bits and bytes of former roles..."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 243 words, 05/11/12
18.3 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Dark Shadows (2012)'s reviews are separated by an average 18.3 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Dark Shadows (2012) (52 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Dark Shadows (2012)'s reviews cover 100.0% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 36,062 words involume (average is 20,172 words). Length:The film's reviews average 694 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 11.0 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Dark Shadows (2012)'s reviews on average broke 11.0 hours before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Dark Shadows (2012)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Dark Shadows (2012) (52 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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