Review of Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (1973) by Joe A — 01 Sep 2011

I saw this 70s TV movie horror classic as a kid when it first aired and it scared the heck out of me. I had trouble sleeping thinking the tiny demons from the film were under my bed and waiting to get me.

Now, upon revisiting it, I do still feel it has some creepy sequences but some problems too. The little demons and their eerie whispering are still effective even now but, it's the human characters that are problematic.

Kim Darby is just bland as the object of the demon's attention and Jim Hutton plays her husband like such an asshole that you can't stand him. That and the fact that there is no proper explanation as to what these creatures are, how they got there, and why do they need Sally specifically and not just any victim.

Chunks of the story seem missing. Was footage cut to fit in commercials or was it just written with the idea of remaining vague. And my biggest question is, why William Demarest's handyman claims to only know something isn't right with the house, yet, when in the basement and he encounters the creatures, they talk to him like they know him,and, he responds as if he knows them too.

It's never clarified. Even when the husband comes to him later for answers, he never mentions his encounter or that he knows exactly was going on. If he's going to warn them, why not tell them everything? There is still a nostalgic charm attatched to this so, I count this as a favorite despite seeing it now through the eyes of an adult and not an 8 year old boy.