Review of The Darkness (2016) by Chris M — 11 Sep 2016

If Darkness falls and everybody already saw it, did it ever really matter? In the case of producer Jason Blum's latest, which recycles themes and situations culled from his past successes, the answer is a resounding 'no.

' As Insidious and Sinister as the other horror flicks on Blum's CV, this Purge of his back catalogue filled with Paranormal Activity ends up as a case of Deja Boo all over again. The Darkness presents a family terrorized by an otherworldly presence that tests their sanity.

The audience's sanity, however, gets tested in the form of reusing those modern horror tropes of jump cuts and eardrum-rattling sound effects. Rather than craft an original ghost story, this thriller simply reaches into a bag that Blum must provide for all of his directors as a welcome gift.

In this PG-13-rated horror flick, a family (Bacon, Mitchell, et al) returns from a Grand Canyon vacation, haunted by an ancient supernatural entity they unknowingly awakened and engages them in a fight for their survival.

Wolf Creek director Greg McLean shows no distinctive difference in style than James Wan (Insidious) or Scott Derrickson (Sinister). Granted, their similar style of horror craftsmanship advanced them to comic book franchises (Wan: Aquaman; Derrickson: Doctor Strange), but the story quotient in their storytelling at least felt somewhat fresh at times.

McLean's time at bat simply feels like strike three. You could argue for some originality (his screenplay has the evil spirits unraveling the family from the inside out, each member's deep dark secret being preyed upon - dad has a wandering eye, mom is a recovering alcoholic, their daughter is a bulimic - until they turn on each other) but it's not enough to distinguish The Darkness as the kick-off to another hit franchise.

Bottom line: Hollow, Man.