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"House of Dark Shadows", the first feature based on the fondly remembered Gothic soap opera is both exciting and schlocky - sometimes concurrently. Director Dan Curtis (on a very low budget) took what on television was an extremely lengthy introduction and history of the Barnabas Collins character and crammed all he could of it into a 96 minute film. Most of the television cast are here to recreate their parts, chief among them Jonathan Frid as everyone's favorite Vampire. When surly caretaker Willie Loomis (John Karlen) foolishly frees him from his coffin where he has been sleeping for almost 200 years, Barnabas heads for the Collins family mansion and introduces himself as a cousin from England. Both the matriarch of the family, Elizabeth Stoddard (Joan Bennett) and her brother Roger Collins (Louis Edmonds) welcome him and immediately install him in the "old house" which, in fact, is Barnabas' original home. Though the plot has a few twists not seen in the series, the story is still pretty familiar.Sure enough, Barnabas soon has his way with Elizabeth's daughter Carolyn (Nancy Barrett)and she becomes one of his first victims. Although such familiar characters as Professor Stokes (Thayer David) Jeff Clark (Roger Davis) young David Collins (David Henesy) and Todd Jennings (Donald Briscoe) appear, their functions are relatively brief. The two chief supporting females upon whom the plot really turns are Maggie Evans (Kathryn Leigh Scott) the beautiful governess who bears a striking resemblance to Josette Du Pres, Barnabas' first love, and Dr. Julia Hoffman (Grayson Hall) an old family friend writing a history of the Collins family. For seemingly different reasons, both are attracted to Barnabas, and both get more than they bargained for when they become involved with him. The film is fast-paced, predictably gory, and occasionally unintentionally humorous, with loopholes big enough to drive a hearse through. Fans of the show will have a definite edge over new viewers because little is done to introduce the uninitiated to the characters (most of whom quickly go under the tooth anyway) and background of the story.It's also a shame that the still-beautiful Bennett has little to do. Still, it's sincerely acted by all, boasts a superior score by Robert Cobert (much of it recycled from the series),and some beautiful photography. "House of Dark Shadows" is one place you'll want to explore.

HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS (1970) is the movie-house version of the then popular Gothic Soap Opera. The film's plot is a re-tracing of the TV series. Willie Loomis (John Karlen), while robbing a New England crypt, accidently awakens 200 year old vampire Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid's moment of immortality!) Barnabas comes upon his modern descendants as a "long lost relative from England" leaving out the one little detail about being 200 years old. In the meantime, he is secretly feasting on victims. He enjoys a temporary cure, via a local doctor. What makes this film unique is how this murderous vampire is worthy of sympathy, the tender but extremely haunting encounter the pre-teen Collins boy has with his dead sister, and the rather doomsday style climax. This gem came at a time when decent horror films were a rarity. (Relaxed censorship let about 90% of the horror directors depend more on gore and sex).

'Dark Shadows' is one of those shows that wholly deserves its popularity and its reputation as a classic. There are a few films based on it, and while they're all watchable in varying ways quality-wise they're mixed.

By far the best of them is this, 'House of Dark Shadows'. To me also, it's the only film to be as good as the show, not quite on the same level but almost as good. Its only real problems are some characters not given enough screen time or development, especially Elizabeth and Maggie, and Joan Bennett being very underused as Elizabeth that she doesn't shine anywhere near as much as in the show.

'House of Dark Shadows' however is visually an improvement over the show's production values, with the exception of a couple of goofs and bloopers which didn't hurt the film at all. The production and costume design are lavish and splendidly Gothic, and it's all photographed stunningly and boasts some surprisingly good special effects. The music is suitably moody, and evokes a real eeriness.

The script has a good balance of the funny and the tense, and the story is never dull, is always fun and has some real nerve-shredding tension and bone-chilling shock. The highlight was the somewhat poetic ending, which is also a masterclass in sheer galvanising horror and incredible Gothic imagery. There is a good deal of gore, but it's used chillingly and is never overused or gratuitous. Dan Curtis directs beautifully and intelligently, never once undermining the tension, suspense or horror and doesn't make the mistakes of not having enough of either or over-crowding the film with them.

Most of the characters are interesting, particularly Barnabas and Julia, and the wonderful chemistry between the actors in the show translates every bit as wonderfully here. The acting is uniformly good, with only Bennett not shining as much as she could have done due to being so underused. Jonathan Frid is terrifyingly magnetic, while Grayson Hall, Thayer David and Nancy Barrett are particularly strong in support.

All in all, by far the best of the 'Dark Shadows' films and the only one to be as good as the show. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Intelligently done, but bloody and violent story based on the hit TV show Dark Shadows from the late 60s. The plot revolves around vampire Barnabas Collins, who finds a cure to become human again so he can wed a beautiful girl. Genuinely creepy atmosphere, beautifully filmed and surprisingly first-rate acting by cast.

This is one of the best horror films of the '70's, and certainly the best vampire flick of that decade. Based on the highly successful supernatural soap opera DARK SHADOWS, this feature film version of the ever popular series recounts the resurrection of Barnabas Collins(Jonathan Frid), a 175-year-old vampire who passes himself off as a modern-day descendant of the Collins clan. While staying at the Gothic Collinwood estate, Barnabas becomes entranced by a beautiful governess(Kathryn Leigh Scott) who bears a striking resemblance to his long-lost love, Josette, and determines to make the young woman his new bride. Few films based on Tv shows work, but HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS is an exception to that rule and like the TV series on which it is based, HOUSE OF DARK SHADOWS has developed into a cult classic over the years. Like its sequel, 1971's NIGHT OF DARK SHADOWS, the film is currently under restoration. There are several sequences from both films missing. Hopefully, the generally unfavorable opinion of NIGHT will change once all of the missing footage has been recovered, and the film will then rank right up there along with its predecessor like it should.