Night of Dark Shadows

I think all the fans agree on one thing about this movie: it's the deleted scenes and the horrible editing job that prevent this movie from being the great ghost story it should be. But for me, having seen it just once on television, it could also do something about the extrenuous extra characters in the movie with vague connections to the ghost. The best ghost story only really needs the people who see the ghost and the ghost itself/herself. All the extra roles, the handyman, the psycho maid, the neighbors just barely provide the Collins some breathing room from the ghosts. Lara Parker does a very good job playing etherial and ephemeral as she portrays the ghost lurking just out of your mind's eye. David Selby and Kate Jackson have a wonderful chemistry, but the hestiant romance as well as the unnecessary flashbacks also do much to impair the flow of the story. John Karlen and Nancy Barrett, two of my faves from the series (John has a wonderful voice for mimmickry and Nancy's beauty has no bounds), seem to be only present to remind the watcher that this movie is based on a television series. Grayson Hall, much like Bette Davis, does a wonderful job playing a sinister and unpredictable old bat of a housekeeper. As a whole, the film is rather fair, but what it lacks in the style of a ghost movie such as The Legend Of Hell House, it more than makes up in atmosphere.

This is the 2nd film inspired by the late 1960s gothic soap opera Dark Shadows. Having done a bang-up job with the first movie (House of Dark Shadows), they decided to go a different direction here.

There is no lead vampire Barnabas Collins. There is, however, a great setting in a big famous old house that has gothic fun written all over it! This setting, and the fine performances by David Selby, Kate Jackson, Lara Parker, and Grayson Hall help immensely.

The story and final product, however, suffer due to major studio-ordered edits. We are left with a poorly strung together and not very scary narrative, and only an occasional mild chill. Too bad, because Dan Curtis knows how to make beautifully-filmed gothic stories, but his hands were tied and the result is disappointing. It's worth a look for curiosity factor and setting, for fans of the series, and for the great cast.

Many DARK SHADOWS fans who saw this dislike it because of the eleventh hour editing that MGM insisted on before the release date-drastic cutting.As it remains,a cool 70s gothic horror story is still there to enjoy.There is so much haunting atmosphere and brilliant camera work,along with top-notch acting,to sustain interest.I felt confused at points,due to the savage cutting,but still felt totally absorbed.This movie is like bizzaro DS!Character's names sound familiar,but that's it.This is a fresh story utilizing the DS TV series universe.

Perhaps few fans would agree, but I actually find this a more satisfying film than the predecessor, House of Dark Shadows. The script is more interesting--even with all the cuts (depending upon which version of the original script you consult, something like an hour of the final cut running time was excised, and MGM only gave Sam Hall and Dan Curtis one working day to make the cuts). There is still more character development in this film than in House of Dark Shadows. The cast is excellent, with a great chemistry, thanks to the fact that they had all worked together for several years on Dark Shadows as an ensemble before they made this film. Standouts include the young David Selby in the dual role as Quentin and Charles, Lara Parker as the evil Angelique, and John Karlen and Nancy Barrett in minimal roles as the young couple in the cottage. Grayson Hall is, as always, in a league of her own as Carlotta Drake, the Mrs Danvers-like housekeeper. With her elegant wardrobe and sinister glances, Grayson gives this film an alluring atmosphere of lingering evil waiting to pounce upon the bored and feckless yuppies who stumble into her web. Thayer David makes a great deal out of the small role of Reverend Strack. James Storm is pretty much wasted in the role of Gerard. Diana Millay, Clarice Blackburn, and Christopher Pennock have memorable little cameos. The score by Robert Cobert features the beautiful love theme (originally titled "Joanna" and used in the final season of Dark Shadows) which lends an air of wistful romance to the otherwise flat onscreen relationship between Selby and Kate Jackson.

Too bad the harried writer and producer didn't manage to film in the climactic seance sequence; in the theatrical trailer to the film, included on the laser disc version, you can see a couple of brief moments from this.

... inspired by the TV soap and directed by Dan Curtis. Eschewing the Barnabas Collins/vampire side of things, this follow-up to 1970's House of Dark Shadows concerns heir David Selby and his wife Kate Jackson (in her debut) taking up residence in his ancestral family manor. Unfortunately for the happily married couple, the house is haunted by the amorous spirit of Angelique (Lara Parker), a reputed witch who was killed centuries earlier. Her presence causes Selby to recall his past life as Angelique's illicit lover, and the scene is set for murder and torment.

This is told in roughly three sections: from Selby's point of view as the past-life mystery is unfolding; then from Jackson's point of view as she realizes something is dreadfully amiss with her husband; and then the final third as everyone tries to survive/put an end to things. Some things work here, but a lot more don't. There are some good, moody scenes, when the music and gauzy cinematography create an appropriately spectral ambiance. But there are lengthy deadly-dull stretches, and the performances are just barely adequate.