Dark Shadows

Rated: PG-13

Running time: 1 hour 52 minutes

Directed by Tim Burton

Starring: Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter and Eva Green

Tim Burton is a WAC (Weird Ass Cat), there’s no other way to put it. Johnny Depp can’t be far behind either since this is the 8^th Tim Burton movie he has starred in. Although in this flick, he did a pretty outstanding job as Barnabas Collins. It isn’t his best role but it isn’t his worst. I got the impression from watching the movie that Depp appeared to be enjoying himself with the role (which is more than I can say about the last Pirates movie).

The movie starts out in the late 1700’s in Maine when Barnabas is just a young lad and manages to get himself cursed, turned into a vampire and buried alive (or would that be undead) all in the first 10 minutes of the movie. Fast forward to 1972, when he is unearthed and the fun begins. I don’t think this movie is supposed to be a comedy but it plays out as one, sort of. The characters seemed to be played pretty lampoonish (spell checker says that’s not a word, but what the hell it’s the only way I can think of to describe their portrayals) but Depp and Green (as the witch that cursed him) are really the only ones that pull it off. There are some pretty funny moments between Barnabas (Depp) and Angelique (Green) when they meet back up in 1972. Also have to give small accolades to Helena Bonham Carter who took a small part and played it very well. My wife told me she had read that Carter didn’t want to do this movie, but her “hubby” told her she would be perfect for this particular role. I guess that’s why he makes the big bucks.

There are two scenes that if you take small children with you, you might find yourself digging for an explanation when asked, “what are they doing?” so be prepared for that. Otherwise the pg-13 rating is about what you’d expect for a movie these days.

All-in-all I caution anyone about seeing this movie, unless you are a fan of Johnny Depp or more importantly you are a fan of Tim Burton. Out of all the movies they have done together, I have to say that Edward Scissorhands and Sleepy Hollow are my favorites, although this movie is definitely better than Sweeney Todd.