DARK SHADOWS | FAMILY MOVIE REVIEW INFORMATION FOR PARENTS AND KIDS

"DARK SHADOWS"
(2012) (Johnny Depp, Eva Green) (PG-13)

QUICK TAKE:: Horror/Comedy: After being buried for two centuries by his rejected lover, a vampire tries to adapt to the 1970s as he returns to his home to find it filled with his dysfunctional descendants while the original witch who cursed him still has it out for him.

PLOT:

The Collins were once the prominent family of Collinsport, Maine back in the 1760s. But when the young adult son, Barnabas (JOHNNY DEPP), rejected the affections of young Angelique Bouchard (EVA GREEN), she put a curse on him, what with being a secret witch. Not only did she kill his parents and cause his new girlfriend of the time, Josette DuPres (BELLA HEATHCOTE), to fall from a cliff to her death, but Angelique also turned Barnabas into an immortal vampire so that he would have to live with his grief for all eternity. Finally, to rub salt into that wound, she had the local townsfolk capture and bury Barnabas alive in a chained coffin.

Two centuries later, he's accidentally unearthed by a construction crew. Trying to acclimate himself to the cultural and technological changes present in 1972, he returns to his manor only to find it filled with his highly dysfunctional descendants. There's matriarch Elizabeth (MICHELLE PFEIFFER) who must contend with her moody 15-year-old daughter, Carolyn (CHLOE GRACE MORETZ). Elizabeth's brother, Roger (JOHNNY LEE MILLER), is more concerned with the estate's dwindling finances than his young son, David (GULLIVER McGRATH), who's still affected by his mother's death, thus necessitating the presence of alcoholic psychiatrist Dr. Julia Hoffman (HELENA BONHAM CARTER).

New to the house is recently hired governess Victoria Winters (BELLA HEATHCOTE) with whom David senses a kindred spirit, as does Barnabas as he sees a lot of Josette in her. Putting a spell on groundskeeper Willie Loomis (JACKIE EARLE HALEY) to be his faithful assistant, the vampire sets out to reestablish the family's name and fishery business in Collinsport. But he must contend with Angelique who's not only spent the last two hundred years building up her rival business, but now once again wants to win over Barnabas and promises to unleash more pain if he again refuses her.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: If they're fans of Depp or anyone else in the cast, films by director Tim Burton, or movies about vampires, they might be interested.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13: For comic horror violence, sexual content, some drug use, language and smoking.

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