Screen Rant » don’t be afraid of the dark

DVD/Blu-ray Breakdown: January 3, 2012

Paul Young — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 01:29:14 +0000

The New Year is off to a fast start, as far as new Blu-ray releases are concerned. 32 films, documentaries and concerts all get Blu-ray releases today and on our list are a TV show, a couple of interesting films about disease worth renting, and four films not even worth watching. There were eight Triple Features released today – some good, some bad – but we selected the Western one as our main pick.

Let’s take a look at what the first Breakdown of 2012 has to offer.

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The 10 Most Disappointing Movies of 2011

Sandy Schaefer — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 18:23:23 +0000

What really constitutes a “disappointment” is pretty subjective. To use a couple of examples: some people would say they were really let down by Captain America: The First Avenger or Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, simply because the films weren’t as fantastic as they had hoped. Others, though, would argue those titles are still rock-solid films and that certain moviegoers’ expectations were so overblown that no motion picture could possibly meet them. But that’s a whole other discussion…

Today, we have a list of 10 films released in 2011 that simply failed to live up to the Screen Rant staff’s collective expectations. Bear in mind, this isn’t at all synonymous with a “worst of” list for 2011 – in fact, you may notice that a handful of the movies listed here actually received decent reviews from ...

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Summer 2011 Movies: The Best, The Worst, & Some Surprises

Sandy Schaefer — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 18:04:04 +0000

Forget about checking your calendar – when you read that Shark Night 3D is one of the big releases of the weekend, you know the Summer Movie Season is officially coming to an end.

Overall, 2011 was a decent year as far as summer releases go. There were a handful of surprises (and more than a couple of disappointments) but most movies were good enough to ensure that people walked away entertained and with their expectations met – as opposed to, say, protesting in the streets and demanding a ticket refund.

Quibbles about whether Fast Five or Thor truly marked the start of Summer 2011 aside, the season started off with a bang at the box office – and eventually fizzled out in the end. So, here are the big questions: What were ...

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: September 4th, 2011

Niall Browne — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 23:10:03 +0000

This week:

The Help stays at the top of the box office while The Debt owes nothing to Apollo 18 and Shark Night; Maria Maggenti has the time of her life writing Dirty Dancing; Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire are driving The Great Gatsby to big screen success; Berenger, Boothe and Winningham join Costner and Paxton in Hatfields and McCoys and Anna Kendrick is Pitch Perfect for her new role.

Box Office

Sleeper hit The Help retained the top spot during another subdued weekend at the box office. The drama should score $18 million over the four day weekend ($14 million for the three days). The film’s total now stands at $122 million.

Sam Worthington’s The Debt (read our review) was at number two with a long weekend gross in the region of $12 million($9.6 million for the three days). The John Madden directed thriller has grossed $14 ...

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Screen Rant Underground Podcast Episode 2: ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’

Ben Kendrick — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 01:20:03 +0000

The Screen Rant editorial team is back with another episode of the Screen Rant Underground.

Join host Ben Kendrick as well as fellow SR editors Rob Keyes, Anthony Ocasio, and Kofi Outlaw as we discuss another Horror remake: Troy Nixey’s Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark.

Screen Rant Underground is available in the iTunes Music Store but if you’re not near your home computer, check out our second episode in the player below. As mentioned in the previous post, this is only our second episode – so cut us a little slack as we get this thing off the ground.

Also, Screen Rant Underground is an EXPLICIT podcast. We don’t go out of our way to say controversial things or use explicit language but it does happen – so use discretion when playing the podcast at work and around young, or ...

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: August 29, 2011

Niall Browne — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 12:51:26 +0000

This week: The box office needs Help – but it isn’t Afraid of the Dark; Paul Solet sees Faces; Mary Harron isn’t Wicked or Lovely for Universal; Harris and Greengrass have The Fear Index and Source Code writer Ben Ripley’s career Flatlines.

Box Office

Hurricane Irene had an impact on the box office over the weekend, which saw a hefty drop. The Help retained the top spot and scored an additional $14.3 million. The drama has now banked over $96 million, which is pretty darn good for a movie with a $25 million budget.

Colombiana, the Luc Besson-produced action film starring Zoe Saldana, made its debut at No. 2 with $10.3 million. It’s not a bad start, especially when you think that it’s the same number that Conan had last week, and Colombiana (read our review) cost less than half the price of the Barbarian epic!

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‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’ Review

Kofi Outlaw — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 16:37:18 +0000

Screen Rant’s Kofi Outlaw Reviews Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark

When seeing a scary movie in a theater, you always run the risk of encountering that obnoxious audience member – the one who loudly criticizes the characters onscreen as if they can hear him, or laughs at every scary moment, or generally complains how stupid the movie is. Typically, encountering such a person makes for a frustrating viewing experience; in the case of Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, however, you’ll probably find yourself agreeing with him.

It’s a shame: Guillermo del Toro has earned a strong reputation as a creative visionary in the genres of fantasy and horror, but even his guiding hand as a co-writer and producer can’t protect ...

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‘Don’t Be Afraid of The Dark’ Red Band Trailer

Roth Cornet — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 01:57:13 +0000

A new red band trailer for producer Guillermo del Toro’s upcoming bedtime lullaby Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark has hit the net – and in the interest of full disclosure we must say that anyone suffering from Odontophobia may need to avert their eyes in the opening moments.

Based on a 1973 telefilm by the same title, Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark follows a similar trajectory to del Toro’s masterwork of a dark fairytale, Pan’s Labyrinth, in that it tells the story of a young girl who must confront monstrous forces that defeat even the most hardened of adults.

After a series of fits and starts in the post-production phase as Mirmax was bought and sold three times over the film is finally set to creep into theaters this weekend ...

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Comic-Con 2011: ‘Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark’ & ‘Drive’ Panel

Rob Keyes — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 21:34:55 +0000

Guillermo del Toro returns to Comic-Con with his upcoming horror movie Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark, directed by Troy Nixey. The fright flick stars Katie Holmes, Guy Pearce and Bailee Madison and follows the on-screen family as they experience a monstrous haunting in their new home – we’ve seen it before, but not through the mind of del Toro.

That’s only half of the first ever FilmDistrict Studio panel where they are attempting to try something different in combining both films into one panel with all the talent onto one panel, all of whom have seen the other film: Drive.

The Comic-Con-friendly del Toro brings Troy Nixey and star Guy Pearce to Hall H for the film’s panel. The movie ...

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‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’ Trailer: Creepy, Old-Fashioned Scares

Sandy Schaefer — Sat, 28 May 2011 15:43:40 +0000

Generally speaking, describing a project as a remake of a cult classic horror film that’s had its release date long delayed doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence. However, this summer’s Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark is one of the rare exceptions that fits said description – and could actually be pretty good.

An effectively unnerving teaser for Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark was released last August, back when the picture was scheduled to hit theaters in January 2011. Now a full-length trailer has finally been unveiled for the creepy monster pic, which was co-written and produced by Guillermo del Toro.

Disney was originally set to distribute Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark through Miramax, but ended up dropping ...

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Del Toro’s ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’ Snags an International Distributor [Updated]

Sandy Schaefer — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 16:03:18 +0000

[UPDATE: Don't Be Afraid of the Dark has secured a U.S. distributor as well.]

A creepy tale about a mysterious house haunted by wicked creatures, one that was co-scripted and produced by Guillermo del Toro, doesn’t sound like a likely candidate to end up stuck in theatrical release limbo, but that’s exactly what’s happened to Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark.

The supernatural horror film was originally scheduled to be distributed by Disney in the U.S. a week ago from today, but the Mouse House dropped the pic last fall. Now Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark has at last been picked up for distribution overseas, which will hopefully encourage another studio to sign on and release it here in the States as well.

Variety is ...

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Creepy First Trailer for ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’

Ross Miller — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 14:33:53 +0000

The upcoming remake of the 1973 cult film Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark was just one of the many films to make its stamp at this year’s Comic-Con. Screen Rant head honcho Vic Holtreman was there for the panel, which featured producer/screenwriter Guillermo del Toro and director Troy Nixey.

The first trailer for Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark was shown at the panel and it was “pretty damned scary” (to quote Vic). If you weren’t in attendance at Comic-Con and are wondering just how scary the film looks, then fear not as the trailer has just made its way online over at MySpace.

Before we get to the trailer, here’s the official synopsis for the film:

“Sally Hurst (Bailee Madison), a lonely, withdrawn child, has just arrived in Rhode Island ...

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Guillermo Del Toro & ‘Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark’ Panel

Vic Holtreman — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 22:33:23 +0000

Present for the Don’t be Afraid of the Dark panel are director Troy Nixey and Guillermo del Toro who produced and co-wrote the film.

Del Toro talked about the original film, which was a movie that scared the heck out of him as a child, and he’s wanted to make this film for a while. Make it contemporary but don’t touch what made it work. They showed the trailer for the film, which honestly was pretty damned scary. It opens with a black screen and just the creepiest whispering voice I’ve ever heard saying there’s no reason to be afraid of the dark. A lot of quick cuts of people being terrified and it ends with a little girl crawling under the covers – so you know she’s going to find something at the end ...

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Comic-Con 2010 Friday Schedule: Our Film Panel Picks

Rob Frappier — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:44:00 +0000

Yesterday, we dissected the opening day schedule for the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con. So far things look great, with a lot of awesome panels both in the world of TV and in the world of film. Today, we’re taking a look at the schedule for Day Two of Comic-Con 2010. Check below to see our top movie panel picks for Friday, July 23rd.

Once you’re done penciling in your Friday plans, don’t forget to check back here at Screen Rant on Saturday and Sunday as well to see the Day Three and Day Four schedules.

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Drive Angry 3D Panel and Footage

10:30-11:30 Summit Entertainment: Drive Angry 3D in Hall H

A vengeful father hunts down the people who brutally killed his daughter and kidnapped her baby in the newest film shot ...

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Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’ Gets a Release Date

Ben Kendrick — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 18:14:44 +0000

When Guillermo del Toro dropped out of The Hobbit film, it became painfully apparent that the writer/producer/director is one of the busiest men in Hollywood – maybe a little too busy?

So what else does del Toro have cooking? In addition to re-imaginings of Pinocchio and Frankenstein, del Toro is currently producing a remake of the 1973 made-for-TV classic Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark. The remake will be distributed through Disney, following the Miramax shake-down, and is officially slated for release on January 21, 2011.

The original Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark is a cult classic, following a young couple who inherit an old mansion, a demon-infested old mansion, as the hellish occupants attempt to take the wife for their own. While it didn’t rely on ...

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Guy Pearce Isn’t ‘Afraid Of The Dark’

Ross Miller — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:58:31 +0000

A remake of the 1973 horror film Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark has been in the early development stages for awhile now, but today we get fresh news that Guy Pearce is in “final negotiations” to star alongside Bailee Madison (Bridge to Tarabithia) and the already cast Katie Holmes in the Miramax remake.

The original made-for-TV Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark became a cult hit: It tells the story of a young girl who is sent to stay with her father and his girlfriend only to find out the house is inhabited by demonic creatures. Pearce is in negotiations to play the father and author who is frustrated with his daughter telling tales of the creatures, with Madison set to play his daughter. Holmes will play Pearce’s girlfriend who starts ...

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