Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

The Darkness Blu-ray Movie Review

Normal Activity.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman September 9, 2016

The Darkness amounts to nothing more than a regurgitation of the worst of modern, conventional Horror/Paranormal tropes, taking cues from series like Paranormal Activity (though this film mercifully spares the audience the "found footage" nonsense) and Insidious but failing to do anything interesting with the overused tools at its disposal. The film, directed by Greg McLean (the Wolf Creek films), is competently assembled, at least as well as can be expected given the rather cruddy script and unimaginative happenings with which he and his cast have to work. The movie is at least lean rather than lethargic, getting to the point as quickly as possible, though whether today's more savvy audiences will find the film worth even its modest runtime is another question altogether.

The Taylor family -- father Peter (Kevin Bacon), mother Bronny (Radha Mitchell), daughter Stephanie (Lucy Fry), and autistic son Mikey (David Mazouz) -- is vacationing at the Grand Canyon. Mikey is left alone and accidentally falls into a hole in the ground where he discovers creepy drawings and a number of carefully carved stones on the ground, which he gathers to take with him. Upon the family's return home, an unease settles over the house. Odd occurrences begin to pile up. Peter becomes absorbed in work. Mikey begins behaving strangely. Stephanie grows increasingly violent. As the family tries to maintain order through the friction and deal with the mysterious happenings around them, Bronny begins to realize that a dark force may be in play, and that there may be a connection between her autistic son and another world.

The Darkness begins with the usual Paranormal Activity staples. The water faucet in the kitchen mysteriously runs. It's blamed on Mikey, of course, but the audience knows better. Stranger things begin to happen, strange, at least, if they were actually happening, not strange in the film, because this has all really been done to death. Mysterious odors fill the air. A nearby dog barks incessantly (not that that means anything is happening, as people who have lived next to a nuisance barker know). Other strange sounds flutter through. Mikey's wall is burned, turning almost a quarter of his room into a splash of blackened ash and ruin. And, as the film progresses towards its anticlimactic, retread finale, the oddities become ever more pronounced, varied, and violent. This is seriously standard stuff, presented at a seriously standard dramatic cadence, with a seriously standard allotment of characters: the stay-at-home mom, the workaholic dad, the autistic younger brother, and the anorexic older sister. The film couldn't be more cliché if it tried.

If nothing else, The Darkness does piece together a solid cast, headlined by a clearly bored and distant Kevin Bacon, long removed from the vitality of his youth and performances in movies like Footloose and Tremors (hey Universal, how about a UHD remaster and release?). Of course, that's not to knock the actor's age, but rather the role he plays. Bacon's a solid, enjoyable performer given the right material. This isn't it. He looks disinterested and seemingly fully aware that the part requires no stretch of his talents, no test of his abilities as an actor, whether in the more easygoing opening act, the second when the mystery unfolds, or the third when the violence and terrors manifest in front of his face. Radha Mitchell plays his wife, a character a little more central to the plot and finding a bit more firm footing if only because there's slightly better traction for her Bronny in the script. The film also features Paul Reiser, of both Mad About You and Aliens fame, in a secondary role.

The Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Darkness features a fine, well-rounded 108op transfer. At this stage in the format's lifespan, it's not going to turn any heads, but it's technically proficient and never shows any major flaws. The digitally photographed movie translates well enough to Blu-ray. It's a little smooth to be sure, and details are never exquisite, but it finds enough natural intimacy in clothes, faces, and nicknacks and surfaces around the house to satisfy. The opening Grand Canyon sequence is home to the most impressive details, where raw, rough, and ragged natural lines and edges showcase a tangible level of authentic texturing. Clarity is strong; the frame is revealing and crisp, with only a few smudgy edges to be seen. Color saturation is adequate. Again, the opening Canyon segment, with punchy, earthy terrain contrasted against a deep blue sky, fares best. Neighborhood greens are a close second, while clothes and home accents enjoy enough natural punch to please. Black levels occasionally push a hair too light but never seriously so. Flesh tones can look a touch pasty but are generally fine. Noise, aliasing, banding, and other maladies are of no concern.

The Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Like many soundtracks featured in movies of this type, The Darkness begins slow and picks up significant energy and oomph as it pushes towards its climax. Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack goes into a frenzy near the end, presenting plenty of hard-hitting, discrete, multidirectional, and widely dispersed effects. The subwoofer chimes in regularly and with a satisfying low end knock. Surrounds are frequently engaged. General chaos flings through the stage, but it's a sonically controlled chaos that compliments the scenes very well. Prior, the track is far more reserved. Gentle atmospherics flutter about in the Grand Canyon segment. Music is satisfyingly clear, light and gentle at first and more aggressive later. Sharper "jump scare" cues deliver a satisfying low end knock. Dialogue is well prioritized, center focused, and clearly presented.

The Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Darkness includes an alternate ending (1080p, 9:01) and the following deleted scenes (1080p, 9:49 total runtime): Stephanie and Friends Walking Home, Bronny and Peter - Real Estate, Peter Drives Up, Car Spark Scare, Simon Jokes About Sammy, Peter in the Elevator, Driving to the Hospital, Police Visit for Noise Complaint, and Peter and Bronny Outside the Pharmacy. A voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy is also included with purchase.

The Darkness Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If a movie could somehow grow legs, arms, and opposable thumbs, and The Darkness was that movie, it would no doubt grab the first club it found and proceed to beat the first dead horse it came across. The Darkness is well made on the surface, but it's got a serious case of the copycats, original in name and character faces only, taking on characteristics of other, not necessarily better, but similar films in the genre. Hardly a disgrace of a picture but certainly one with no good reason to exist, The Darkness seems destined to be forgotten to the history books (or web archives, as the case may now be), though it could certainly claim to live on as the poster child of needless genre cinema. Universal's Blu-ray lacks supplements beyond a different ending and a handful of deleted scenes. Video and audio qualities are fine, though unremarkable at this stage in the Blu-ray format's lifespan. Skip it.