I guess that I'm not that much of a purist. At least not in the strictest sense. I've seen or experienced just about all the various incarnations of DS, including that extremely bizarre Off Broadway play from the late '80's. The original is and will likely remain my favorite. But I've found things that I enjoy in each one of them. And I've also found things that I can't stand.
Is this the best movie ever made? Absolutely not. Is this the movie I would have made? Definitely not. Unfortunately, I just didn't happen to have $150 million lying around when Warner Brothers was looking for backers. Did it keep me entertained? Definitely. It's nothing short of miraculous that more than forty years after its demise, Dark Shadows is still seen as a viable property. That's unheard for a daytime serial. (No one seems to be chomping at the bit to do a big screen revival of The Secret Storm.).
The film has increased awareness of Dark Shadows among the general population. Several of the younger people that I work with went to see it because "it's that show you like so much." And the general population is who this movie--and most movies--was made for. Cult, by nature, means a small, albeit devoted, audience. There are simply not enough of us to support a big screen version. If we were, one of the attempts at a reunion with the original cast would have gotten produced.
And, with its theatrical run just about at an end, the 2012 movie will become its own memory. Dark Shadows is like Cher. Or, if you prefer, like the Phoenix. Just when you're about ready to write it as done, it comes back in a new form.