Depp/Burton DARK SHADOWS Is In Production!!

Read somewhere this photo (which I must say seems very much a tribute to an original cast photo) was taken early on in production.  So while one shouldn't expect every character to look like this for every scene, the basic design can probably be said to be there.

Seth or Tim (can't recall which) says in the article--which I guess many of you aren't reading because you are trying to avoid spoilers--that the photo was shot the day before formal shooting began.  It was Tim's shot at seeing whether they could establish "the Dark Shadows mood," and it was also done then because so many of the central cast happened to be on set that day (kind of like the classic 1968 staircase photo when you think about it, though obviously the inspiration for this one is the 1967 cast photo--which ironically was more or less "lost" until a few years ago).

I hate the whole Hollywood fetishization of test screenings, etc. I see it as yet another area where everything in our culture gets dragged down literally to the lowest common denominator.  I hope Depp and Burton are able to fight for the right to have their vision be what they wish it to be.  If not, there's always the DVD (or the Blu Ray if you must).

In other news, the girly-girly weirdness of Vicki's clothing keeps freaking me out every time I look at the photo... Are they trying for some weird reference to the whole KLS Junior Miss thing of 1970?

G.

In other news, the girly-girly weirdness of Vicki's clothing keeps freaking me out every time I look at the photo... Are they trying for some weird reference to the whole KLS Junior Miss thing of 1970?

Bella Heathcote's clothes provided by Junior Sophisticates. 

Now I would pay extra admission if that were in the end credits, which I do hope scroll over the Collinwood foyer.   

I hate test screenings as well. I hope Depp and Burton have control of the final cut. Good or bad I hope we get the film they want us to get.

Here is that Empire Magazine article mentioned previously here with new pics first reported by MB from Twitter: http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=32089

Like!

Very nice. And I know where I'll be on Thursday night - at Barnes & Noble tracking down the new issue (especially to see what the promised "more" is).    Speaking of which, apparently they hadn't put up the new cover yesterday because the actual cover has right on it "Depp's Vampire Soap!"

So it looks like now it has begun - as if keeping track online wasn't enough, now we need to keep a lookout to see if all sorts of entertainment/horror magazines might be doing articles on the film. And can entertainment TV shows be far behind...

Thanks so much for the link, jimbo! 

226 days 13 hours 29 minutes 30 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

Very cool!  The blood spattered claws are a very Nosferatu touch.  Michelle Pfeiffer is really going to put her own mark on the role of Liz, I can tell.  I hope she and Miller get at least a couple of juicy scenes together.  Wouldn't it be cool if they re-staged the legendary "Because I choose to do so!" scene!

I'm wondering if Burton isn't going to make this his personal tribute not just to DS, but to the whole aesthetic of classic horror that DS looked back upon.  Cobwebbed staircases, secret passageways, crashing thunder, shadows upon shadows.  I saw (and taped some of) Burton commenting on classic horror films on AMC many years ago--he's a huge fan of the genre.

From what I read of the text, there will be more of the Seth interview in the mag.  There may or may not be more photos.  Unfortunately mags from the UK often don't show up here until 3 to 4 weeks after they are released in the UK.  I don't know why since there are many daily flights between London and major cities of the US.

I didn't notice anything particularly spoilery in what was said in the text on the website, but Your Mileage May Vary.  Interesting that Burton decide the year "had to be" 1972.  I'd like to read more of his thoughts about that...

G.

Unfortunately mags from the UK often don't show up here until 3 to 4 weeks after they are released in the UK.

That's true - though some stores often get them before others. And sadly, Borders is no longer an option.

One thing that I found fascinating was that Barnes & Noble first got a copy of the Euro-Harper's Bazaar magazine with Eva Green's cover story that measured 9 inches long and 6.5 inches wide. I bought that one not knowing that there is another version. But then the next month the full sized issue was available in the store. It was weird - at least to those of us who don't pay attention to the Euro version - or even to Harper's Bazaar at all.

What might happen with the Empire article, though, is that full scans of it may appear on some of the Depp Web sites. Many already have full scans of the EW article...

226 days 12 hours 58 minutes 35 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

Ooh.  Does anybody out there have a link handy to one of the Depp sites that has posted full scans of the EW article?

Thanks, 
G.

Go to this topic on the JOHNNYDEPPZONE forum and scroll down to the third post. 

226 days 12 hours 30 minutes 37 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

Hmmm - this tweet would seem to indicate there are more photos in the actual issue:

empiremagazine Empire Magazine
Good news! We've got exclusive new pictures from Burton's Dark Shadows right here: http://t.co/Fr0m3qu7 Even more in the mag, out Thursday!
1 hour ago

I guess we'll see...

226 days 12 hours 10 minutes 45 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

Interesting to see the scans!  Thanks!

G.

Must point out that twice before Burton sought to recreate a particular type of film's "look" and "flavor."  In Ed Wood he clearly aimed at capturing the sensibility behind those charming, terrible films.  Then in Sleepy Hollow he stated how it deliberately echoed the old Hammer Horror films.  Must say, in both cases he succeeded!  On the other hand he never said anything at all about trying to recreate anything in either Planet of the Apes or Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Now he's been talking for months about the specific aesthetic of DS.  Might naturally presume he'll end up pretty successful.  Certainly looks that way so far!

I enjoyed Sleepy Hollow, but personally, even with Christopher Lee's cameo appearance, there was nothing remotely Hammeresque about the movie, as far as my vision of the classic Hammer look goes.  Maybe it did at times feel and look a little like Captain Kronos, which is on a very different wavelength from the classic Hammer oeuvre and is late in the day (1972).

Your Mileage May Vary, as always--and thanks for the reminder.

I could make other critical remarks about Ed Wood but it's even further off topic than the above so I will desist.

G.