Depp/Burton DARK SHADOWS Is In Production!!

[PennyDreadful]

Well, that is a bit presumptuous and presupposes that all fans are of one mind.  I would never accuse someone of not being a fan if they didn't share my vision, but that's just me.

But it isn't my vision.  It's the vision and intent behind the source material and its various incarnations over the years (dramatic gothic terror/romance).  From what I see in the trailer at least, the source material is being put under the lens of absurdity and presented as a comedy.  I'm fine with new storylines and new directions for DS, but for me it needs to be true in more than just names, visuals, and storylines.  Just because it's the big, shiny new DS I'm not going to just embrace it and say "Oh finally, something new!!  I HUNGER FOR ANYTHING DS!!  What?  Oh sure, it's fine and dandy if they have Barnabas hanging upside down like Grandpa Munster while Mrs. Johnson dusts obliviously nearby!  Slap those nasty panties on Barn's mug Angie!"  

I love dark comedy - trust me, I do - but it's not right for DS, IMO.  I'm NOT saying fans who mainly like the old show (and by extension the gothic genre for some) for laughs and perceived camp aren't really fans, but I AM saying that TYPE of humor was unintentional on the show and it isn't how DS should be depicted in something as major as a new movie by Tim Burton or a TV series (IMO). As I said earlier, I'm fine with poking fun at the show and its situations when it's done in the right venue (i.e. Sherlock's cartoons as mentioned by  MB) but this is a MAJOR motion picture.  I don't want to see DS rewritten onto the public consciousness as another Munsters, Addams Family, or Edward Gorey type tale (all things I also love BTW).  What can I say?  It bugs me.

With regard to Dan Curtis' vision - While I certainly didn't know the man personally, I thought it was pretty clear that he did not want DS played for laughs.  Isn't it fair to say he was somewhat strict with how he wanted  DS depicted?

[Philippe Cordier]

This does look sound and look like something of a mess, or maybe I should say a madcap parody, something closer to "The Adams Family" or an update of "The Munsters," with added vulgarity. I was never too excited by this movie, given who was directing, writing, and starring, so I'm not shocked or surprised by the trailer. I had planned to attend it just to see the cameos of the original DS cast, but I don't want to support this movie in any fashion any more. Selfishly, I hope it will simply disappear and be forgotten, but for those who will truly enjoy it, I guess I'll just let those who enjoy it do so, and keep my own interest in the original series undisturbed by the hoopla. I just hope that when the dust settles, the original DS actors won't be accused of selling out for a buck and a cameo. I'm sure their intentions were good but I hope this won't tarnish their earlier credits.

The original DS had it schlocky moments, but it also had depth of characterization and themes (for example, Barnabas's internal conflict over his vampirism and his ongoing tension in hiding his secret). Something else the original had, that I knew would be absent from the movie as soon as the writer was announced, was poetry. There was genuine poetry in some of the writing, including dialogue and opening voice overs. It would have been possible for a "Dark Shadows" movie to be produced today that was true to such aspects of the series as these, but that would have required a different vision. It would have been possible to do something fresh and still honor the original. That would have been a DS movie I would have been excited to see and support.

I grant that others have different ideas about what they enjoy about the original series and may well be enthused with the new interpretation.

[Brandon Collins]

Why are there fans who think they are the Dark Shadows intellectual property police? Isn't it rather presumptious for anyone to be dictating to the family and colleagues of Dan Curtis, who knew him well what they should or should not do with his creative work?  They knew what he wanted.  For any of us to say Curtis would not like this is really over the top . . . we have no way of knowing that and the those who actually knew and worked for the man are better judges, don't you think?

Nancy, I completely agree with everything you wrote here. It is easy to sit back and criticize the decisions that Curtis' family are making in regards to the future of DS but I am sure it is much less easy to actually make said decisions.

As for Jim Pierson, I highly doubt that much of what we know about Dark Shadows and much of what exists as an extension of Dark Shadows would exist at all without his help and involvement. I spoke with him briefly at one of the two fests I attended, and he was extremely polite, intelligent, and cared enough to stop and have a word with me despite the craziness and insanity that was going on around us.

[borgosi]

I really don't understand why they would release a trailer that makes the movie look like a comedy if it isn't. Think about it, do you want movie goers that don't know the original to expect a comedy and then disappoint them when it isn't? Do you want fans of the original to think it's a comedy when it isn't and cause many of them not to go? If you say it's one thing when it isn't you are going to dissapoint. If you tell everyone the truth at least they know what they're getting into.

Sadly I think HBC is the only one that was truthful with fans and she was attacked.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

As for DC, well, he did introduce very intentional humor into the '91 DS with the changes that were made to Willie because from what I recall he felt that a humorous balance was needed to offset the biting and tearing - though everything else about that show was played seriously. And as I mentioned a few weeks back, because the Willie of the '04 pilot was to be more like the original, when it came that series had it gone to series, the DC's idea was that the fish out of water aspects of Barnabas' character were to be dealt with humorously, which is why I've also said that the humor with Barnabas in the new film just might be traceable right back to DC. Though we'll never know if the humor in a WB series might have gone as far as some of it in the film appears to.

And as for the poetry of the original, several participants in the new film have described it as having poetic elements. I suppose we'll just have to wait and see if they materialize...

51 days 4 hours 16 minutes 36 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

[borgosi]

I guess I shouldn't say that, everyone that said it was funny was also being truth. There were those that said we shouldn't believe them but clearly we should have.

[borgosi]

I don't think DC would have had Barnabas brushing his teeth, but I could be wrong.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I really don't understand why they would release a trailer that makes the movie look like a comedy if it isn't.

There has been quite a bit of discussion in this topic about how often studios have put out trailers that have misrepresented films. It may not be the case with the new DS film. But it happens - and not infrequently.

Sadly I think HBC is the only one that was truthful with fans and she was attacked.

Though she was attacked in some corners of fandom for what she said about the original series. What she said about the film was that it has such diverse styles and tones that it would be hard to sell. And if we can believe what some are saying, we're seeing the humor showcased in the trailer because that's supposedly what Warner Brothers decided was the film's most sellable point - but it doesn't necessarily mean it's the only style and tone contained in the film.

51 days 4 hours 5 minutes 16 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I don't think people weren't expecting there to be no humor at all. What most were expecting was black humor because that's the sort of humor the film has been described as having.

51 days 4 hours 2 minutes 30 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

[borgosi]

MB - Are you suggesting that WB would lie to everyone and maybe hope people don't care when they go see it and it isn't what they were expecting.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

It would hardly be the first time that a studio had done so. But, no, as I said, supposedly Warner Brothers is primarily showcasing the humor in the film because they believe that's the aspect of the film that will get the most bodies in theater seats. Studios are cynical and that's their primary objective. But supposedly there is more to the film than just its humor - and while those aspects aren't being showcased as much, at least a bit of it is being seen in the trailers.

51 days 3 hours 49 minutes 58 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

[Cousin_Barnabas]

What is interesting to note is that IMDB has removed the word "Horror" from its category listing of this film.  Now "Comedy" and "Fantasy" are all that remain.   

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I'm not saying that's wrong. But remember that we have no idea who maintains any of the listings on IMDb, not just the one for DS. And loads of the info there is anything from slightly misrepresentative to completely wrong. Who knows where the DS page falls. Though after all, let's not forget that the IMDb listing was one of the very few places that infamously listed Kirsten Van Wagner as having been cast as Victoria.   

51 days 3 hours 36 minutes 46 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!

[Cousin_Barnabas]

Actually, that was probably true too.  She just decided she didn't like the color of the straitjacket.   

Anyway, I know how fussy IMDB is, but it's just disheartening to see a website remove a whole category listing like that.  Thriller was the first to go.  And now Horror...  Just kind of makes one lose hope for something different from the trailer's offering...  even though Vicki in the straitjacket makes me sooooooooo curious and hopeful.   

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I take almost everything having to do with IMDb with a huge 3 pound box of salt!      And honestly, when it comes to things disappearing over there, how often did members of the DS film's cast disappear only to return in anywhere from a few days to a few weeks? What goes on there can be maddening if one pays too much attention to it.

51 days 3 hours 25 minutes 16 seconds until the day the Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is released(ET)!!