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DVD Review: DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK
Warner Archive Collection

Studio: Warner Home Video
Year: 1973
Cast: Kim Darby, Jim Hutton, Barbara Anderson, William Demarest, Pedro Armendariz Jr.
Director: John Newland
Release Date: August 18, 2009
Rating: Not Rated for (thematic material, some horror violence)
Run Time: 01h:13m:50s
Genre(s): horror, television

"Some things are better left as they are...including that fireplace." - Mr. Harris (William Demarest)

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This TV movie from the mid-1970s is still fondly remembered by those who saw it back in the day. Does it still hold up after 35 years? Warner lets us find out for ourselves in this release from its pressed-on-demand "Archive Collection."

Movie Grade: B+

DVD Grade: D+

Sally Farnham (Kim Darby) and her husband Alex (Jim Hutton) have inherited an old house from Sally's grandmother, which Alex is not all that keen upon. Sally is particularly fascinated by a locked room that includes a fireplace that has been solidly bricked up. Handyman Mr. Harris (William Demarest) warns Sally not to reopen it, though he can't say why. Of course, Sally can't resist after hearing that, only to find that it seems to be empty, with an odd chimney that also descends into darkness in addition to going up to the roof. Little does she know that she has released several things that were best kept locked up. Initially tricky and annoying, their malevolence quickly turns terrifying as Sally finds herself fearing for her life.

Despite its television-movie origins, it's quite an effective little picture on the whole. That's helped by not getting a very good look at the creatures until fairly well into the movie; they are much more frightening when represented only as shadows, sudden movements and raspy whisperings of portentous content. Felix Silla, Cousin Itt from The Addams Family portrays one of the creatures, which seem to vary in size depending on the circumstance, though mostly they're only a few inches tall. But what they lack in mass they make up for with nastiness.

While Darby and Hutton are awfully bland in the leads, the backstory features some significant difficulties in their marriage that makes Alex a little less than entirely sympathetic to what he considers to be Sally's overactive imagination. That somewhat unstable relationship, although a staple of such situations, is at least used to good effect. William Demarest doesn't get a lot to do here, but he makes the most of it with a cranky persona. The finale definitely does not disappoint, and while it made a big impression on many viewers of the 1970s, it's still just as effective.

The feature is very much a period piece of the 1970s, with some frequently hilarious styles and over the top attitudes (including references to "Women's Lib," which will strike most as utterly archaic). The print used is in the original 1.37:1 television ratio, and it's in decent condition. There is one brief spot that's in fairly rough condition, but otherwise the damage is limited to minor speckling. There's not much shadow detail, with the dark scenes quite dark. It looks pretty much like a television movie from the 1970s, although quite clearly it comes across better than it would have over the air at the time. The audio, alas, is a distorted and murky mess that does the score no favors.

The disc, like all those in the Warner Archive Collection, is a burned DVD-R, which may pose problems for some older DVD players. I tried it on several, including a number of third generation machines, and it worked without any problems. There are no extras of any kind. A promo for the show would have certainly been interesting, but it's definitely nice to relive this memorable evening of viewing (and the lack of commercials really helps sustain the mood nicely).

Posted by: Mark Zimmer - October 4, 2009, 5:45 pm - DVD Review
Keywords: locked room, monsters, demons, tv movie, movie of the week