Some of the creepiest movies of the ’70s were actually made for TV, perhaps because the medium’s restrictions against gore forced filmmakers to concentrate on atmosphere and suspense. Additionally, the way TV movies came and went overnight lent a sort of mythological power to the best such pictures, with viewers wondering if they really saw what they thought they saw. Given these factors, it’s understandable why an otherwise unassuming flick like Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark could gain minor cult-movie notoriety: While not a great film, the picture was creepy and strange enough to lodge itself in viewers’ collective memory. (Proving the picture’s enduring appeal, a big-screen remake was released in 2011, with Katie Holmes starring.)
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark is haunted-house picture notable for the bizarre-looking creatures that harass the story’s heroine. The critters are doll-sized, fur-covered humanoids with ugly little wrinkled faces, and they use simple tools like a rope strung across a stairway to cause lethal accidents. In shots where the creatures interact with normal-sized people, oversized props and careful editing are used to sell the illusion that these tiny tormenters are scuttling around underfoot, trying to drag the humans down to their mysterious realm, which can only be accessed through a basement fireplace. For unsuspecting viewers in 1973, discovering that Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark was a full-on creature feature must have been alarming, and even though the supernatural concepts of the movie are both ridiculous and unexplained, the idea of gremlins lurking in the shadows of one’s own home is an irrational fear many people share.
The story begins when a young couple inherits a musty mansion. The husband (Jim Hutton) is often away on business, so his wife (Kim Darby) is stuck at the house, bickering with a cantankerous handyman (William Demarest) and trying to figure out if the weird creatures she’s seeing are real or imagined. Neither Hutton nor Darby is an acting powerhouse, and Demarest gives a perfunctory turn, so it’s not the acting that gives Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark its mild spookiness; rather, the picture’s potency stems from the filmmakers’ wholehearted commitment to an outlandish narrative. The movie gets down to business immediately and escalates steadily, never pausing for distractions like character development, and there’s always something admirable about a no-frills fright machine. So, while Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark can’t match the nerve-jangling intensity of the best ’70s TV horror, like Duel or Trilogy of Terror, it’s a distracting trifle nonetheless. (Available at WarnerArchive.com)
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark: FUNKY
2 comments:
Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is considered by many X Generation and young Baby Boomers as possibly the scariest of all the Made for TV films of the 1970's. It's dark and brooding atmosphere along with the fact that it explains little about these unknown frightful creatures, just lends itself moreso to what the mind of any child or adult could conjure up. It leaves it open to interpretation the fear in us all, the demons in our closet or what's waiting for us under the bed. The evil low toned whispers of ~Sally... we want you... come to us~, could have been that of our own name.
Not to mention its very disturbing musical score which was frightening in and of itself. The main characters were perfect examples of the time, (the job driven husband, who had little time to listen to his wife's concerns, and the stay at home wife who felt unappreciated and whose concerns were not taken seriously).
Also what's forgotten here is the fact that due to an impending strike, this film was shot entirely in just two weeks! Considering the costume design and overall continuity of the script, I would say they did a most admirable job. This movie still gives me the shivers and certainly ranks up there with "The Night Stalker", "Trilogy of Terror", "Bad Ronald", etc, etc.
It's been awhile since I've seen it but my brother told me it scared the crap out of him when he saw its first airing. btw it was directed by John Newland, that creepy but brilliant cat who hosted the TV series One Step Beyond. Just watching him looking at you and talking can give you the creeps.
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