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Dark Shadows

Movie ID: 1450

RT slug: dark-shadows-2010

RT URL: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dark-shadows-2010

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Release year: 2012

Runtime: 112 mins

Wide release date: 2012-05-11

Limited release date: —

Festival premiere date: —

Streaming release date: 2014-02-15

Tomatometer final: 35%

Audience score final: 46%

Genres: Comedy, Fantasy

Directors: Tim Burton

Writers: Seth Grahame-Smith

Producers: Christi Dembrowski, David Kennedy, Graham King, Johnny Depp, Richard D. Zanuck, Tim Burton

MPAA rating: PG-13

Executive Producers: —

Created: 2026-10-05 20:50:22

Updated: 2026-10-05 20:50:22

Synopsis

In 18th-century Maine, Barnabas Collins (Johnny Depp) presides over the town of Collinsport. A rich and powerful playboy, Barnabas seals his own doom when he breaks the heart of a witch named Angelique (Eva Green). Angelique turns Barnabas into a vampire and buries him alive. Two centuries later, Barnabas escapes from his tomb and finds 1972 Collinsport a very different place. His once-grand estate has fallen into ruin, and the dysfunctional remnants of his family have fared little better.

Consensus

The visuals are top notch but Tim Burton never finds a consistent rhythm, mixing campy jokes and gothic spookiness with less success than other Johnny Depp collaborations.

Latest Snapshot / Canonical Review Totals

Canonical reviews: 259

Canonical fresh: 91

Canonical rotten: 168

Canonical calculated Tomatometer: 259 (91/168), 35% (35.135% raw)

Latest snapshot UTC: 2026-10-05 14:36:47

Snapshot Tomatometer: 35%

Snapshot review count: 259

Snapshot fresh count: 91

Snapshot rotten count: 168

Source note: Imported from manual review paste batch #4355 (full_snapshot)

Companies

Company Role
Warner Bros. Pictures distributor
GK Films production
Infinitum Nihil production
Warner Bros. production
Zanuck Company production

Cast

Billing Name Character
1 Johnny Depp Barnabas Collins
2 Michelle Pfeiffer Elizabeth Collins Stoddard
3 Helena Bonham Carter Dr. Julia Hoffman
4 Eva Green Angelique Bouchard
5 Jackie Earle Haley Willie Loomis

Movie Import Batches

Batch ID Status Mode Created Notes
1468 processed — 2026-10-05 20:50:22 Processed successfully into movie_id=1450 using update_mode=merge_non_empty.

Review Import Batches

Batch ID Local Snapshot UTC Snapshot Entered % Entered Count Status Notes
4355 2026-10-05 09:36:00 (America/Panama) 2026-10-05 14:36:47 35% 259 processed Mode=full_snapshot. Processed 259 row(s); 0 row error(s). Parsed unique reviews in this batch=259, fresh=91, rotten=168, tomatometer=35%. Net new reviews added=259, fresh=91, rotten=168. Current canonical totals=259 reviews, 91 fresh, 168 rotten, tomatometer=35% (35.135%). Entered review count matched parsed batch count (259). Entered tomatometer matched parsed batch value (35%).

Latest Canonical Reviews (max 100)

ID Critic Outlet Fresh? Score RT Time Raw Approx Published UTC Quote
285496 Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Rotten 2/4 2026-08-04T19:01:31.000Z 2026-08-04 19:01:31 How to explain a career that has largely become a parody of itself?
285497 Michael Leader Den of Geek Rotten 2/5 2024-05-03T21:50:17.000Z 2024-05-03 21:50:17 With its overstuffed script and uncertain direction, Lay The Favourite is unlikely to change Rebecca Hall’s fortunes.
285498 Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review Rotten 2/4 2022-11-20T05:26:03.000Z 2022-11-20 05:26:03 Dark Shadows takes the easy way out by lampooning its source material, simplifying its ‘70s setting through parody, and handling most of the characters like comic relief in an overall treatment that’s beneath everyone involved.
285499 Keith Garlington Keith & the Movies Fresh 2/5 2022-08-20T14:15:15.000Z 2022-08-20 14:15:15 It feels like a movie that had great comedic potential but only gave us a sampling of it.
285500 Cory Woodroof Lumination Network Fresh — 2022-02-11T20:14:44.000Z 2022-02-11 20:14:44 Despite some issues with the narrative, Dark Shadows rightly leans on its humor, cast and staging to create a largely enjoyable trip to the movies. Burtons style shines, and longtime fans are in for a treat.
285501 Jason Adams My New Plaid Pants Rotten — 2021-07-14T21:12:14.000Z 2021-07-14 21:12:14 [Depp's] Barnabas is never that interesting, and similarly the movie struggles for its own purpose. It never finds anything of its own to say, and just ends up flailing around past the occasional fun little bit for two hours
285502 Owen Nicholls NME (New Musical Express) Rotten — 2021-04-29T01:22:53.000Z 2021-04-29 01:22:53 Even hardcore Burton apologists will have a difficult time defending Dark Shadows.
285503 Joanne Laurier World Socialist Web Site Rotten — 2021-02-28T04:30:44.000Z 2021-02-28 04:30:44 Based on the gothic television soap opera that ran from 1966 to 1971, Tim Burton's Dark Shadows is an erratic movie without core or conviction.
285504 Mike Massie Gone With The Twins Rotten 5/10 2020-12-01T08:10:40.000Z 2020-12-01 08:10:40 It features too much of Burton's signature proclivities and not enough restraint to allow for a cohesive vision.
285505 Rachel Wagner Rachel's Reviews (YouTube) Rotten — 2020-11-20T09:20:29.000Z 2020-11-20 09:20:29 My least favorite Johnny Depp film
285506 Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com Fresh 3.0/4.0 2020-09-05T15:03:20.000Z 2020-09-05 15:03:20 Dark Shadows isn't going to please everyone. Tim Burton's films never do.
285507 Allen Almachar The MacGuffin Rotten C+ 2020-07-31T18:43:48.000Z 2020-07-31 18:43:48 While this film does seem to mark a turning point towards the positive for Burton, it still lacks that special quality that made his earlier work so remarkable.
285508 Katie Smith-Wong Musings of Guitargalchina Rotten 2/5 2019-12-10T22:03:11.000Z 2019-12-10 22:03:11 [Tim] Burton could have done so much more with this film.
285509 Noah Berlatsky Splice Today Rotten — 2019-09-18T21:02:24.000Z 2019-09-18 21:02:24 It's hard to imagine a 1970s without soul, even in Maine, but Dark Shadows pulls it off.
285510 Leslie Combemale Cinema Siren Rotten — 2019-07-29T23:34:49.000Z 2019-07-29 23:34:49 You are surrounded by beautiful things to see, but even the biggest thrill rides become perfunctory and when you wake up you barely remember the experience.
285511 Ellie Lucas The Dispatch (Lexington, NC) Rotten 2/4 2019-06-08T16:01:15.000Z 2019-06-08 16:01:15 A bland, mostly unmemorable affair that never commits to being a comedy or a horror film and is instead an odd mix of both that doesn't quite work.
285512 Micheal Compton Bowling Green Daily News Rotten C 2019-04-12T01:02:19.000Z 2019-04-12 01:02:19 It's as if we're watching someone else try to mimic a Burton film, and the result pales in comparison to his better work.
285513 Naila Scargill Exquisite Terror Rotten — 2019-02-28T12:50:27.000Z 2019-02-28 12:50:27 At first glance Dark Shadows is fun, but there is simply little story to be had, with a script that relies on just the one joke.
285514 J. Hoberman ARTINFO.com Rotten — 2019-02-25T18:50:37.000Z 2019-02-25 18:50:37 Sad to report, the [Tim] Burton opus is an unnecessarily complicated tale involving too many characters, not to mention an unresolved moral conundrum that has us happily rooting for an unapologetic mass serial killer.
285515 Abbie Bernstein Assignment X Rotten B- 2019-02-02T01:03:03.000Z 2019-02-02 01:03:03 Dark Shadows is an oddity. Neither scary nor campy, it's another of Burton's tall tales, full of visual beauty and whimsy, with some unexpected emotional notes, but ultimately more style than substance.
285516 Amon Warmann CineVue Rotten 3/5 2019-01-08T01:12:34.000Z 2019-01-08 01:12:34 It's just unfortunate that Dark Shadows' impressive cast is not backed up with tighter material. With hints towards a possible sequel suggested, whether Burton has earned the right to make it after this average effort is definitely up for debate.
285517 Kelly Jane Torrance Washington Examiner Fresh 3/4 2019-01-03T01:07:14.000Z 2019-01-03 01:07:14 Burton is a master of black comedy whose attention to detail makes for films full of wonder.
285518 Debbie Baldwin Ladue News Rotten 5/10 2018-11-09T00:38:23.000Z 2018-11-09 00:38:23 Unfortunately the movie is neither scary enough to be a thriller nor funny enough to be a comedy, so it waffles sadly between the two genres.
285519 Eileen Jones The eXile Rotten — 2018-11-04T09:51:50.000Z 2018-11-04 09:51:50 A listless presentation of elements that seem vaguely meant to evoke the old Burton humor and humane sweetness, his once-insightful combo of the suburban and the supernatural. It's painful to see it all lie inert up there...
285520 Johnny Gayzmonic Fanboys of the Universe Rotten 5/10 2018-11-04T09:48:44.000Z 2018-11-04 09:48:44 What seems like it should work amazingly well just turns out to disappoint. There's really no explanation for it.
285521 Pat Padua DCist Rotten — 2018-08-30T17:30:08.000Z 2018-08-30 17:30:08 Behind the punch-line-by-anachronism and Good vs. Evil showdown are dark shadows of a nature more disturbing than eerie, less entertaining than off-putting.
285522 Brandy McDonnell The Oklahoman Fresh 3/4 2018-08-07T23:40:36.000Z 2018-08-07 23:40:36 It's hard to imagine a more fitting moviemaking team than Tim Burton and Johnny Depp to give the TV cult favorite a big-budget cinematic remake.
285523 Sarah Marrs Cinesnark Rotten — 2017-10-23T22:02:04.000Z 2017-10-23 22:02:04 The problems come largely from the script, which is bereft of character development and the humor is caught somewhere between too broad for camp and too weird for mainstream appeal.
285524 Yasmin Shehab Cairo360 Rotten 2.5/5 2017-09-28T21:58:08.000Z 2017-09-28 21:58:08 With a cast this stellar and Tim Burton directing, you'd be forgiven for expecting something far more cohesive than this.
285525 Neely Swanson Easy Reader (California) Rotten — 2017-09-18T23:19:45.000Z 2017-09-18 23:19:45 Certainly I wish I had had as much fun as the participants seemed to be having but in the end, and a spectacular special effects end it is, the film was as wispy as some of the ghosts that flew by.
285526 Emily Rems Bust Magazine Fresh — 2017-03-07T17:26:28.000Z 2017-03-07 17:26:28 It's thrilling to have this often-overlooked gem of popular culture revived on such a huge scale.
285527 Kong Rithdee Bangkok Post Rotten — 2016-05-09T16:37:31.000Z 2016-05-09 16:37:31 As much as it tries to make this a love story, we don't feel its heart pulsating. Barnabus is a vampire who wants his life back, but neither he nor the film truly succeeds.
285528 Scott Weinberg TheHorrorShow Rotten — 2015-08-26T16:51:04.000Z 2015-08-26 16:51:04 Not just a bad film; it's evidence of people who are barely even trying.
285529 Felix Vasquez Jr. Cinema Crazed Rotten — 2013-10-03T00:19:10.000Z 2013-10-03 00:19:10 Johnny Depp once again takes a role where he allows the make up and prosthetics to do the acting for him...
285530 Will Leitch Deadspin Rotten D+ 2013-06-23T05:34:47.000Z 2013-06-23 05:34:47 The nadir of Burton's career and is likely going to be his biggest flop, a film that's not a comedy, not a drama, not a horror film, and not a fantasy.
285531 David Thomson The New Republic Rotten — 2013-06-17T15:41:06.000Z 2013-06-17 15:41:06 The only reason to see Dark Shadows is to discover how dire and pointless-how flat-out dreadful-a movie can be even when it has Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Helena Bonham Carter attached to its flimsy pretext.
285532 Al Alexander The Patriot Ledger Fresh B 2013-06-02T11:34:24.000Z 2013-06-02 11:34:24 There's more than enough here for us older folks - and some younger ones, too - to have us exclaiming, Fangs for the memories.
285533 Matt Kelemen Las Vegas CityLife Rotten 2/5 2013-04-21T21:13:57.000Z 2013-04-21 21:13:57 Burton really needed to lean his horror-comedy more toward horror. Instead, it's reminiscent at times of Love at First Bite and the feature film remakes of The Addams Family and The Brady Bunch.
285534 Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault Fresh B 2012-12-17T08:56:06.000Z 2012-12-17 08:56:06 It turns into a bit of a mess towards the finish line, but at least it's a fun mess, and if you're looking to Tim Burton for narrative tidiness you must be thinking of another Tim Burton.
285535 R.L. Shaffer IGN DVD Rotten 5/10 2012-10-05T14:08:02.000Z 2012-10-05 14:08:02 Dark Shadows should have been a return-to-form for director Tim Burton, but with a bloated budget and way too much room to play, Burton delivers yet another wasted effort.
285536 Brian Holcomb CinemaBlend Rotten 2.5/5 2012-09-28T21:12:25.000Z 2012-09-28 21:12:25 Made for an audience of no one, Dark Shadows is a mess of campy horror, "fish out of coffin" comedy, and gothic melodrama.
285537 Ben Kendrick Screen Rant Rotten 2.5/5 2012-09-27T22:39:19.000Z 2012-09-27 22:39:19 Not a colossal failure but an indicator that Burton and Depp could stand to step outside their collective me + you = cinematic magic mindsets.
285538 Adam Ross The Aristocrat Rotten 2/5 2012-09-27T03:58:44.000Z 2012-09-27 03:58:44 ...following Graeme-Smith's lead, Burton has made, quite possibly, the worst film of his 30-year career.
285539 Patrick Kolan Shotgun Cinema Rotten 2/5 2012-09-27T02:03:35.000Z 2012-09-27 02:03:35 Dark Shadows is never short on stunning backdrops and impressive cinematographic techniques. It looks a treat. But with Dark Shadows, like Depp himself, you can only put so much make-up on an ageing face and sell it as fresh.
285540 John J. Puccio Movie Metropolis Rotten 5/10 2012-09-23T14:52:02.000Z 2012-09-23 14:52:02 It's just sort of a star vehicle for Johnny Depp, with everyone and everything else a secondary consideration at best.
285541 Jeff Beck Examiner.com Rotten 2/4 2012-09-14T23:34:40.000Z 2012-09-14 23:34:40 It had so much potential, but given the result, it should have stayed in the shadows.
285542 Matt Looker TheShiznit.co.uk Rotten 3/5 2012-09-13T07:32:59.000Z 2012-09-13 07:32:59 Dark Shadows really is just a mixed bag of chuckles and drama that never really gets the balance quite right.
285543 Justin Craig FoxNews.com Rotten 5/10 2012-09-10T09:05:20.000Z 2012-09-10 09:05:20 While "Dark Shadows" has many wonderful elements, it is set up to become a new franchise for Warner Bros, but it just doesn't quite have that eternal bite.
285544 William Bibbiani CraveOnline Fresh 8.5/10 2012-08-22T01:12:09.000Z 2012-08-22 01:12:09 Captures the grand sweep and often ridiculous theatricality of both soap operas and gothic romance.
285545 Brian Gibson Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Alberta) Rotten — 2012-07-24T10:12:31.000Z 2012-07-24 10:12:31 There's much more bloody potential here for dark comedy (and shaded emotions) than we're lightly spattered with . . . offers no zany flourishes, dashing touches or striking shots.
285546 Charlie Lyne Ultra Culture Rotten — 2012-07-06T04:27:45.000Z 2012-07-06 04:27:45 Dark Shadows makes almost no attempt to reward cinema audiences.
285547 Jim Schembri 3AW Rotten 2/5 2012-06-30T20:15:43.000Z 2012-06-30 20:15:43 In yet another over-designed cinematic letdown, director Tim Burton (Alice in Wonderland; Sweeney Todd) weaves a choppy comic tale of resurrected ghouls set in the early 1970s.
285548 Nathaniel Rogers The Film Experience Rotten C 2012-06-22T17:00:20.000Z 2012-06-22 17:00:20 Burton can still deliver a great visual hook and whimsical comedy. But he seems caught between his new laziness and his old genuine excitement about filmmaking.
285549 Bruce Bennett Spectrum (St. George, Utah) Rotten C+ 2012-06-03T21:35:13.000Z 2012-06-03 21:35:13 Isn't sure if it is supposed to be a campy homage, a vampire black comedy, or a family friendly horror pic...doesn't come close to the duo's wondrous collaborations.
285550 Mark Pfeiffer Reel Times: Reflections on Cinema Rotten C- 2012-06-02T17:44:03.000Z 2012-06-02 17:44:03 Dark Shadows gets stuck in neutral because of the uncertainty as to what kind of a film it wants to be.
285551 Tricia Olszewski Washington City Paper Fresh — 2012-06-01T15:32:14.000Z 2012-06-01 15:32:14 Burton deploys the kind of winking, sly humor he knows his leading man can pull off.
285552 Eric Melin Scene-Stealers.com Rotten 2/4 2012-06-01T12:09:10.000Z 2012-06-01 12:09:10 Some scenes seem to exist in their own universe entirely, having no bearing on the rest of the plot. If this is supposed to be some sort of satirical comment on the original TV show, which was famously erratic, then it was a bad choice.
285553 Kelly Vance East Bay Express Fresh — 2012-05-31T17:07:26.000Z 2012-05-31 17:07:26 Burton's most entertaining film since Ed Wood.
285554 Michael Dequina TheMovieReport.com Rotten 1/4 2012-05-27T22:10:46.000Z 2012-05-27 22:10:46 Barely rates as a shadow of the franchise's previous lives.
285555 Betty Jo Tucker ReelTalk Movie Reviews Rotten — 2012-05-27T16:55:42.000Z 2012-05-27 16:55:42 I'm still in a state of shock over being bored while watching a Johnny Depp flick.
285556 Robert Denerstein Movie Habit Rotten — 2012-05-24T21:15:05.000Z 2012-05-24 21:15:05 Visually elaborate, but dramatically flat
285557 Jeffrey M. Anderson Common Sense Media Fresh 3/5 2012-05-20T13:40:33.000Z 2012-05-20 13:40:33 While Burton should have been comfortable with the story's large-scale passions and soap opera emotions -- as evidenced by movies like Edward Scissorhands -- he seems unwilling to take the risk.
285558 Jackie K. Cooper jackiekcooper.com Rotten 4/10 2012-05-19T14:04:38.000Z 2012-05-19 14:04:38 Johnny Depp and Tim Burton make a movie for each other and leave the audience waiting to be entertained.
285559 Bob Grimm Reno News and Review Rotten 2/5 2012-05-18T21:45:37.000Z 2012-05-18 21:45:37 Burton and Depp have gotten into the practice of making boring and stupid movies lately. Hope that particular trend ends soon.
285560 Eric Eisenberg CinemaBlend Rotten 1.5/5 2012-05-18T09:12:24.000Z 2012-05-18 09:12:24 The movie is completely tone deaf - unsure if it's a horror movie, a comedy or a drama - and never finds anything interesting in the characters for the audience to latch on to.
285561 Brian Juergens AfterElton.com Rotten 4/10 2012-05-18T08:16:04.000Z 2012-05-18 08:16:04 By refusing to go either full-on melodrama or pure sendup, they've sentenced the original show's characters to an eternity of being upstaged by ugly lampshades.
285562 Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy Fresh 6/10 2012-05-17T21:02:06.000Z 2012-05-17 21:02:06 Does not feel as derivative and artificial as most of what [Burton] has done since 2001.
285563 Margot Harrison Seven Days (VT) Rotten 5/10 2012-05-16T19:26:24.000Z 2012-05-16 19:26:24 Without a strong central conflict, the film ends up wobbling from set piece to set piece, as if Burton were continually yelling, "Hey, check this out!"
285564 Margaret Pomeranz At the Movies (Australia) Fresh 4/5 2012-05-16T17:48:35.000Z 2012-05-16 17:48:35 Pitching the film playfully between farce, with a knowing satiric edge, high action and high romance, Dark Shadows is a lot of fun.
285565 David Stratton The Australian Fresh 3.5/5 2012-05-16T17:45:46.000Z 2012-05-16 17:45:46 Certainly delivers the goods on several levels without quite rising to the heights to which it aspires.
285566 Jeff Bayer The Scorecard Review Rotten 5/10 2012-05-16T06:16:21.000Z 2012-05-16 06:16:21 It's filled with moments that don't really matter, especially when dealing with the fishing business.
285567 James Kendrick Q Network Film Desk Rotten 2/4 2012-05-16T06:00:47.000Z 2012-05-16 06:00:47 nostalgic music and digs at the bad aesthetic choices of a previous era, no matter how well executed, will only get you so far, and at some point we have to be invested in Barnabas's many plights, and we never are.
285568 Ken Hanke Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) Fresh 4.5/5 2012-05-16T05:46:47.000Z 2012-05-16 05:46:47 Is it obviously a Tim Burton picture? Sure it is. That's what I expect -- and, in fact, what I want -- from a Burton movie.
285569 Sara Michelle Fetters MovieFreak.com Fresh 2.5/4 2012-05-15T16:28:58.000Z 2012-05-15 16:28:58 After watching the film, an odd, somewhat disjointed comedic drama about family and sacrifice set to Burton's own uniquely macabre cinematic beat, I'm not quite sure what to call this new take on the venerable property.
285570 Anthony Lane The New Yorker Rotten — 2012-05-15T05:15:18.000Z 2012-05-15 05:15:18 This is not so much a coherent movie as it is a long, expensive joke in search of a purpose.
285571 CJ Johnson Film Mafia Rotten 2/5 2012-05-15T03:26:44.000Z 2012-05-15 03:26:44 The longer the movie plays, the more disjointed, episodic, and incoherent it becomes. It has no idea what it is.
285572 Jon Hamblin SFX Magazine Rotten 2.5/5 2012-05-15T03:20:36.000Z 2012-05-15 03:20:36 A flaccid film that might as well be a straight-to-video Addams Family sequel.
285573 Ethan Alter Television Without Pity Rotten — 2012-05-14T14:38:54.000Z 2012-05-14 14:38:54 Not the worst movie Tim Burton has ever made, but it's the latest example of how creatively adrift he's become.
285574 Mark Ramsey MovieJuice! Rotten C 2012-05-14T13:42:36.000Z 2012-05-14 13:42:36 I knew we were in trouble when the cops drew a chalk outline around the box office.
285575 Tony Medley Tolucan Times Fresh 7/10 2012-05-14T10:40:22.000Z 2012-05-14 10:40:22 Not that funny, but worth seeing mostly due to Depp's performance.
285576 Jason Best Movie Talk Fresh — 2012-05-14T07:46:15.000Z 2012-05-14 07:46:15 As with Pirates, the story often stalls while Depp does his stuff, but his fish-out-of-water vampire is roguish, mannered and a hoot, as you'd expect.. though it's Green's wild-eyed pale-skinned seductress who really sinks her teeth into the film.
285577 Luke Buckmaster The Daily Review/Crikey Fresh — 2012-05-13T19:18:18.000Z 2012-05-13 19:18:18 The jokes seem to have been written, fittingly enough, by the dead.
285578 Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com Fresh B 2012-05-13T18:21:52.000Z 2012-05-13 18:21:52 "Dark Shadows" is a lot more fun than any of the "Twilight" movies combined.
285579 Ed Gibbs The Sun-Herald (Australia) Rotten 5/10 2012-05-13T17:26:22.000Z 2012-05-13 17:26:22 If Burton had ever worried that his celebrated brand of eccentricity might one day feel dated or even irrelevant, that unthinkable day may indeed have come.
285580 Diva Velez TheDivaReview.com Rotten 2/5 2012-05-13T04:34:56.000Z 2012-05-13 04:34:56 Not funny enough to be called a comedy nor remotely frightening or dramatic enough to portray the original TV show's scarier leanings. Dark Shadows has no idea what it wants to be and ends up being nothing.
285581 Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Rotten C+ 2012-05-13T02:52:24.000Z 2012-05-13 02:52:24 Another kooky and over-baked visually spectacular film filled with lavish costumes and spooky goth style from director Tim Burton.
285582 Ed Whitfield The Ooh Tray Rotten — 2012-05-12T18:06:53.000Z 2012-05-12 18:06:53 A mirthless monster mash that just manages to remember what it's about, a minute before the end - all concerned praying it's not too late. It is.
285583 Philip French Observer (UK) Rotten — 2012-05-12T17:59:03.000Z 2012-05-12 17:59:03 Ultimately the film is rather ordinary, a bit like a modest Roger Corman horror flick embarrassed by the size of its budget.
285584 Beth Accomando KPBS.org Rotten — 2012-05-12T16:40:57.000Z 2012-05-12 16:40:57 There really isn't acting to speak of because there is no attempt at character development, just character design. Characters only exist as gags, and cheap gags at that.
285585 Brandon Judell CultureCatch Rotten — 2012-05-12T16:21:35.000Z 2012-05-12 16:21:35 Basically a cornucopia of ineptness, Dark Shadows should have been relegated to where the sun don't shine.
285586 Scott Nash Three Movie Buffs Rotten 2.5/4 2012-05-12T14:04:31.000Z 2012-05-12 14:04:31 Looks good, as you'd expect from Burton, but the script lacks fangs.
285587 Kevin A. Ranson MovieCrypt.com Rotten 1.5/4.0 2012-05-12T10:56:31.000Z 2012-05-12 10:56:31 ... it shouldn't surprise anyone that all the funny bits are in the trailers and what's left is a beautiful production design in need of a worthy plot.
285588 Lori Hoffman Atlantic City Weekly Rotten 1/4 2012-05-12T10:43:47.000Z 2012-05-12 10:43:47 Dark Shadows just sits there flat and boring, with the energy of the actors in lock down mode thanks to laugh lines that get no laughter.
285589 Glenn Lovell CinemaDope Rotten 2/4 2012-05-12T10:30:15.000Z 2012-05-12 10:30:15 ... reminds us that all the CG effects and crashing-wave inserts can't goose a moribund script to life. Depp as Barnabas should have gone the way of Love Story and the lava lamp and stay buried.
285590 Daniel M. Kimmel North Shore Movies Fresh 3.5/5 2012-05-12T09:46:34.000Z 2012-05-12 09:46:34 This latest collaboration between director Tim Burton and actor Johnny Depp is easily the best thing they've done together since Sweeney Todd.
285591 Lisa Giles-Keddie Real.com Fresh 3/5 2012-05-12T07:32:43.000Z 2012-05-12 07:32:43 The only resurrecting grace is Depp's now routine, freak pantomime performance ...You will scream with frustration at this ghoulish comedy, that's for sure.
285592 Tim Martain The Mercury (Australia) Fresh 3/5 2012-05-12T04:10:21.000Z 2012-05-12 04:10:21 Much like pizza and sex, even when a Tim Burton film isn't great, it's still pretty good, it's never really "bad".
285593 Austin Kennedy Sin Magazine Rotten 2.5/4 2012-05-12T02:02:22.000Z 2012-05-12 02:02:22 Burton's direction is top notch, but he doesn't know a thing about story structure, which is something you think he would have figured out by now.
285594 Widgett Walls Needcoffee.com Rotten 1/5 2012-05-12T00:11:00.000Z 2012-05-12 00:11:00 If you're going to take this, which wasn't a comedy, and play it for comedy...make your movie funny.
285595 Anders Wotzke Moviedex Fresh 3.5/5 2012-05-11T22:54:01.000Z 2012-05-11 22:54:01 Perhaps if every Hollywood film featured the grand yet gloomy decadency of a Burton production, I'd be more inclined to get caught up on where his films go wrong. But they don't, so I won't.

Showing the latest 100 canonical reviews for this movie.