In 1990, Kevin Bacon battled with underground creatures in the desert in “Tremors.” In 2016, Kevin Bacon contends with a demon he and his family brought home from the Grand Canyon in “The Darkness.” If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that Kevin Bacon should avoid the desert at all costs.
The Grand Canyon demon, which sounds like either the best or worst tourist attraction, is brought to the home of the Taylors thanks to their autistic son, Michael (David Mazouz). Michael retrieved five rocks with hieroglyphics inscribed on them, which we learn hold the spirits of five ancient demons. The one we hear from most is Jenny, who wastes no time in indulging in paranormal activity: water facets start by themselves, doors mysteriously open, and black charcoal handprints are left throughout the house. Like with most ghost stories, the longer the film goes, the more violent the spirit becomes. One always wonders why they take their sweet time; my guess has always been that ghosts and demons are pranksters who’ve gotten the ultimate opportunity in the afterlife.
Michael being autistic is used as a plot device, but thankfully not in an insulting manner. One of the biggest criticism of haunted house tales is in those being haunted not believing the cause being a ghost until at least halfway through the film. To get around that, Greg Mclean, who directed the film and co-wrote it alongside Shayne Armstrong & Shane Krause, has the family believing the strange events are at the hands of Michael. Technically some are, such as the house fire that is eventually used as a portal to another dimension. These ancient demons pry on children to do their bidding and they got lucky in being able to manipulate an autistic child, as it gives them more time to enter our world unquestioned.
While the autistic angle is unique, everything else in “The Darkness” is as formulaic as it gets. Peter (Kevin Bacon) is the overworked father who previously had an affair; Bronny (Radha Mitchell) is the lonely housewife who understandably has trust issues; and Stephanie (Lucy Fry) is the rebellious teenager. The only distinct trait given to Stephanie is that she’s bulimic and keeps her vomit in Tupperware containers underneath her bed. This is brought up sparingly as a way to give her a personality. Much like the traits of the other family members, this is underdeveloped and comes across as a mere plot device as opposed to a useful personality trait.
By attempting to develop the other family members, Mclean unintentionally lets Michael’s autisim fall by the wayside. There’s an attempt to prevent the autism from coming across as a cheap tactic, and I appreciated the sentiment, but it unfortunately comes across as just that as the film progresses. Had the dramatic focus been on Michael’s autism the entire time, both the drama and tension would’ve been ratcheted up further. Instead, all of the drama and suspense falls flat.
All of the demonic activity is also of the formulaic variety. The backstory of them being spirits cast out of their homes in the desert is peculiar, but, much like the character traits, isn’t explored enough. The trip to their dimension in the finale is too brief and resolved too easily for it to have that strong of an effect. One even wonders why the Taylors called upon a psychic to help them, as she and her granddaughter technically don’t even save the day. And speaking of the psychic, her arrival is laughably convenient to the plot. Peter’s overbearing boss (Paul Reiser) recommends the psychic to him, only after denouncing the practice when his wife tried to bring her up during dinner. It’s only when Peter asks for time off and he sees how distressed he’s become that he reveals the psychic worked and saved his child. Why the hell did he not reveal that at dinner!?!
“The Darkness” isn’t a terribly made horror film, just a generic one. Everything is predictable, resulting in most of the horror beats not connecting. The performances are fine, but the script undermines them by not developing the characters enough. The only interesting angle in the film is the autism and that’s not explored enough for it to fully work.
Final Rating: C