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The Dark

  • 20052005
  • RR
  • 1h 33m
IMDb RATING
5.3/10
11K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
The Dark (2005)
  • Drama
  • Fantasy
  • Horror
In mourning over the tragic drowning of their daughter Sarah, James and Adèle are visited by Ebrill, a young girl who claims she died 60 years ago - and bears a startling resemblance to Sara... Read allIn mourning over the tragic drowning of their daughter Sarah, James and Adèle are visited by Ebrill, a young girl who claims she died 60 years ago - and bears a startling resemblance to Sarah.In mourning over the tragic drowning of their daughter Sarah, James and Adèle are visited by Ebrill, a young girl who claims she died 60 years ago - and bears a startling resemblance to Sarah.
IMDb RATING
5.3/10
11K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • John Fawcett
  • Writers
    • Simon Maginn(novel "Sheep")
    • Stephen Massicotte(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Sean Bean
    • Maria Bello
    • Sophie Stuckey
Top credits
  • Director
    • John Fawcett
  • Writers
    • Simon Maginn(novel "Sheep")
    • Stephen Massicotte(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Sean Bean
    • Maria Bello
    • Sophie Stuckey
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 116User reviews
    • 61Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination

    Videos1

    The Dark
    Trailer 2:29
    The Dark

    Photos54

    The Dark (2005)
    The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello and Sophie Stuckey in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello and Abigail Stone in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello and Abigail Stone in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello and Sophie Stuckey in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello and Abigail Stone in The Dark (2005)
    Maria Bello in The Dark (2005)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Sean Bean
    Sean Bean
    • Jamesas James
    Maria Bello
    Maria Bello
    • Adèlleas Adèlle
    Sophie Stuckey
    Sophie Stuckey
    • Sarahas Sarah
    Abigail Stone
    Abigail Stone
    • Ebrillas Ebrill
    Maurice Roëves
    Maurice Roëves
    • Dafyddas Dafydd
    Richard Elfyn
    Richard Elfyn
    • Rowanas Rowan
    Casper Harvey
    • Young Dafyddas Young Dafydd
    Eluned Jones
    • Doctoras Doctor
    Gwenyth Petty
    • Librarianas Librarian
    Robin Griffith
    • Police Inspectoras Police Inspector
    Mike Keggen
    • Rib Skipperas Rib Skipper
    Tonya Smith
    Tonya Smith
    • Main Stumblehead Martyras Main Stumblehead Martyr
    Luke Kearney
    Luke Kearney
    • Stumblehead jumperas Stumblehead jumper
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • John Fawcett
    • Writers
      • Simon Maginn(novel "Sheep")
      • Stephen Massicotte(screenplay)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The concept of Annwn or Annwyn (pronounted "a-non") is not made up especially for the film or the book on which it was based. Annwn is land of the dead, the underworld or Afterlife in Welsh mythology. It is said to lay far in the west and could be accessed by the living through a door located at the mouth of the Severn once a year. Surviving from pre-Christian Celtic mythology, it's neither Heaven nor Hell in the Christian sense, and the living can enter spiritually or corporeally. This is the first film about Annwn.
    • Goofs
      Ebrill is consistently mispronounced as 'Ebrith' ('Ebrydd' in Welsh, although there is no such Welsh word). There is no English equivalent for 'll' but it should be pronounced as something closer to 'Ebrych', similar to the 'ch' as in the Scottish 'loch' (although that sound also exists in Welsh).
    • Quotes

      Adèlle: The night Sarah went missing, I saw a girl.

      James: You saw a girl?

      Adèlle: Yes, out in the yard.

    • Alternate versions
      An alternate ending is included on the USA Region 1 DVD from Sony Pictures.
    • Connections
      Edited into The Dark: Alternate Ending (2006)

    User reviews116

    Review
    Top review
    6/10
    Genre-by-numbers Saturday night shocker
    Can a horror film be scary and boring at the same? The Dark has an extremely good effort – about equivalent to lifting one's little finger. The plot shows all the attention span of someone reading a Welsh mythology after smoking several reefers. Formulaic scare-mongering knocks you out of your seat at regular intervals, though without enlivening the story or characters much, the most interesting of which, a girl called Ebrill, is temporarily back from the dead after a number of misled churchgoers and nigh on a flock of sheep have been offered in her place.

    Young Sarah arrives with her mum at a remote cottage on the Welsh coast where her dad is staying. Legends, hallucinations, nightmares of sheep and people going over a nasty bit of cliff abound and we hear of how it might be possible for some people to pop back and forth between this world and the next – at a price.

    Director John Fawcett, who showed promise and originality with Ginger Snaps, has here gone for banality enlivened by the most unashamed editing. If you flash a very sudden, very bright image at someone, and simultaneously make a very loud noise, they will jump. Traditionally, filmmakers have used this technique to emphasise a plot turn – the appearance of the bogey-man, monster, serial killer. Fawcett doesn't bother, he just inserts it. One minute you're watching the sleep-inducing story and the next you are shocked awake by a loud crash together with a bright light. Explain it to yourself as a deep insight into the unsteady mind of one of the characters? Well if I was a character in such an insipidly put together movie I'd probably need to be deranged for fun too. The trouble with this technique is that there is no plot momentum to keep you excited until the next loud bang. After the first two, I started trying to predict the next one (wait for a false alarm, then a lull, then the bang) and with reasonable accuracy till I lost interest.

    It picks up a bit towards the end, and the scares are scary, however contrived. All in all it's standard Saturday night horror fare, nothing that special. If you don't mind the clichés, sit back and go whaaaaaa (as I did!)
    helpful•46
    27
    • Chris_Docker
    • Aug 25, 2005

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 26, 2006 (Germany)
    • Countries of origin
      • Isle of Man
      • United Kingdom
      • United States
      • Germany
    • Languages
      • English
      • Welsh
    • Also known as
      • Karanlık
    • Filming locations
      • Devon, England, UK
    • Production companies
      • Constantin Film
      • Impact Pictures
      • Isle of Man Film
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • £3,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross worldwide
      • $6,593,579
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 33 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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