Depp/Burton DARK SHADOWS Is In Release!!

[jimbo]

Why does AMC think the movie made just a little money in its answering a video question if there is a potential for a sequel? So misinformed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJJKh678fKo

[Cousin_Barnabas]

My understanding is that it did make "just a little money" at the box office, considering the old "having to earn back twice its budget" formula. 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Actually, what I think he's more misinformed about is the critic and audience response. Though not all that long ago we addressed the misconceptions in those two areas, so we needn't get into it all over again.

Also, to me it looks more like his own opinion of the film colored his response more than the actual facts of how the film did. But then, how often have we also seen people twist the facts to suit their own views on DS, be it the original show, the original films, the '91 show, or the '04 pilot? Sadly, all too often (as in: the original show was canceled due to bad ratings, NoDS was a complete box office failure, the '91 show was a ratings disaster, the '04 pilot was totally unsalvageable - and those just scratch the surface). 

The Depp/Burton Dark Shadows played in US theaters for at least 161 days/23 weeks!!

The Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is now out on DVD/Blu-ray!!

[David]

People trash DS because it's a soap.
Look at Susan Lucci: a huge celebrity with a huge fanbase: she has no problem finding work outside of AMC.
Yet the press treats her like a joke because she's a soap star: same with DS.
But as long as DS products continue to turn a profit as they do, the franchise will survive.

Didn't the head of NBC later admit that cancelling the 91 series was a big mistake?

[Gerard]

I agree with David.  I think there has been a long hatred of DS by horror "experts" because it was a soap.  It doesn't matter that it was the first soap of its kind and years ahead of any of the rest airing.  It set standards to this day.  Interview With the Vampire wouldn't have been written if it wasn't for DS (and I'll stand by that).  Without DS, there wouldn't have been the insipid but highly popular and profitable Twilight series.  I'll stand by that, too.  So much of what horror "experts" enjoy today is because of DS, and because it was a soap, with all its warts, they hate that.  That's why they hate the Depp/Burton movie.  It brought back all that came because of the original.  They like what came, but they hate the source.  Why?  I don't know.  Maybe it was because of the soap perspective.  Who knows?

Gerard

[quentincollins]

I think almost all vampires that have come since Barnabas have been inspired by him to some level.
There are a lot of similarities between Barnabas and Angel from Buffy and his own spin off series. His family background (domineering father, kind but weak mother and a sweet much younger sister), his origins in the past, even his vampire maker Darla (a beautiful but wicked blonde with an obsession for him and her own complicated issues of morality and redemption) can be compared to Angelique.
Barnabas was the first real romantic vampire, with issues of morality. Before that, the only other one was thirty odd years ago with Daughter of Dracula. Dan Curtis invented the modern vampire, with romanticism, sexuality and shades of grey in his morality and a desire for humanity.

[Cousin_Barnabas]

I think there has been a long hatred of DS by horror "experts" because it was a soap.

This is interesting.  I have not come across any Horror fans that expressly hate Dark Shadows.  There are a ton of fans of classic horror who love it.  Then there are those who aren't sure about it because it is a soap.  And there are others that have never really heard of it.  So, I would be interested in knowing who these "experts" are...  Now, I am certain there are some folks in the general entertainment media that look down on it because of its soap origins, but I have not personally come across this is the realm of Horror.  Then again, I don't dabble in any circles that enjoy modern horror.  My love for the genre basically ends at the early Carpenter films, but there are some select "modern" titles I enjoy, nothing that I am a fanatic about, however.   

[jimbo]

It is clear to me that the person answering the question limited his response to the Depp/Burton movie. I am puzzled why the supporters of this movie would bring up the o/s. I agree with Cousin Barnabas' last post.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I don't necessarily know about "experts," and I don't know if I would go so far as use the word "hate," but there have definitely been horror Web sites that have looked down their noses at DS. Evidence for that has been well represented on the forum through the years, with many such sites having been linked to and their writings about DS lamented about.    Though Cousin_Barnabas is right that there have been more people in the general entertainment media who've looked down on DS.

And I can't speak for others, but the only reason I brought up the original series was in the broader context of DS in general and how there's definitely a pattern of how those who aren't fond of it often seem to resort to misrepresentations in regard to its various versions, so misrepresentations in connection with the Depp/DS film is, sadly, simply more of the same. Not to mention but more additions to the forum's laments through the years...

The Depp/Burton Dark Shadows played in US theaters for at least 161 days/23 weeks!!

The Depp/Burton Dark Shadows is now out on DVD/Blu-ray!!

[jimbo]

Yes DS certainly has been a victim of misrepresentations. In a good way no one apparently is watching this video as it only has 18 views since two days ago. But he does represent the feelings of many out there, perhaps not the majority. I don't know of course if he is also has a bias to the original series.

[Cousin_Barnabas]

I received an email from Amazon saying that the film is on sale.  $8.49 for the DVD.  I don't know if this is new, but I figured I should let everyone know, if interested. 

[madscntst]

There is a Huffington Post piece (actually, it's dated yesterday but it was only just posted to one of the Depp forums I visit), talking about a topic that we've discussed many, many times- the fact that the media is often too quick to call a film a "bomb" when it actually made a decent amount at the box office! 

Happily, DS is listed as #3, and Depp's other often maligned film, The Tourist, comes in at #1 on their list 

Box Office 'Bombs' That Grossed More Money Than You Realized

[jimbo]

Thanks madscntst for posting the article. It is stated that the budget for the movie is $150 Million. However, we still don't know if this includes the marketing costs which could be substantial perhaps up to another $100 Million. Perhaps we will never know the truth.

[michael c]

members of the media, film critics and, of course, the fanbase, has had this film in it's crosshairs from the outset. perhaps the depp/burton pairing simply inspires a particular brand of hostility from certain camps who revel in any perceived "failures" on their part.


and certainly the "fans" still haven't piped down a year later. over on the FB boards it's still bemoaned as if it was released yesterday and it's mere mention inevitably leads to the same deluge of complaints that it wasn't "serious".

unfortunately this discontent has woven itself into the very fabric of the DS culture where it remains as a sour, unpleasant undercurrent in the whole thing. it's never going to go away.

[David]

I see several people posting comments that they enjoyed Depp Shadows. There's been a "conspiracy" of sorts to label the film a bomb that was hated by all.
It's sad to see that so many long time fans participate in this.