RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Check out the new RT Community
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Darkness Falls
Darkness Falls

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Darkness Falls (2003)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
11 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:9

Fresh:1

Rotten:8

Average Rating:2.9/10

Consensus: A derivative movie where the scares are few and things don't make much sense.

Runtime: 86 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Synopsis: For the past 150 years, the legend of Matilda Dixon, "the Tooth Fairy," has hung over the town of Darkness Falls like a dark cloud. After being unjustly accused of a heinous crime, the kindly old... For the past 150 years, the legend of Matilda Dixon, "the Tooth Fairy," has hung over the town of Darkness Falls like a dark cloud. After being unjustly accused of a heinous crime, the kindly old woman was savagely slaughtered by a mad rabble one night, and there are those who say her vengeful spirit hovers over the town, just waiting to pounce on anyone who sees her in the dark.

It happened to young Kyle. One night he saw Matilda and, though he managed to escape her evil clutches, his mother was brutally murdered.

Or was it just a hallucination?

Haunted by his painful memories of that night, and plagued by guilt, Kyle (Chaney Kley) has never allowed himself to be in the dark since. One day, he is summoned back to town by his childhood sweetheart Caitlin (Emma Caulfield), whose nine-year-old brother Michael (Lee Cormie) is having the same nightmares that drove Kyle to the brink of madness.

When he returns, however, Kyle realizes that Matilda’s evil spirit was no figment of his imagination. She is real and extremely dangerous. And if she catches him in the dark again, her horrible, scarred face will be the last thing he ever sees.

Revolution Studios presents A Distant Corners/Blue Star Pictures Production, Darkness Falls, distributed by Columbia Pictures. Starring Chaney Kley, Emma Caulfield and Lee Cormie. The film is directed by Jonathan Liebesman. The screenplay is by John Fasano & James Vanderbilt & Joe Harris from a story by Joe Harris. The producers are John Hegeman, John Fasano, William Sherak and Jason Shuman. The executive producers are Derek Dauchy and Lou Arkoff. Dan Laustsen is the director of photography. The production designer is George Liddle. The film is edited by Steve Mirkovich, A.C.E. and Tim Alverson. The music is by Brian Tyler. Creature Designed and Created by Stan Winston Studio.

Darkness Falls is rated PG-13 for terror and horror images, and brief language. [More]

Starring: Chaney Kley, Emma Caulfield, Lee Cormie, Grant Piro

Starring: Chaney Kley, Emma Caulfield, Lee Cormie, Grant Piro, Kestie Morassi, Alannah Oliver, Joshua Anderson

Director: Jonathan Liebesman

Director: Jonathan Liebesman
Screenwriter: Joseph Harris, John Fasano, John Vanderbilt
Producer: John Hegeman, William Sherak, John Fasano, Jason Shuman
Composer: Brian Tyler
Studio: Columbia Pictures

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
1 - 5 of 12

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Reviews for Darkness Falls

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 9 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

A mish mash of horror-movie clichés.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
02/26/07
Philip French
Philip French
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The kind of movie that gets laughs entirely unintentionally.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
12/30/06
Adam Smith
Adam Smith
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

All semblance of plausibility is extracted, leaving a cast of TV actors to struggle with a plot with more gaps than an eight-year-old's grin.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Darkness fell along with my eyelids, during this dire by-the-numbers horror film.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
07/08/03
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This is a self-consciously silly, completely disposable multiplex movie that does its best to deliver its fair share of chills while struggling to keep a straight face.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
04/28/03
Jamie Russell
Jamie Russell
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A dreary exercise in cheap shocks aimed at kids.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
01/23/03
David Hunter
David Hunter
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's an instantly disposable and shamelessly derivative piece of work, but first-time feature helmer Jonathan Liebesman shows a savvy flair for atmospheric visuals...

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
01/23/03
Joe Leydon
Joe Leydon
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

About as scary as a ride on a minor roller coaster, it unrolls its amplified butcher-block shock effects within the first five minutes.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
01/23/03
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's a downer to see so much effort expended on such junk.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
01/23/03
Kevin Thomas
Kevin Thomas
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 9 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View
all

Latest News for Darkness Falls

August 30, 2006: Poster & Plot for "Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning"
I was among the initially-skeptical and eventually-impressed who actually really liked Marcus Nispel's "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" remake. Do I think it's even remotely... More...

June 07, 2006: Trailer Bulletin: Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
If you're not a hardcore horror fan, this could get a little confusing: In the beginning there was Tobe Hooper's "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," and it was good. It was... More...

February 22, 2006: "Darkness" Director to Helm Jason's Origin Tale
New Line has hired "Darkness Falls" director Jonathan Liebesman to helm the as-yet-untitled "Friday the 13th" prequel which is being fast-tracked in an... More...

February 06, 2006: Arquette "Trips" into Directorial Debut
Character actor David Arquette will make his directorial debut with an indie horror flick entitled "The Tripper," which he wrote with Joe "Darkness Falls"... More...

See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
15% 15% The Ugly Truth
98% 98% Up
36% 36% G.I. Joe: The Rise of …
52% 52% The Taking of Pelham 1…
45% 45% Ice Age: Dawn of the D…

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
68% 68% Funny People
25% 25% Four Christmases
45% 45% Shorts

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Prince of Persia

Prince of Persia

Your first look at the swashbuckler.

Vampires

Vampires

We rank cinema's bloodsuckers.

Avatar

Avatar

The full trailer for Cameron's epic.

2012

2012

12 facts about Emmerich's disaster flick.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Natalie Portman Says Kat Denning Is in Thor Source: MTV
14
  • Disney Restructuring Has Broad Implications Source: Los Angeles Times
10
  • Joel Silver Talks Ninja Assassin, Sgt. Rock, Lobo, and More Source: Collider.com
1
  • Weekly Ketchup: Idris Elba cast in Thor, more Spider-Man 4 rumors
108
  • Idris Elba Joins Thor Source: Hollywood Reporter
112
  • Jackass 3D Coming in 2010? Source: Collider.com
32
  • 6 Reasons 'Twilight' Is Doomed Source: The Wrap
64
  • Forbes Names Hollywood's Most Overpaid Actors Source: Forbes
20
  • Chris Weitz Says He's (Almost) Done with Directing Source: Film School Rejects
26
  • Spider-Man 4 Casting Rumors Multiply Like Rabbits Source: Deadline Hollywood Daily
51
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: New Moon Shatters Records
165
  • Critics Consensus: New Moon Wanes
129
  • Tomatometer Watch: Will Twilight's New Moon Dazzle?
97
  • Total Recall: Star-Crossed Lovers
75
  • Total Recall: John Travolta's Best Movies
56
  • Weekly Ketchup: Idris Elba cast in Thor, more Spider-Man 4 rumors
54
  • Five Favorite Films with Werner Herzog
50
  • Friday Harvest: New Moon, Avatar, and more!
32
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
7
  • Ho, ho, ho! It's RT's Great Big Gift Guide!
0
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
7
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
8
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
19
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
6
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
19
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
8
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
28
  • Duncan Jones talks Moon, Sam Rockwell, and Mute
14
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Darkness Falls at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Darkness Falls at IGN
  • Darkness Falls at AskMen

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.