Dark Shadows is an american movie directed by Tim Burton, realised in 2012 with Johnny Depp, Helena Boham Carter, Michelle Pfeiffer, Eva Green and Chloé Moretz. It's the adaptation of the Dan Curtis's TV serie realised in the 70's.

     Tim Burton was born in 1958 in California. He is much inspired by the gothic style and the author Edgar Allan Poe. In 1979, he joined the Walt Disney Studios and started in the film's industry. He directed famous gothic films like Edward Sissorhands, Corpse Bride, Sleepy Hollow, Vincent ... He has too his fetish actors like for example Johnny Depp, Helena Boham Carter (his wife). Now, Tim Burton is a renowned worldwilde director.

   

 In 1775, Angelique Bouchard fall in love with a rich owner of the city Collinswood, Barnabas Collins ; but it's not reciprocal. So Angelique decided to kill his parents and to simulate the suicide of his girldfriend, Cosette on top of a cliff. But it's not enough, the witch used of her power to metamorphose Barnabas in an immortal vampire and she locked him in a coffin for the eternity.

Two century after, the coffin is opened and Barnabas will try to retake his place in his mansion. With the help of his family (Elizabeth and Carolyn) he'll go to dethrone the economical empire of Angelique, named Angie and meet Victoria Winters who looks like Cosette...

What makes this film gothic ?

- The fact there are a vampire, a witch, a werewolf (Carolyn), a ghost and a mansion in this film shows already the classical gothic style, inclued in famours other stories like Dracula or the myth of the Salem's witches. Likewise, during the 3/4 of the film, it's the night ; it gives a mystical side. Also, the colors of the movie turn often around the pruple, the red and the black ; dark colors representative of the gothic style.

We can note there are two different epochs in the film, the XVIII and the XXI century; giving two looks ; classical and modern.

At the middle of the film, at the party organised by the Collins family, we see  the hard rock singer Alice Cooper singing his famous songs, No More Mister Nice Guy and Ballad Of Dwight Fry who deals with the madness, the love and the death ; classical elements of the hard rock and the gothic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwH1BgOWUcU (extract)

- The character of Angie is really interesting. Eva Green plays always the role of the mad woman (also in Sin City : A Dame to Kill For). In Dark Shadows Angelique wants to destroy all that Barnabas owned to captive his attention and his love but she does destroy her. More her jalousy is important, more she break and comes closer to death. We have a kind of pity for her, she is sad. The fact of she is a witch removed all her feelings and reforces the dark gothic mood of the movie.

- The film is based on a dark and horrific story, but it is also humoristic. The mood is really sympatic and relaxed all in keeping this dark side of the gothic movie/story ; it's a mainstream movie so it is accessible to all age groups. There is a victorian side to the decor that we meet in many other fictions with mansions and manors. It's really intersting how Tim Burton has created this particular mood.

- We can note an evolution during all the movie ; Barnabas adapts well to the modern life and relearns to love and to Angie it's the perfect contrary ; she dies inside slowly. All the characters evolute since the Barnabas's arrival. The mood of the movie becomes more and more happy until the end.

- In Dark Shadows, there are reccurent themes as the night, the monsters, the vampire's life, death, the love. The story retakes in some the story of Dracula, where we find the same themes of the vampire, the love and death ; it's typic of the gothic vampire's stories.

What is the place of imaginary in your chosen extract ?

The movie Dark Shadows takes back the big lines of the gothic story ; and so the imaginary. There are a vampire, a witch,  a werewolf, a ghost, four characters fantastic in a realistic environment ; it makes dream. The night is much present during the film, it's mystical like the myth of the eternal love, and the death. Except his bloodlust, Barnabas appears as a nice monster and the kids who watch the film can imagine that he could be their friend and believe in the story. So we can conclude Tim Burton managed to create a specific dark and humoristic mood to Dark Shadows all in keeping the classical elements of the gothic story and the notion of the imaginary.

Johnny Depp, Helena Boham Carter and Tim Burton


Hugo Pugliese