Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (film)

Infobox Film
name = Don't Be Afraid of the Dark


caption = The home video cover.
director = John Newland
producer = Allen S. Epstein
writer = Nigel McKeand
narrator =
starring = Kim Darby Jim Hutton
music = Billy Goldenberg
cinematography = Andrew Jackson
editing = Gene Fowler Jr. Michael McCroskey
distributor = ABC USA Home Video
released = flagicon|United States October 10, 1973
runtime = 74 min.
country = US
language = English
budget =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website =
amg_id = 1:14311
imdb_id = 0069992

"Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" is an American made-for-television horror film by Lorimar Productions that was first telecast on ABC on Wednesday October 10, 1973. It has since been shown many times in syndication and distributed for home video. Nigel McKeand wrote the story and screenplay, and John Newland directed the film. It is known as "Nightmare" in Europe.

Plot

Sally Farnham and her husband Alex inherit an old mansion from Sally's recently deceased grandmother. Shortly after moving in, she discovers a bricked-up fireplace in the basement den, and asks the estate's handyman, Mr. Harris about it. When he claims ignorance about the matter, she insists he remove the bricks, and allow the fireplace to be used. He reluctantly does so.

Sally continues to renovate and redecorate the house, while her husband, a workaholic lawyer seeking partnership is away quite often. Strange things begin occurring. She begins to hear voices whispering in the dark. Once, while she is in the shower, the lights go out in the room, and when she stumbles around to turn on the light, she sees a tiny, hideous figure who shrieks and collapses at the brightness of the light and is taken back behind a secret door in the tiled room.

Her husband and best friend believe her to be having a nervous breakdown, and a doctor prescribes her sedatives while the friend decides to stay with her while the husband rushes back to work. While Sally fights off sleep, the electricity is cut during a rainstorm, and her friend is tripped and rendered unconscious by these little figures, who come and go through a variety of secret doors.

They converge upon the sleeping Sally, and they carry her to the unsealed fireplace. The film concludes with Sally speaking as one of the whispering voices in the chorus.

Cast

*Kim Darby as Sally Farnham
*Jim Hutton as Alex Farnham
*William Demarest as Mr. Harris
*Barbara Anderson as Joan Kahn
*Pedro Armendáriz Jr. as Francisco Perez
*Lesley Woods as Ethel
*Robert Cleaves as Doctor
*Sterling Swanson as Policeman
*J. H. Lawrence as George
*William Sylvester as Tom
*Don Mallon as Bob
*Felix Silla
*Tamarra DeTreaux
*Patty Mahoney

Remake

Miramax Films will produce a remake of the 1973 television movie. Guillermo del Toro is producing, and comic book artist-writer Troy Nixey is making his directorial debut. The remake is in its early stages, with plans to begin research and development for the film's monsters. [cite journal | first=Gregg | last=Goldstein | url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/news/e3ia29ecfe7de636e2a7c5fb377df933630 | title=Del Toro, Miramax not 'Afraid of the Dark' | journal=The Hollywood Reporter | publisher=Nielsen Company | date=2008-07-30 | accessdate=2008-07-30 ]

References

External links

*imdb title|0069992|Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
*amg movie|id=1:14311|title=Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
*rotten-tomatoes|id=dont_be_afraid_of_the_dark|title=Don't Be Afraid of the Dark