Don't Be Afraid of the Dark 1973

I remember other kids talking about this movie when I was just a wee lad, but I never saw it...until now! I use the word creepy a lot and I can say that this lived up to that term. It wasn't scary but if I had seen this at age 9, I wouldn't have slept for a week.

The little creatures are distinctly other-worldly, the sound of their voices and the way they peek from around corners and from behind books is effective. I liked Jim Hutton in this. One of our heroes (Major Gart) from the "Twilight Zone" episode "And When the Sky Was Opened", is good here as a disbelieving husband who in the end rushes to save his wife Sally, played by Kim Darby. I think she is the reason this movie was occasionally hard to watch. I was never convinced she was really that scared of the creatures. Oh sure, she was supposed to be but either her performance or maybe the editing kept this from being truly frightening. I did like the music by Billy Goldenberg. It helped to set the mood well, even if it was a little corny.

There is a moment when we get a full body glimpse of the creatures and it is a perfect example of how not having a pause button saved older movies from being not so scary during their original runs. I hit pause during the second that we got the full creature shot and it showed three of them standing in front of what appears to be a cloth backdrop. The creatures are just three guys wearing masks and what appear to be furry suits, like ape costumes. Funny stuff.

I really liked the ending. I was very surprised by it, especially due to the fact that this was a made-for-TV movie. All I will reveal is that it is not a typical Hollywood happy ending. In fact, I'm giving it a point higher rating because or the ending.