The Dark (film)
Encyclopedia
The Dark is a 2005 horror film
, based on the novel Sheep
by Simon Maginn
.
Later, Sarah vanishes on the beach, and another similar looking girl, named Ebrill (Abigail Stone) ("Ebrill" is Welsh for "April"), appears in her place. Ebrill is the long-dead daughter of a local shepherd who also served as the town's pastor fifty years prior. When Ebrill, who was a sickly child, died, her father gave her to the ocean, sending her to Annwyn. He then convinced his followers to throw themselves into the ocean, claiming that it was the way to Paradise, while he privately hoped that their sacrifice would return Ebrill to him from Annwyn. Ebrill did come back, but, as the film states, something came back with her. That something killed the sheep, something upon which the local newspapers remarked upon. Her father tried to draw the evil out of her, through trepanning and locking her in her room. Dafydd was one of the followers who did not throw himself off the cliff, though both his parents did. Ebrill's father took him in, and when Dafydd could no longer bear witnessing the shepherd hurting Ebrill, he set her free, which in turn allowed the evil within her to lash out and shove her father over the cliff. Realizing that Ebrill never should have been brought back from Annwyn, a young Dafydd sent her back by drowning her.
Adele makes the connection that Ebrill is back once more because she has found a living substitute in Sarah, hence the film's tagline "One of the living for one of the dead". In an attempt to rescue her daughter, Adele throws both herself and Ebrill over the cliffs, despite James' protests, and sends them both to Annwyn, a sepia-toned, misty version of reality. While in Annwyn, the film reveals that Sarah attempted suicide following an argument with her mother, resulting in their trip to Wales. Adele begs for a second chance with her daughter. Ebrill informs her that the dead don't get second chances. Ebrill and her father perform trepannation on Adele, to draw out the evil within her. Adele eventually escapes her bonds and rushes to find Sarah, who is locked behind a door. Adele finds a key and tearfully apologizes for being so selfish. In unlocking the door, Adele is able to rescue Sarah from Annwyn, though, in doing so, Adele sacrificed herself, only to realize too late that the Sarah she brought back was tainted by the same evil that had tainted Ebrill all those years ago.
rates the movie as "rotten", with a score of 33% based on 9 reviews.
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
, based on the novel Sheep
Sheep (novel)
Sheep is a horror novel by British author Simon Maginn, originally published in 1994 and reissued in 1997. It is now out-of-print. The book provided the basis for the 2005 film The Dark, although the plot changed drastically in the conversion from book to film.-Plot:A young family moves to rural...
by Simon Maginn
Simon Maginn
Simon Maginn is a British writer who has published five novels under his own name: Sheep , Virgins and Martyrs , A Sickness of the Soul , Methods of Confinement and Rattus which was published alongside a novella by Gary Fry entitled The Invisible...
.
Plot
While in Wales visiting her husband James (Sean Bean), Adele (Maria Bello) tries to fix her relationship with her obnoxious and volatile pre-teen daughter Sarah (Sophie Stuckey). By the side of a cliff, they see a strange memorial with evidence of a plate missing and with the name "Annwyn" (Welsh for the afterlife) marked on it. A local man Dafydd (Maurice Roëves) explains that, according to traditional Welsh mythology, Annwyn is a sort of afterlife.Later, Sarah vanishes on the beach, and another similar looking girl, named Ebrill (Abigail Stone) ("Ebrill" is Welsh for "April"), appears in her place. Ebrill is the long-dead daughter of a local shepherd who also served as the town's pastor fifty years prior. When Ebrill, who was a sickly child, died, her father gave her to the ocean, sending her to Annwyn. He then convinced his followers to throw themselves into the ocean, claiming that it was the way to Paradise, while he privately hoped that their sacrifice would return Ebrill to him from Annwyn. Ebrill did come back, but, as the film states, something came back with her. That something killed the sheep, something upon which the local newspapers remarked upon. Her father tried to draw the evil out of her, through trepanning and locking her in her room. Dafydd was one of the followers who did not throw himself off the cliff, though both his parents did. Ebrill's father took him in, and when Dafydd could no longer bear witnessing the shepherd hurting Ebrill, he set her free, which in turn allowed the evil within her to lash out and shove her father over the cliff. Realizing that Ebrill never should have been brought back from Annwyn, a young Dafydd sent her back by drowning her.
Adele makes the connection that Ebrill is back once more because she has found a living substitute in Sarah, hence the film's tagline "One of the living for one of the dead". In an attempt to rescue her daughter, Adele throws both herself and Ebrill over the cliffs, despite James' protests, and sends them both to Annwyn, a sepia-toned, misty version of reality. While in Annwyn, the film reveals that Sarah attempted suicide following an argument with her mother, resulting in their trip to Wales. Adele begs for a second chance with her daughter. Ebrill informs her that the dead don't get second chances. Ebrill and her father perform trepannation on Adele, to draw out the evil within her. Adele eventually escapes her bonds and rushes to find Sarah, who is locked behind a door. Adele finds a key and tearfully apologizes for being so selfish. In unlocking the door, Adele is able to rescue Sarah from Annwyn, though, in doing so, Adele sacrificed herself, only to realize too late that the Sarah she brought back was tainted by the same evil that had tainted Ebrill all those years ago.
Cast
- Sean BeanSean BeanShaun Mark "Sean" Bean is an English film and stage actor. Bean is best known for playing Boromir in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and, previously, British Colonel Richard Sharpe in the ITV television series Sharpe...
— James - Maria BelloMaria BelloMaria Elena Bello is an American actress and singer known for her appearances in the movies Coyote Ugly, The Jane Austen Book Club, Permanent Midnight, Thank You for Smoking, A History of Violence, Payback, and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. For television she is known for her role as Dr...
— Adèle - Richard Elfyn — Rowan
- Maurice RoëvesMaurice RoëvesMaurice Roëves is a British actor, born in Sunderland, County Durham on 19 March 1937.His television roles include Danger UXB , The Nightmare Man , the 1984 Doctor Who serial The Caves of Androzani, Days of our Lives , Tutti Frutti , Rab C...
— Dafydd - Abigail Stone — Ebrill
- Sophie StuckeySophie StuckeySophie Stuckey is an English actress. She plays the lead role of Summer in Summer in Transylvania.Stuckey, who was born in Camden, also played Dora Southerly in Midsomer Murders, and is set to play Stella Kipps in the 2012 remake of The Woman in Black...
— Sarah - Caspar Harvey — Young Dafydd
Critical reception
Review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
rates the movie as "rotten", with a score of 33% based on 9 reviews.