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I can guarantee the closest shave you'll ever know.
You know you're in for a crazy and interesting ride when Johnny Depp and Tim Burton pair up (Dark Shadows aside) and that's exactly what we got in this razor-sharp musical.
MORE >> Posted 12.21.12 by Chris -
That's a heck of a handshake you got there, Ed.
You'll never guess who almost played the title role >> Posted 12.07.12 by Chris -
When it was released in May, director Tim Burton's adaptation of Dark Shadows didn't have a chance at the box office due to the juggernaut that was The Avengers. Mixed reviews didn't help, nor did the expectations that come with a Burton-Johnny Depp movie. The eighth collaboration between the director and actor, Dark Shadows struggled to connect with fans of the late 1960s-early 70s soap opera who didn't appreciate the joke-y tone of movie, nor did it please Burton's ardent fans, who have, understandably or not, grown disenchanted with some of the director's recent output.
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watch the trailer for Dark Shadows >> Posted 10.02.12 by Ryan -
With Dark Shadows arriving in theaters today, fans will finally get a chance to see Johnny Depp's take on the vampire craze that's sweeping through TV and movies. During the movie's press conference, Depp revealed that Dark Shadows is "a kind of rebellion against vampires that look like, you know, underwear models," so it's a solid guess that Depp wasn't watching DVDs of The Vampire Diaries for inspiration. In fact, Depp also revealed that his performance as the 200-year-old vampire Barnabas Collins was mostly based on Jonathan Frid's portrayal of the character from the Dark Shadows soap opera that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971.
Approaching Barnabas, even in the early days of trying to explore the possibilities of the character, no matter where you went in your head, if you tried to veer away from the original Jonathan Frid character, it was apparent to both Tim [Burton] and myself that it had to be rooted in Jonathan Frid's character of Barnabas. It just had to be. It was so classic and the sort of classic monster, you know like Fangoria magazine and that sort of thing. In terms of that, Jonathan did have, when he was playing Barnabas, there was a kind of rigidity to him, kind of that pole up the back, an elegance that was always there.
more from depp and watch the two TV spots >> Posted 05.11.12 by Ryan -
Director Tim Burton's upcoming Dark Shadows won't be the first TV series to move to the big screen, but it is one of the few to boast more than 1,200 episodes. Screenwriter Seth Grahame-Smith (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) was tasked with turning the TV show's many characters, plot twists, and tone into a single script. During the Dark Shadows press conference over the weekend, Grahame-Smith admitted that he hadn't exactly pored over every single minute of the show. "You can't sit down and watch 1250-some-odd episodes," said Grahame-Smith before Burton interrupted: "Without wanting to kill yourself." Luckily, for Grahame-Smith, he had some help.
When I came into it, there had been materials that were given to me, DVDs of compilations that actual Dark Shadows experts had put together, like, these are the seminal moments. I was given book of characters and plot lines and just studied them. And then, I remember we had our first meeting — Tim and Johnny [Depp] and I — [and] just sat around a table and started talking about the things that they loved about the show and talking about moments that would be fun to explore.
more from Grahame-smith and Burton talks sequel >> Posted 05.09.12 by Ryan -
When you walk into a Tim Burton movie, you know almost exactly what to expect. For more than the past decade, Burton’s walked a thin line between putting his personal stamp on every movie he makes and complete self-parody — at times managing to do both. As unique as we’re sure Burton would like to think his take is, he’s not the only one who likes making slightly Gothic-tinged movies with a baroque design. All of these movies share some of the same DNA as a Tim Burton movie, so much so that frequently the main distinguishing difference is fewer appearances by Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. And while no, they’re not all as good as Burton’s best work, we can say for certain that literally every one of them is better than Planet of the Apes, which isn't exactly an achievement worth bragging about.
10 Movies that Out-Burton Tim Burton >>
Posted 05.08.12 by reelz -
Dark Shadows isn't the first collaboration between actor Johnny Depp and director Tim Burton, but it could their riskiest since first uniting on Edward Scissorhands back in 1990. Based on the Gothic soap opera created by Dan Curtis that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971, Dark Shadows follows the lives of the eccentric Collins family, including the 200-year-old vampire Barnabas, originally played by the late Jonathan Frid and portrayed by Depp in the movie.
While the show certainly has a loyal fanbase, Dark Shadows isn't quite as universally well-known as the last story Depp and Burton brought to the big screen, 2010's Alice in Wonderland. However, both Burton and Depp proclaim to be huge fans of the series, which unlike the seeming omnipresence of vampires in movies and TV series today, was one of its kind at the time. During the press conference for the movie this weekend at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills, Burton said it was actually Depp who instigated the big adaptation of Dark Shadows.
"We've talked about [Dark Shadows] I think for many years, but I think this is the first project that I ever remember for Johnny, where you sort of said — I think he wanted to play this ever since you were a little boy," Burton said to Depp. "Just a wee tyke," Depp responded.
more from Depp and Burton >> Posted 05.07.12 by Ryan -
Fans of the late 1960s/early '70s Gothic soap opera Dark Shadows had to wait until this month to see the first trailer for Tim Burton's big-screen adaptation, despite the movie opening in May. Reaction was mixed, as the trailer seemed to be edging closer to comedy than the melodrama of the TV show, a decision that some fans appreciated and some didn't. In a recent interview with SlashFilm, screenwriter Seth Grahame-Smith (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) didn't shy away from calling Dark Shadows a "funny" movie, while also explaining that Burton's version is also a "Gothic, dark movie" with "a lot of soap opera in it."
I mean the movie is a lot of different things, just like the soap opera was a lot of different things. I think that we weren't afraid to let Johnny [Depp] invent this character and be funny. I think if you were just going to do a straight forward soap opera for two hours, I think people would get bored. I think people want to be entertained. So I think we've found a great way to entertain people but also stay true to some of the origins of the series.
watch the TV spots >> Posted 03.28.12 by Ryan -
When it was first announced that Tim Burton and Johnny Depp were collaborating for the eighth time on Dark Shadows, fans around the world were excited for what a Burton/Depp vampire movie would look like. And with the release of the first trailer, we now know. Burton obviously went for a campy/comedic tone for his adaption of the Gothic soap opera.
Depp seemingly channeled Ed Wood to play Barnabas, who is cursed into being a vampire by the jealous Angelique Bouchard (Eva Green), buried alive, and then uncovered 200 years later in the 1970s. In the trailer we see glimpses of what Barnabas's world was like before he was vampire. Then see Barnabas trying to make sense of his new world (calling a TV sorcery, asking when the horses can be ready). Though it looks more like Austin Powers than Dracula, if anyone can get away with it, it's Burton and Depp. So what did fans think about the trailer?
Stuart Manning, the owner and editor of Dark Shadows News gave ReelzChannel his impression of the trailer.
Read reactions to the trailer >> Posted 03.16.12 by Chris -
Finally! After a wait that lasted almost as long as Barnabas Collins' exile in a pine box, the first trailer and poster have arrived for Dark Shadows, director Tim Burton's adaptation of the Gothic soap opera from the late 1960s and early 70s. We guess it had to happen eventually, since the movie opens in less than two months.
For their eighth collaboration, Burton and actor Johnny Depp have enlisted the help of screenwriter Seth Grahame-Smith (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) to write the script, and, if the trailer is any guide, the result seems to be more along the lines of the eccentrically weird Ed Wood rather than the misguided remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The key is Depp's delightfully weird performance as Barnabas, who is cursed into being a vampire by the jealous Angelique Bouchard (Eva Green), buried alive, and then uncovered 200 years later in the 1970s. With Angelique still looking for a way into his undead heart, Barnabas is instead concerned with bringing the Collins family back into their former glory.
watch the trailer >> Posted 03.16.12 by Ryan