House of Dark Shadows

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House of Dark Shadows

PG

Released Oct 28, 1970

1h 38m

Horror

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Popcornmeter

33%

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6 Reviews

70%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

Imprisoned in a coffin for more than a hundred years, the vampire Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) is freed when a local drunk (John Karlen) discovers the Collins crypt and opens the coffin. Now free to roam the earth once more, Barnabas feasts on the blood of the living and obsesses over the family governess, Maggie Evans (Kathryn Leigh Scott), who he believes is his lost love Josette reincarnated. This gothic drama is a theatrical retelling of the classic television show "Dark Shadows."

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Even in these troubled times, the vampire has it worse than most of us.

Rated: 2/4

Oct 23, 2004

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Brian Holcomb

Kinetofilm

The film is well mounted and stylishly produced. In what must've seemed like a luxury, Jonathan Frid had time to learn ALL his lines.

Rated: 3/5

Feb 1, 2010

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

It has the unique distinction of being the only motion picture ever based on a daytime soap opera.

Rated: C

Oct 21, 2006

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 2/5

Aug 16, 2005

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Gerry Shamray

Your Movies (cleveland.com)

Genuine chills and surprises. Blows away the TV show.

Rated: 4/5

Apr 13, 2003

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Philip Martin

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Rated: 2/5

Jul 30, 2002

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Chris F.

Fantastic retelling of the first year of the Barnabas storyline. More blood and violence. Dan Curtis doing Hammer Horror

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/31/25

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Rick H

Great movie. How can you not love this movie. Very true to the soap opera.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/15/25

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Stephen C

Go ahead and scare me in 1 hour and 38 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/10/25

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Tyler B

If the goal was to tarnish vampire lore, it almost secedes.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/10/25

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Ken B

Rehash of the Dracula story, but still worth a look.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/01/24

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Dave S

Those who've watched the television serial Dark Shadows will slurp up what House of Dark Shadows has to offer, but the uninitiated will probably find it to be nothing more than a sub-standard vampire movie. The premise sounds all too familiar: a vampire is released from his coffin after a 100-year hiatus and goes on a killing spree, along the way falling in love with what he believes is his long-lost mate. Aside from its uninspired plot, what really hurts the movie are its production values, ranging from too many annoying POV shots to the jarring scene transitions to the distracting hand-held camerawork to the blaring music score. Some of the performances are decent and the sets are nice, but that doesn't save it from being what it is – boring and predictable.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

10/13/23

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Dan Curtis

Director

Jonathan Frid

Barnabas Collins

Joan Bennett

Elizabeth Collins Stoddard

Grayson Hall

Dr. Julia Hoffman

Kathryn Leigh Scott

Maggie Evans

Roger Davis

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Synopsis

Imprisoned in a coffin for more than a hundred years, the vampire Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) is freed when a local drunk (John Karlen) discovers the Collins crypt and opens the coffin. Now free to roam the earth once more, Barnabas feasts on the blood of the living and obsesses over the family governess, Maggie Evans (Kathryn Leigh Scott), who he believes is his lost love Josette reincarnated. This gothic drama is a theatrical retelling of the classic television show "Dark Shadows."

Director: Dan Curtis
Producer: Dan Curtis
Screenwriter: Gordon Russell, Sam Hall
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Rating: PG
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 28, 1970, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2008
Runtime: 1h 38m
Sound Mix: Mono

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