The Moth Diaries

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The Moth Diaries

R

2012

1h 23m

Horror

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

11%

Tomatometer

46 Reviews

23%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

A rising body count leads a teen (Sarah Bolger) to suspect that the new student (Lily Cole) at their all-girls boarding school is a vampire.

Critics Consensus

Left in the dust of yesterday's vampiric novelties, The Moth Diaries swarms in the wind, amidst lackluster thrills and a script with too many holes to count.

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Peter Hartlaub

San Francisco Chronicle

Way too serious for its own good.

Rated: 1/4

Aug 9, 2012

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Brian Tallerico

HollywoodChicago.com

Those incredibly volatile days when a teenage girl comes to terms with her own family history, her changing friendships, her sexuality, and more make for interesting fiction but often come apart on their way to the big screen.

Rated: 2.0/5.0

May 16, 2012

Full Review

Jason Bailey

DVDTalk.com

You'll have to search high and low to find a ridiculous movie that presents itself with this straight a face.

Apr 20, 2012

Full Review

Joe Lipsett

Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr Podcast

Harron is more interested in girlhood than vampirism, which wouldn't be an issue if the film weren't filled with halfhearted Gothic Horror imagery it doesn't really want to engage with. Cole and Bolger do what they can with a lethargic, snoozy script

Rated: 2.5/5

Oct 25, 2022

Full Review

Nicholas Bell

IONCINEMA.com

While the girls' boarding school setting was traditionally a hotbed of exploitation in B thriller/horror cinema, The Moth Diaries is evidence that this is no longer a thrilling subgenre.

Rated: 1.5/5

Jun 27, 2019

Full Review

Stephen Saito

Moveable Fest

While no one would mistake "The Moth Diaries" for being as potentially dangerous, there's definitely a case to be made for being as careless.

Jan 8, 2019

Full Review

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Stephen C

Success in 1 hour and 23 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated R for Language, Drug Use, Sexuality and Some Bloody Images!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/16/25

Full Review

Audience Member

The Moth Diaries script isn't terrible, but the acting (especially the fake crying) leaves a lot to be desired. Ernessa is sufficiently creepy - but the other boarding school girls struggle.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/12/23

Full Review

Audience Member

This is s thoughtfull look at the loss of innocence and the slow transition from childhood to adulthood under the guise of teens in solitude. A beautiful exploration that would have been praised in early cinema, but is praised early cinema.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/30/18

Full Review

Audience Member

WOW......WOW.....WOW.....SO SO SO SO SO BAD......MAN THIS IS SUCH AN AWFUL MESSY MESSY MOVIE 2 WATCH, IT IS SO SO SO SO DREADFUL, IT IS SUCH AN AWFUL MOVIE 2 WATCH, IT IS SO SO SO AWFUL MOVIE 2 WATCH, IT IS SO SO SO DREADFUL, IT IS SO SO SO DREADFUL, IT IS SUCH AN AWFUL MOVIE 2 WATCH IT IS SUCH AN AWFUL MESSY MOVIE 2 WATCH.......WARNING THIS MOVIE CONTAINS STROBE LIGHTNING EFFECTS THROUGHOUT THIS MOVIE......MAN THIS IS SUCH AN AWFUL MOVIE 2 WATCH, IT IS SUCH AN AWFUL MESSY MOVIE 2 WATCH, IT IS SUCH AN AWFUL MOVIE 2 WATCH, IT IS SUCH A BAD MOVIE 2 WATCH, JUST AVOID THIS MOVIE AT ALL IT IS SUCH A BAD MOVIE 2 WATCH, JUST AVOID THIS MOVIE AT ALL COSTS IT IS THAT BAD.....JUST DO NOT WATCH THIS MOVIE IT IS SO AWFUL.......ITS GOT A GOOD SOUNDTRACK THROUGHOUT THIS MOVIE.....BUT MAN THIS MOVIE IS SO SO SO AWFUL 2 WATCH....WARNING YOU HAVE GOT TO WATCH THE END OF THE CREDITS THROUGHOUT THIS MOVIE AS SOMETHING HAPPENES AT THE END OF THE CREDITS THROUGHOUT THIS MOVIE........

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The tone and style are not bad, but the horror is less than engaging.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

Full Review

Audience Member

For me this movie was weird, and let's get this straight this is not a vampire movie, like people are saying. I was expecting more like the " Mothman Prophecies ", but it was more like " The Craft ". School girls who are being haunted by a ghost, it was not a good movie, as that being said I give " The Moth Diaries " a D-.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

Full Review

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Mary Harron

Director

Lily Cole

Ernessa

Sarah Gadon

Lucy

Sarah Bolger

Rebecca

Scott Speedman

Mr. Davies

Anne Day-Jones

Rebecca's Mother

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Critics Consensus: The Lucky One Can’t Catch a Break

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Synopsis

A rising body count leads a teen (Sarah Bolger) to suspect that the new student (Lily Cole) at their all-girls boarding school is a vampire.

Director: Mary Harron
Producer: David Collins, Karine Martin
Screenwriter: Mary Harron
Distributor: IFC Films
Rating: R (Language|Drug Use|Sexuality|Some Bloody Images)
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 20, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 27, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $3.8K
Runtime: 1h 23m

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