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When the Lights Went Out

Play trailer Poster for When the Lights Went Out 2012 1h 27m Horror Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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36% Tomatometer 11 Reviews 28% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
A malevolent spirit attacks a family in Yorkshire during the 1974 blackout.

Critics Reviews

View All (11) Critics Reviews
Marc Lee Daily Telegraph (UK) Director Pat Holden delivers a few effective shocks but overcooks the climax. Rated: 2/5 Sep 13, 2012 Full Review Peter Bradshaw Guardian This British scary movie is preposterous and cheesy, if occasionally oddly enjoyable. Rated: 2/5 Sep 12, 2012 Full Review Nigel Floyd Time Out A film that not even the formidable Gary Lewis can save is a scary thing indeed. Rated: 2/5 Sep 11, 2012 Full Review Ard Vijn ScreenAnarchy The film redeems itself a lot though by its unique setting and very good acting, especially from the younger members of the cast. Jan 14, 2020 Full Review Cleaver Patterson CineVue As a haunted house film, its use of darkened corridors, banging doors and moonlit fields surrounded by trees rustled with sudden gusts of wind, lend the proceedings an authentically creepy ambience. Rated: 3/5 Feb 5, 2019 Full Review Russell Lewin SFX Magazine Nothing particularly surprising or exciting happens, and the straightness with which the subject is treated eventually means everything seizes up. Rated: 2.5/5 Sep 19, 2012 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (84) audience reviews
Lonnie M I really enjoyed this film. I don't understand why it's rated so low! The casting, acting and set design for the 70s was all very cool. Paid into the cinema tonight to see Long Legs which despite it being a birthday treat, I did not enjoy at all! Came home and watched this flick on Amazon for free and really enjoyed it. One scene at the end of the film was slightly off cast but with it being 12 years old I will allow 😀 Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/14/24 Full Review Kit V Yet another entry in the now very old true story haunting genre this time the events take place in the mid-70s Yorkshire UK. A family moves into an atypical family home and is immediately struck by the atmosphere which from the onset is eerie and offbeat, no real build-up to this as the haunting starts almost as the intro credits role. What happens next is a gradual revealing of a thin story that in the end reveals that the house is haunted by two spirits, one good and one bad. The bad one is after the 13-year-old girl who stars in the story and the good one is trying to protect her. Apart from the young actress at the center of the action the acting, in general, is from the ham and eggs school of delivery; RADA is not in it. We get a short exorcism scene given by a bribed priest and the film concludes as haunted as it has begun. A good effort was made to capture the feel of 70 Britain, the props, cars, and clothing are all in keeping as are the hairstyles, music, and even the tv programs but these things alone do not take away from the fact that this film is based on a well documented and known haunting that deserved a better telling. If you are after scares then think again, this one is strictly in the nothing better to watch Sunday box, As for the title of the film, I am still trying t remember if the lights actually went out at all during the film. however, I am still in the dark over that one. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 03/12/23 Full Review Phatdeliciousscrumptious P If you're looking for something with better cgi than this just watch any movie made by someone with a camera, youtube and some $6 editing program, overall the story was just mid and none of it was scary and if someone does tell you other than that they are a coward. Save yourself your time and watch something else Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 03/10/23 Full Review Liam D A very generic haunted house movie with a few inventive scares Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/24/22 Full Review Audience Member I wasn't expecting much, but I was actually really surprised. The film is pretty good as these sort of films go. The cast is good and recognisable. Based on a true story. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member The average ghost horror, which was shot according to the actual event script was not bad at all, but unfortunately in terms of directing it was quite weak and they could also add to the film effects, but even so it was not a bad movie at all. But doing ghost horror is very difficult. You have to get a story, you have to feel a chill in your back, etc. Which, thanks to a weaker direction, at least didn't happen to me, which is a shame, because this film definitely had extra. But even so, I think 6/10 deserves this film, and someone who likes a similar theme will definitely like it. I personally liked this film, but as I say it did not meet my expectations and rather it was such a relaxing ghost film. It's a pity because As I wrote, there was so much potential for it to be a super horror movie. Unfortunately, this did not happen. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
When the Lights Went Out

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis A malevolent spirit attacks a family in Yorkshire during the 1974 blackout.
Director
Pat Holden
Producer
Bil Bungay, Deepak Nayar
Screenwriter
Pat Holden
Production Co
Kintop Pictures
Genre
Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Runtime
1h 27m