The Darkness

**Spoiler Alert**

Director: Greg McLean/Starring: Kevin Bacon, Radha Mitchell, Paul Reiser, David Mazouz, Lucy Fry and Ming-Na Wen

The horror film The Darkness, which dramatizes a family's ordeal with angry, Anasazi Indian spirits, is so utterly weak, timid and innocuous, one might find it suitable programming for a cruise line catering to retirees seeking a pleasant, languid vacation. What is particularly disappointing about the film is that it isn't out and out bad. Had it been that, I might have at least been treated to some laughs. But no, this film features Kevin Bacon and Radha Mitchell; two actors capable of interesting performances if given half-way decent material (but rarely are they provided such). The film doesn't lack production value, just a compass to steer it away from the well-trod paths conventional horror films tend to walk. Even bad horror films can sometimes spook an audience but director Greg McLean's mediocre effort will only stimulate chronic fatigue.

How the Taylor family comes to be tormented by said specters is fairly mundane. During a family vacation taken with friends in the Arizona desert, the Taylor's young, autistic son Michael (David Mazouz) is left on his own by his older sister Stephanie (Lucy Fry). Shortly before, an attempt by the Taylor's friend's son to scare Michael with stories of evil spirits from Anasazi lore failed to have the desired effect on the autistic boy.

While on his own, Michael falls through a shaft in the canyon floor and lands inside a sacred Anasazi chamber. Seeing four inscribed stones resting on a mound of dirt, Michael takes them then finds his way back to his family.

Back home in their suburban, L.A. home, the Taylors contend with family issues. Peter (Kevin Bacon) and Bronny (Radha Mitchell) show signs of marital discord while their daughter Stephanie (Lucy Fry) is discovered to have bulimic issues. While Bronny turns to alcohol to cope with her philandering husband, Peter is introduced to an attractive associate at work who has just joined his architectural firm (Before it became apparent, I anticipated his architectural occupation. It seems like a typical go-to job for male, suburban professionals in the movies). A flirtation begins immediately, which seems to be encouraged by Peter's boss (Paul Reiser).

While the Taylors' confront their domestic problems, Michael begins to act oddly. Peculiar behavior, such as angry outbursts with his father, conversations with an imaginary person and gazing silently at his bedroom wall, leave his family unnerved. Before long, shadowy apparitions begin to skulk about the house and mysterious black hand prints cover Stephanie's bed. At one point, Michael actually drools black liquid.

Stephanie dreams about a wolf invading the house (we don't know it's a dream at first--the dustiest trick in the horror genre catalogue) and begins to realize the black hand prints (why black hand prints?) are not Michael's doing. Carrying the stones around in his backpack, Michael visits his grandmother, who is spooked by the appearance of a rattle snake on her kitchen counter. As the weird happenings become more frequent, the crisis culminates with a fire in Michael's bedroom and blood-red drawings on the bathroom wall.

Having had enough, Bronny seeks the services of a woman who deals with all issues related to hauntings (there's always that person in horror films who deals with paranormal pests).

With the help of spiritualists and some internet sleuthing by Bronny, the Taylors discover Michael has inadvertently invited Anasazi spirits into their home. We also learn how the spirits came to be trapped inside the stones in Michael's possession and why autistic people are the perfect conduits for malevolent entities seeking ingress into our world. The spiritualists warn the family that the spirits will attempt to abduct Michael once they've wreaked havoc on the household.

The strange animals the Taylors encounter in their home--a raven and coyote--are revealed to be spiritual vessels. Believe it or not, no one; not once, ever makes a connection between the rattle snake at grammy's house and the strange animal appearances in the Taylor residence. I guess dangerous, slithering reptiles don't raise many eyebrows in suburban Los Angeles.

When a spectral portal appears on the wall in Michael's room, Peter passes through it in an attempt to save his son, who are hellbent on carrying him away to wherever evil Anasazi spirits hang out. Peter makes a sacrifice for his son until Michael realizes returning the stones to the chamber is the key to stopping the spirits and ending the ordeal.
Is there a happy ending?

What do you think?

McLean, who co-wrote the screenplay, does a feeble job drawing a parallel between the family's issues and the appearance of the spirits, who are supposed to serve as some kind of metaphor for the domestic strife. The family's problems, which seem to get fixed with little effort, are dispensed with efficiently and economically. Treating Stephanie's bulimia means a visit to the therapist. An affair of Peter's is the subject of an emotional confrontation between husband and wife, which neatly covers a few minutes of screen time. We might assume the Anasazi spirits moonlight as family therapists because all seems blissful in the Taylor household after they depart.

Were the spirits ever really a menace, save for making messy hand-prints and prompting Michael to scorch part of his bedroom wall? Their presence is more of a nuisance than a terrifying incursion into the Taylor's bland suburban home. The Anasazi fiends were very fortunate they weren't arrested for vandalism. Those spirit-world hooligans; they should be sentenced to community service!

McLean's bag of scares are limited to loud, jarring sounds and dark apparitions passing unnoticed behind the character's backs. He doesn't reach for visceral dread but hopes the mere appearance of the dark Anasazi apparitions will be frightening enough. Unfortunately they're not.

The final, life-affirming shots of the Taylors (I guess I'm giving the ending away--I'm usually careful about that) remind us the story is mainly about the family becoming a cohesive unit. I guess we're supposed to think the existential threat from beyond helped bring them together...or something like that.

The Darkness is pretty limp horror but hey, at least Radha Mitchell was eye candy for an hour and a half (at least for me). If curiosity gets the best of you, fear not; the movie will turn up on some streaming service shortly, I'm sure.

So there you have it folks. Remember to stay clear of those Anasazi caves; lest you release malign spirits who practice diabolical acts of wall defacement.

Black Mass

**Spoiler Alert**

Director: Scott Cooper/Starring: Johnny Depp, Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Dakota Johnson, Peter Sarsgaard, Jesse Plemons, Julianne Nicholson, Adam Scott and David Harbour

By now most people should be fairly familiar with the story of James "Whitey" Bulger; Boston's one time crime kingpin and leader of the notorious White Hill Gang; who operated with impunity in the 1970s' and early 80s'. His capture in 2011 made national headlines while a documentary by Joe Berlinger garnered critical acclaim in theaters in 2014. So, I pose a question once reserved for filmmakers who have seen fit to flood theaters with flicks about Steve Jobs: do we need another film about Bulger and if so, what more do we need to know? Director Scott Cooper (Out of the Furnace, Crazy Heart) must think the story is incomplete, for here we are again with Black Mass, based on the book of the same name by Dick Lehr and Gerard O'Neill. But Cooper's film isn't a biopic or even a character study. Though Bulger is the cynosural focus, it is his unholy alliance with the FBI that serves as the film's narrative center.

The story is told mainly in flashback, as we see respective members of the White Hill Gang sitting before an FBI agent, offering confessionals and relating their stories.

The film begins in mid-seventies South Boston. A south-side tough named Kevin Weeks (Jesse Plemons) guards the door to the bar which serves as Bulger's headquarters. When three men try to gain entrance, a brutal round of fisticuffs breaks out, which necessitates Bulger's intervention. Impressed by Kevin's scrappy defense, Bulger appoints the young man to his muscle detail.

As Bulger's gang makes incursions into Italian mob territory, an FBI agent assigned to rid the city of organized crime, John Connolly (Joel Edgerton) decides to enlist Bulger's help. What makes the idea particularly fascinating is Connolly's relationship with Bulger (a scary Johnny Depp), who was once a chum from his old south-side neighborhood. When the two meet, Bulger is wary of John's agenda. John proposes an alliance that would ensure the defeat of the Italian mobs in exchange for Bulger's complete freedom from arrest and FBI harassment. Seeing the deal as self-advantageous, Bulger agrees to an alliance in spite of his reluctance to help the FBI. Bulger's other ally is his younger brother Billy (Benedict Cumberbatch), a member of the Massachusetts state senate who turns a blind eye to his brother's illicit affairs.

John's deal with Bulger draws heat from his superiors; particularly his boss Charles McGuire (Kevin Bacon), who would like nothing more than to bring the kingpin to justice.

In early scenes, we see just how brutal Bulger can be when he and Kevin drive an Italian mobster to a secluded location before beating him savagely. Bulger's lack of concern about reprisals is consistent with his fearlessness and his disquieting volatility. Watching Bulger dispatch a fellow gang-member days after being challenged in the bar, we are never sure how he will behave or respond, which keeps associates (and the audience) in a constant state of anxiety and fear.

We also see some of Bulger's personal life. Bulger visits his girlfriend Lyndsey (Dakota Johnson) and his son Douglas. During a meal, Bulger is reprimanded by Lyndsey for giving their son advice on how to avoid being punished for hitting someone in the face. In another scene, we see Bulger having dinner with his brother and his mother; a momentary glimpse into his family life.

But mostly we see Bulger at work; encroaching on Italian mob territory and executing those who get in his way.

As time passes, Bulger provides the FBI with little in the way of useful information though John pressures him to honor his deal. McGuire begins to lose patience and begins to wonder why the FBI is letting Bulger operate with impunity.

In time, Bulger becomes more ambitious. His involvement in the business of the sport Jai-alai; a Latin-American sport that briefly gained popularity in the U.S. in the 1970s evolves from mild interest to active partner. Before long, Bulger wrests control of the business from its founders by intimidation and murder, drawing more of the FBI's attention and ire.

Connolly's wife Marianne (Julianne Nicholson), like her husband's FBI superiors, sees his partnership with Bulger for what it is; a dangerous and immoral conflict of interest. Connolly invites Bulger and a White Hill gang member to dinner where he and another agent named John Morris sit across a table. When Bulger asks John about his wife, he mentions that she is upstairs, feeling ill. Bulger excuses himself from the table to visit her, which becomes a study in dark, psycho-sexual seduction and intimidation. Bulger is both menacing and creepy when he runs his hand over Marianne's face; her revulsion and fear palpable.

Before long, both McGuire and Fred Wyshak (Cory Stoll); an aggressive, results-oriented district attorney who is also eager to see Bulger behind bars pressure Connolly further. Wyshak's integrity is such that he refuses Connolly's bribe of two Red-Sox tickets; giving him a dressing down instead that leaves him speechless.

Where Bulger's ambitions lead is hardly a mystery. As I mentioned earlier, the story is so familiar now after Berlinger's film, and Scorcese's The Departed; another drama based on Bulger's life. I return to my earlier question: was this film necessary? I suppose it was if only to see Johnny Depp play something other than pirate Jack and Willy Wonka. His performance, though interesting, isn't really infused with any psychological depth or psychic backstory that might shed light on the man's mind. Maybe it's unfair to ask that of an actor playing someone who probably has no depth anyway. I think I've seen more than my fair share of mob films, like Goodfellas, set a nigh-impossible standard to overcome--which makes me ask what new ground does this film claim? There were facts about his life of which I was unaware, like the Jai-alai business, but the film merely fills in more details and facts. This is one time I would have liked to learn something of his upbringing as a "Southey" and his experiences in Alcatraz and Leavenworth that might have shaped his thinking and behavior, as well as his ambitions.

The supporting cast was quite terrific, particularly Joel Edgerton, Julianne Nicholson and Dakota Johnson, who showed more range here than 50 Shades.

High marks for the production design, which captured the gritty look of 1970s' Boston; aided in part by the use of city locales.

I enjoyed the film and Depp's Bulger, but as more time is displaced between me and the screening, it seems less impressive, in spite of the excellent performances. The photos of Depp in his blue contacts and slicked hair are something from a horror film rather than real life. His appearance is an exaggeration of Bulger's, which becomes more a distraction than an attempt at physical accuracy.

I wouldn't dissuade anyone from seeing Cooper's film. I might even recommend it but my recommendation would come buried under a pile of reservations. See it to see some fine acting and Johnny Depp or, if you can't get enough of Whitey Bulger, you might be inspired by that reason alone. Otherwise; I can't think of other reasons.