Sorry, this movie sucks

So much average

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Production companies will do anything to get people to watch their movies, that's why the trailer almost always looks good, and the description on the back of the box is so eloquently written, but how often does the film live up to the hype? In the case of Fear of The Dark, it doesn't even come close! 12 year old, Ryan Billings (Jesse James), has an acute fear of the dark and his whole family thinks he's crazy. His parents rarely go out, but on one stormy night they decide to do so, leaving Ryan home alone with his older brother, Dale (Kevin Zegers), who comes to realize, his brother isn't so crazy after all. A creepy cover, a cool trailer, and an interesting description lead me to this film, even with the PG-13 rating. Some of the scariest supernatural horror film were rated PG-13, so i convinced myself, this would be a good choice. While the film has no affiliation with R.L. Stine, it is as much a Goosebumps tale as every other one of his stories. I was worried about the PG-13 rating, when the film doesn't even live up to that. How the company convinced the academy to give this film anything more than a PG rating is beyond me. Fear of The Dark has got to be the most tame and dull horror film I've ever seen. That being said, kids would absolutely love it, but it wasn't marketed to them and the creepy cover and PG-13 rating is exactly what would have kept them from this film. As for the performances, the two young actors were as you would expect, both Jesse James and Kevin Zegers, have look resumes as child actors and have done a ton of films like this and know exactly what their doing. Fear of The Dark is market towards teens and young adults when it should be in the children section. If you have kid, this is the kind of horror film you want them watching. As for me, I was utterly disappointed and shocked that a film like this would be marketed towards young adults.

This film goes nowhere with a very tired theme. Kids home alone during a storm has been done a million times (and a million times better) and this movie adds nothing to the genre. While this movie has no real plot - just semi-scary images throughout an unoriginal story, Kevin Zegers makes this film watchable. He is able to make the bland dialog work and has excellent energy on the screen; he is the best thing about this movie. One can see why he was cast in Transamerica, a film worthy of his talent. The younger actor does well, also, although the character seems out of place for a feature film and would be better received on Saturday morning TV.

I am a sixteen year old girl and I have been watching thriller/horror movies since... as log as I can remember. I can rarely find a movie that scares me anymore, let alone gives me a thrill. When I watched this movie on television i was so scared I had to pause it several times and drag my younger sister in the family room to watch it with me. I loved seeing Kevin Zegers in this movie and was shocked to learn that the co-star was older than I thought, but this movie pulls you in and I thoroughly enjoyed. I really liked that there was only one basic set which is hard to come by in the movie world. I felt like such a little kid again having a "Fear of the Dark!"

Those used to blood, gore and cheap thrills most likely will not enjoy this movie at all. I was never afraid of the dark but after having children who were, this movie provides insight into their fears that I couldn't understand. I like the ending where it is the child who has to conquer his/her individual fear. A parent or sibling can provide support but it is the individual who has to finally overcome. As this movie shows, it is our mind that provides our worse fears. From insects, to dogs, to monsters, we all have something that comes alive in the dark. They don't have to be ghoulish or nightmarish as some viewers would hope to see. They only have to be real in our mind, and that is what I enjoyed about this movie. We saw three peoples fears through their eyes and how they dealt with them. I wouldn't recommend this movie to small children or those who may be afraid of the dark, but besides being entertaining, it may help some parent to understand what their child may be going through. I like movies like this that rely on our minds to provide the scares rather than those which rely on blood and gore. I would have to give this an 8.