In Search of Darkness
In Search of Darkness is a 2019 documentary film written and directed by David A. Weiner and executive produced by Robin Block of CreatorVC Studios. An international co-production of the United Kingdom and the United States, the film explores the development and lasting impact of the horror film genre during the 1980s, and features interviews with numerous horror icons both from that decade and from the modern era, along with popular horror influencers.[2][3]
| In Search of Darkness | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg.webp) Promotional release poster by Graham Humphreys | |
| Directed by | David A. Weiner |
| Produced by | David A. Weiner[1] Jessica Dwyer[1] Heather Wixson[1] |
| Written by | David A. Weiner |
| Starring | John Carpenter Heather Langenkamp Joe Dante Jeffrey Combs Barbara Crampton Keith David Greg Nicotero Bill Moseley Caroline Williams Kane Hodder Sean S. Cunningham Tom Holland |
| Music by | Weary Pines |
| Edited by | Samuel Way |
Production company | CreatorVC Studios |
Release date |
|
Running time | 244 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom United States |
| Language | English |
In Search of Darkness premiered at the 2019 Beyond Fest.[4]
Cast
- Tom Atkins[5]
- Doug Bradley[5]
- Joe Bob Briggs[5]
- Lori Cardille[3]
- John Carpenter[5][3]
- Nick Castle[3]
- Larry Cohen[3]
- Jeffrey Combs[6]
- Barbara Crampton[7]
- Sean S. Cunningham[3]
- Joe Dante[5]
- Keith David[5]
- Katie Featherston[3]
- Mick Garris[8]
- Michael Gingold[9]
- Stuart Gordon[9]
- Andre Gower[9]
- Gunship[8]
- Spencer Hickman[8]
- Kane Hodder[5]
- Tom Holland[5]
- Graham Humphreys[9]
- Lloyd Kaufman[8]
- Robert Kurtzman[8]
- Heather Langenkamp[5]
- Don Mancini[6]
- Harry Manfredini[9]
- Kelli Maroney[10]
- Robbi Morgan[10]
- Bill Moseley[9]
- Greg Nicotero[11]
- Phil Nobile Jr.[11]
- Cassandra Peterson[12]
- James Rolfe[11]
- Ken Sagoes[11]
- Ben Scrivens[11]
- James A. Janisse (Dead Meat)
- Corey Taylor[5]
- Cecil Trachenburg[11]
- Ryan Turek[8]
- Caroline Williams[11]
- Alex Winter[11]
- Heather Wixson[8]
- Tom Woodruff Jr.[8]
- Brian Yuzna[9]
Production
In Search of Darkness initially began as a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter in October 2018, and the project met its initial goal in two days.[13][14] It went on to amass £99,478 in pledges from 1,532 backers on Kickstarter, before later moving platforms to Indiegogo in March 2019, where it has raised over £234,300.[5][8] The film received an exclusive release in 2019 to backers of the project.[15][16]
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, In Search of Darkness has an approval rating of 94%, based on 16 reviews, with an average rating of 7.52/10.[17] Josh Weiss of Forbes called the documentary "a scary good magnum opus" and recommended it for fans of horror fiction and for those interested in history, writing: "At times, you'll be lost in wonder at how this comprehensively epic behemoth was cut together in the first place. [...] This is a definitive, intimate, anecdotal, thematic, funny, and loving oral history of a decade that changed the face of big screen horror forever."[18] Michelle Swope of Dread Central gave the film a score of 5 out of 5, writing that "even at about four hours long, it's never boring", and summarizing it as "an all-encompassing, delightfully spooky love letter to eighties horror."[19]
Carolyn Mauricette of Rue Morgue wrote that "You might find the volume of information overwhelming at first because they come at you with a rapid-fire pace, but once you settle in, this documentary is a great ride."[20] Noah Berlatsky of The Verge called the documentary "a compulsively watchable delight" and wrote that "even hardcore genre fans are bound to find something new they'd like to see or something old they want to revisit".[21] Jessica Gomez of All Horror wrote: "It's well-researched, well-rounded, and filmed without bias. A masterpiece worthy of the most important decade of horror."[22]
Sequels
In Search of Darkness will be followed by two upcoming documentaries: In Search of Tomorrow, which chronicles science fiction films of the 1980s, and In Search of Darkness: Part II, which serves as a continuation of In Search of Darkness.
References
- Millican, Josh (October 22, 2019). "Latest Exclusive Clip from In Search of Darkness: Heather Langenkamp Talks Tina's Death & Bathtub Scene from Nightmare on Elm Street". Dread Central. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
- Millican, Josh (September 6, 2018). "Take "A Journey Into Iconic 80's Horror" in Upcoming Doc In Search of Darkness". Dread Central. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Miska, Brad (March 22, 2019). "Exclusive Clip: John Carpenter Joins '80s Horror Documentary 'In Search of Darkness'!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- "In Search of Darkness - American Cinematheque". americancinemathequecalendar.com. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
- "In Search of Darkness". Indiegogo. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
- Collis, Clark (March 6, 2019). "Gory trailer for '80s horror doc In Search of Darkness puts Chucky, Freddy, and Jason in spotlight". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Millican, Josh (March 13, 2019). "Exclusive Clip of Barbara Crampton in "Definitive" 80s Horror Documentary In Search of Darkness". Dread Central. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- "In Search of Darkness - The Definitive '80s Horror Doc". Kickstarter. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Miska, Brad (March 5, 2019). "Epic Trailer for Horror Doc 'In Search of Darkness' Hits the 80s Nostalgia Sweet Spot! [Exclusive]". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Wixson, Heather (November 1, 2018). "Final Stretch Goal for In Search of Darkness Kickstarter Campaign Celebrates the Iconic Women of 1980s Horror". DailyDead.com. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Miska, Brad (March 25, 2019). "Alex Winter Talks 'The Lost Boys' Working Against All Odds in the '80s Horror Documentary 'In Search of Darkness'! [Exclusive]". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- "In Search of Darkness Elvira Collector's Edition". 80shorrordoc.com. Retrieved October 20, 2019.
- Leighton, Susan (March 25, 2019). "David Weiner: The Nostalgia Curator goes In Search of Darkness". 1428Elm.com. FanSided. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Taylor, Nick (March 27, 2019). "Horror Business: David Weiner, Director of In Search of Darkness, The Definitive 80's Horror Documentary". Dread Central. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Jackson, Matthew (March 6, 2019). "Chuck to Hellraiser, In Search of Darkness doc promises 'definitive' look at '80s horror". Syfy Wire. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- Couch, Aaron (March 12, 2019). "'In Search of Darkness' Trailer Is a Dive Into '80s Horror". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- "In Search of Darkness". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- Weiss, Josh (October 23, 2019). "'In Search Of Darkness' Is A Scary Good Oral History Of '80s Horror With A Little Some-THING For Everyone (Review)". Forbes. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
- Swope, Michelle (October 8, 2019). "In Search of Darkness Review – Eighties Horror Documentary Takes a Delightful Deep Dive into the Most Iconic Era in Cinema". Dread Central. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
- Mauricette, Carolyn (October 17, 2019). "New Documentary 'In Search of Darkness' Takes A Deep Dive Into '80s Horror". Rue Morgue. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
- Berlatsky, Noah (October 7, 2019). "In Search of Darkness sets out to be the definitive 1980s horror doc — and mostly succeeds". The Verge. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
- Gomez, Jessica (October 18, 2019). "In Search of Darkness Documentary Review". AllHorror.com. Retrieved August 17, 2020.