DARKNESS FALLS in my opinion was a good horror movie and if I were to rate it on the traditional Hollywood four star system, I would award it at least two (2) stars which means, fair, or, worth a look. But I would feel more comfortable giving it 2.5 stars which means, definitely worth your time watching. I would be tempted to award 3 stars but am not sure I could fully defend it. Parts of the movie are worth 3 stars.Much of the movie's storyline is already known or already reviewed so you already have your opinion. The movie was either liked or disliked with little in-between which explains the average rating of 5.0.My unique take on the movie is the emphasis on light and flashlights to defend against the demonic revenant. Hollywood has long relied on what I term, "fear props", to heighten the suspense, scare, and shock factors of horror films. It's not just the prop itself, it's what's done with it that renders the spooky effect.In Hollywood suspense, thriller, fright, and horror movies, the run-of-the-mill flashlight frequently shows up. Much of the scare factor relies on atmosphere, darkness, and noir effects, as was expertly depicted in HALLOWEEN (1978). As a result, actors have to use some means of illumination, not just to see, but to give illumination to the set. This is where the flashlight comes in. In fright and horror movies which take place in the past, hand-held candles were used and the viewer noticed that just one candle seemed to light up an entire room; of course it was a special effect. The Hollywood flashlight fear prop accomplished its fear role by being fragile. In many fright and horror movies, the actor seems to hold an especially fragile flashlight. Just at the wrong moment the actor 'drops' his/her flashlight out of fear or stress and it breaks. Almost all real flashlights can survive a drop even on to a hard surface. Or, at the wrong moment the flashlight's beam goes out and the actor/actress hurriedly whacks it on the palm of their hand while the monster or the killer sneaks up behind them.Other fear props: 1) Cellphone. The actor or actors' cell phones never work when it's supposed to. Either the actor drops the cell phone and it breaks apart into pieces. Best yet, when trying to hide from the monster or the killer, the actor victim's cell phone goes off, revealing their hiding location. 2) Toys. The creepy toy monkey banging his cymbals is a classic Hollywood fear prop. 3) Car keys. Hollywood likes to show that all women have a zillion keys on their car key chain. When running away from the monster or the killer (usually it's a human killer), the actress tries to either unlock the car door or find the key for the ignition. Because she's panicking and there's too many keys on her key chain, she fumbles and can't find it, letting the killer catch up to her. Sometimes the actress will 'drop' her overloaded key chain in her panic.DARKNESS FALLS exploited the flashlight fear prop to the fullest. I don't know about other viewers, but this movie encouraged me to keep purchasing quality, durable flashlights. So now I have a small collection of AA and AAA battery LED flashlights. I don't have a 50-gallon plastic barrel full of flashlights like the movie character but I own enough to place a flashlight in every conceivable location where I might need it: car, business bag, nightstand, living room, work desk, autumn and winter jackets. Suffice to say, I believe there's a flashlight within arm's reach everywhere I am. Who knows when the electricity will fail, right? Other than that I have used my flashlight at work many times, especially when I work at night. It's not necessary to own as many flashlights as I do but the average person should own at least two, quality flashlights. Buy those that use AA batteries which are more common and easier to find and cheaper to buy. Second choice is AAA flashlights. Some people still prefer a big, traditional D battery flashlight but for practical purposes you really don't need to. Today's AA LED flashlights put out a lot of light, even some powerful AAA flashlights.

I began to get suspicious that the actors in this movie were trying on an America accent and guess what? Yes its almost 90% Australian actors. Not a great movie but enough to give you the willies. As far as horror movies goes it certainly does the right thing in giving you a good scare. Worth a watch if not just for the comedic fake accents. The theme of the movie is based on a woman being burned at the stake like a common witch. That being the wrong move as she had not done a thing to deserve it. So on her dying wish she promises to curse the town and take every child when they lose their last baby tooth. Stay in the light. Well at least carry a torch.

Oh great, I thought. Another teen-friendly PG-13 horror film that'll turn out to be a toothless (pun intended) waste of money and time. It didn't help that I'd just watched THE FOG remake, which represented everything bland, boring and senseless about modern Hollywood horrors. And then I watched DARKNESS FALLS, and I was hooked, and I realised something about halfway through: this is actually a great movie.It's a film indebted to the recent wave of Asian horrors as characters are menaced by a female ghost who dispatches her victims off-screen. The 'witch's curse' type storyline is pretty predictable, but I liked the way they tied it into the tooth fairy myth – always great when they're frightening poor little defenceless kids – and there's something always slightly creepy about using witches, mainly because they're not made up. Certainly if you look through history you'll find many well-documented curse stories that have no scientific basis. Anyway, I liked DARKNESS FALLS a lot mainly because it avoids the traps that much kid-friendly fare falls into. The script is okay, the acting isn't bad at all and the clichés are done away with early on so that we can actually get on with the film itself.To make matters better, around halfway through the scriptwriter does away with the set-up and storyline altogether and this turns into one big, terrifying chase movie, not unlike TERMINATOR 2. It becomes a battle of wits between the dwindling humans and the tooth fairy, and the idea that stepping into the dark equals death leads to plenty of great visual situations. Yes, it is a bit unbelievable how every light source seemingly dies out within minutes of being lit or switched on, but the film makes full use of its premise and I had a ball with it.Strangely enough, the child actors are far more convincing than their adult counterparts this time around, with the exception of the lead, played by Chaney Kley. Kley, who died in 2007 – coincidentally from a sleep-related disorder – gives a great performance as the tired, jaded, everyman hero, his whole life ruined thanks to the tooth fairy herself. He really convinces in his part and he made me want to keep watching. Sure, things get a little predictable with the whole fiery climax, but the tooth fairy – designed by Stan Winston, no less – is genuinely creepy and disturbing and the scares come thick and fast. I, for one, loved it.

Strolling down "Memory Lane".........I remember back when I was a darling, little angel of 5 (the world's sweetest, according to my Mom) and one day I came crying to my Dad with one of my first baby-teeth clutched tightly in my baby-fist. It had been working itself loose in my mouth and I had been jiggling it around with my tiny fingers. Suddenly, to my baby-surprise, it came out, followed by a rich flow of blood.The gushing of the blood is what got me bawling. Good, old Dad quickly knew what to do. Without hesitation he picked me right up and plunked me down on his knee. He then took an inquisitive look at my tooth and without missing a beat proceeded to pacify me with a story about the "magic" and mysterious Tooth Fairy.Dad's telling of this quasi-ancient tale calmed me right down. I was fascinated, as only a child could be. The Tooth Fairy in my mind's eye became a sort of enchanted cross between Tinkerbell and The Blue Fairy (from Pinocchio). Yes, the Tooth Fairy was most decidedly female.After my initial introduction to the Tooth Fairy, via Dad, I couldn't wait to trade the rest of my pearly, little choppers in for some more cold, hard cash. How I wished that I had had a lot more teeth to swap with The Tooth Fairy, it could've turned into a regular, little gold-mine for me if I did.The end of the "Memory Lane" stroll.The movie Darkness Falls goes nowhere near any stroll down Memory Lane. In fact, Darkness Falls is exactly like running for your life, in heart-pounding fear, down a broken, old path in the pitch darkness while thorns and nettles continually tear at your flesh and scratch at your eyes.Darkness Falls instantly turns any fond memories of childhood naivety into a screaming, hideous nightmare of brutal retribution. Darkness Falls deliberately strips away the Tooth Fairy's sweet charm and mystery to expose its charred, disfigured face beneath. The Tooth Fairy's own ugliness is only surpassed by an onslaught of hateful, score-keeping vengeance.I guess whoever was behind the Darkness Falls' screenplay must have been totally traumatized as a child by the Tooth Fairy, or something. I can't imagine what would've come out of this person's typewriter had he/she been menaced by the Easter Bunny, or even Santa Claus.So, be it a childhood fantasy about the Tooth Fairy, or not, Darkness Falls is an absolutely rotten movie from start to finish.