The defence The Arthouse Gremlin
“Its refusal to behave is the point.”
The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.
Back to trending 
House of Dark Shadows
Drama · Horror · Thriller · 1970
Barnabas Collins searches for a cure for vampirism in order to marry a woman resembling his long-lost fiancée Josette.
Movie details
House of Dark Shadows
“Come see how the vampires do it”
1970 Drama · Horror · Thriller 1h 37m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.6 / 10
Community rating
Barnabas Collins searches for a cure for vampirism in order to marry a woman resembling his long-lost fiancée Josette.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over House of Dark Shadows?
For the defence
The Arthouse Gremlin
“The stranger, the better.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
Grizzly Night
Horror · 2026
On August 12, 1967, in Montana's Glacier National Park, the unthinkable happened: that same night, nine miles apart, there were not one—but two—fatal grizzly bear attacks.
Night of Dark Shadows
Drama · 1971
Recently married, Quentin and Tracy Collins have just moved into Collinwood, a New England estate that has long been in the Collins family and which Quentin has just inherited. They soon find themselves plagued by spirits of past residents.
Lady in a Cage
Drama · 1964
A woman trapped in a home elevator is terrorized by a group of vicious hoodlums.
The Countess
Drama · 2009
Kingdom of Hungary, 17th century. As she gets older, powerful Countess Erzsébet Báthory (1560-1614), blinded by the passion that she feels for a younger man, succumbs to the mad delusion that blood will keep her young and beautiful forever.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Drama · 1941
Dr. Jekyll believes good and evil exist in everyone and creates a potion that allows his evil side, Mr. Hyde, to come to the fore. He faces horrible consequences when he lets his dark side run amok.
The Witches
Horror · 1966
Following a nervous breakdown, Gwen takes up the job of head teacher in the small village of Haddaby. There she can benefit from the tranquillity and peace, enabling her to recover fully. But under the facade of idyllic country life she slowly unearths the frightening reality of village life in which the inhabitants are followers of a menacing satanic cult with the power to inflict indiscriminate evil and death if crossed.
The Pit and the Pendulum
Horror · 1961
In the sixteenth century, Francis Barnard travels to Spain to clarify the strange circumstances of his sister's death after she had married the son of a cruel Spanish Inquisitor.
The Eternal Daughter
Drama · 2022
An artist and her elderly mother confront long-buried secrets when they return to a former family home, now a hotel haunted by its mysterious past.
The Tomb of Ligeia
Horror · 1964
Verden Fell is shattered after the death of his lovely wife. But, after an unexpected encounter with Lady Rowena Trevanion, Fell soon finds himself married again. Nevertheless, his late wife's spirit seems to hang over the dilapidated abbey that Fell shares with his new bride. Lady Rowena senses that something is amiss and, when she investigates, makes a horrifying discovery -- learning that Fell's dead wife is closer than she ever imagined possible.
The Night Walker
Thriller · 1964
A woman is haunted by recurring nightmares, which seem to be instigated by her late husband who supposedly was killed in a fire.
Where it lives
Watch in your region.
Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.
Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Dan Curtis
Written by
Sam Hall · Gordon Russell
Jonathan Frid
Barnabas Collins
Grayson Hall
Dr. Julia Hoffman
Kathryn Leigh Scott
Maggie Evans
Nancy Barrett
Carolyn Stoddard
John Karlen
Willie Loomis
Roger Davis
Jeff Clark
Thayer David
Professor T. Eliot Stokes
Court is in session
Put House of Dark Shadows on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“Oddness is not depth.”
A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.