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Over 150 years ago in the town of Darkness Falls, a kind old
woman named Matilda Dixon exchanged teeth from the town kiddies
for coins and became known as the Tooth Fairy. Sadly, fire
rips through her home, badly scaring her face and leaving her
sensitive to light. She can only go out at night and wears
a porcelain mask to hide her hideous disfigurement. One
night, two children go missing and the town blames
Matilda. She is hanged and her scarred face is exposed to
light. With her dying breath she places a curse upon
Darkness Falls. The next day, the children show up
unharmed. Matilda was wrongly accused and paid a dear
price. The town buried Matilda and its secret, shameful
deed. But since then, some believe that Matilda visits
children on the night they lose their last tooth, extracting vengeance
for her wrongful death on those who look upon her face.
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On the night Kyle Walsh (Chaney Kley) looses his tooth,
Matilda comes for him. Only Kyle's mother is killed
instead and Kyle is blamed for her death. He bounces out
of foster homes and insane asylums for the next 12 years, never
straying from the light. You see, once you have seen
Matilda's face, she will hunt you until she gets
you.
Flash forward 12 years: Caitlin Green (Emma Caulfield), who
was Kyle's childhood sweetheart, has a brother Michael (Lee
Cormie), who has just lost his last tooth and is in the hospital
because he will not sleep for more than 10 minutes at a time and
refuses to be in the dark, fearful of Matilda. The doctors
think Michael is suffering from night terrors, the same
diagnosis they gave Kyle. Caitlin, who has not spoken to
Kyle since he was removed from Darkness Falls, calls Kyle to see
if he can offer any help. Kyle runs to his lost-love's rescue to
battle Matilda and save Michael.
This movie moves along at a slow pace, but is good for a few
scares. But to truly enjoy it, you have to overlook the
plot holes (Where are the parents of Michael and Caitlin?
Shouldn't ALL the children be dead since Matilda is not quiet
about her approach?). Plus, it is pretty
predictable. Matilda only kills in the dark and the whole
town loses power in a power outage. Shocking!
Caulfield, who I love on Buffy the Vampire Slayer,
manages to shine through all the screaming she does in this
movie. She is a captivating screen presence and was one of
the reasons the movie was watchable.
Kley, by comparison was bland. The character he plays
is not the most enthralling in the first place, and he isn't as
captivating to watch as Caulfield. Bland. That's a
good word for the movie. Not unpalatable, just bland.
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The Tooth Fairy?
Michael and Kyle (Cormie,
Kley)
Michael,
Kyle, and Caitlin (Cormie, Kley, Caulfield)
Michael and Caitlin (Cormie,
Caulfield)
Matilda gets Michael
Matilda
Flying Matilda
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I like the sound effects that play when Matilda approaches a
victim. It is a cross between nails on a chalkboard and
moaning and sent a chill up my spine. The design of
Matilda is well done as well. Simple, yet eerie, with
flowing robes and a porcelain expressionless mask.
Emily Browning, who plays the little girl in Ghost Ship,
has a few minutes of screen time in this movie as a young
Caitlin. She brings toughness and vulnerability to her
short screen time and can convey a lot of emotion with just a
look.
The DVD special features include:
- Filmmakers commentaries
- The Legend of Matilda Dixon
- The Making of Darkness Falls
- Deleted scenes
- Storyboard comparisons
Do you think we got this movie totally wrong? Agree with us?
Or just want everyone to know your thoughts? Then start
a discussion of this movie in our forums!
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