Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark Review
Avigail Grile & Maggie McCormack 10/24/22
Have you been wanting to get in a spooky mood? After all, Halloween is right around the corner and you can’t go a year without something a little bit scary to watch, right? Tonight we will be focusing on Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark, a Halloween-themed horror movie, so curl up on your couch and prepare yourself for a horrifying night.
To give a little bit of background information, the Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark movie is based on the popular children’s book series, Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark, the first book being published October 14, 1981. The series was surrounded with critics and angry parents, claiming that the books were far too violent to be marketed towards young teenagers and tweens. Despite that, the author, Alvin Schwartz, went on to publish two more books in the series. Later, in 2019 the first book was made into a horror film.
The main characters of the movie are Stella Nicholls (played by Zoe Margaret), Chuck Steinberg (played by Austin Zajur), Auggie Hilderbrandt (Gabriel Rush), and Ramón Morales(Michael Garza). The movie shows development and growth for each main character, as well as adding a few more along the way. Stella leads the group of friends, taking them through a haunted house, and finding a mysterious book that was full of stories . . . scary stories.
The movies features detailed CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) and other creepy visual effects, including 3D animation, makeup/facepaint, and prosthetics. There are many notable costumes in the movie as well.The CGI, mixed with the incredible costumes and the cast’s acting abilities comes together very nicely in the end to deliver a very creepy appearance to the audience.
The general description of the movie, without spoiling the movie, is this: The shadow of the Bellows family has loomed large in the small town of Mill Valley for generations. It's in a mansion where young Sarah Bellows turns her tortured life and horrible secrets into a series of scary stories. These terrifying tales soon have a way of becoming all too real for a group of unsuspecting teens who stumble upon Sarah's spooky home.
NOTE: This movie is in the thriller and horror genre and is rated PG-13, so it may not be suitable for all ages. The movie includes disturbing and graphic imagery and some strong language. It also takes place at a time period when certain ethnic groups of people are discriminated against. If any of these topics make you uncomfortable, then we do not advise that you watch this movie.
Are you scared yet? You aren’t? Well, if you aren’t then now it is time to watch the movie for yourself and really feel the Halloween spirit. We advise that you watch with a friend and grab some snacks because the movie’s run time is 1 hour and 48 minutes, so pop some popcorn because you are in for a treat! You can find and stream the movie on Netflix. So next time when you’re scrolling through Netflix looking for something to watch to get you into Halloween spirit, make sure to check out Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark if you dare!