The Seven Darks (2024) – Film Review
The Seven Darks is a horror anthology film that consists of seven short films set in LA. All the stories occur at night.
Unlike most films of this type, The Seven Darks doesn’t have a credible wrap around story to bind the segments together. Instead, it has clips of someone picking up a public payphone and listening to an indistinct voice announcing the name of the upcoming section.
The clips with the phone are as pointless as they are annoying and show a distinct lack of imagination on the part of the people who came up with the original concept and put the film together. However, the seven stories that make up The Seven Darks are not that bad. They are unusual and none of them stay around long enough to outstay their welcome.
The first film is called Creature in the Dark. As with the six films that follow, it doesn’t not have any obvious tie-in with the the call that precedes it or the unknown guy who picks up the phone.
Creature in the Dark
Creature in the Dark begins with a man called Cutter (Zac Coats) walking through an apartment building, on his way to the parking garage. One of the apartment doors he passes is open, and Cutter sees a creepy-looking guy with long hair standing in the darkened room looking at him. When Cutter gets to his car, he sits a while, relaxing , to prepare for his journey. Then he sees his creepy neighbor (John Alan Hulbert) taking out the trash and behaving weirdly in the parking lot. Cutter initially reclines his seat to avoid being seen; then, after the guy has been in the trash room for 30 minutes, he goes to investigate and opens the door. The next thing you know, he’s back in his car, with no memory of what happened after he opened the door, and his friend Liz (Marissa Patterson) is sitting beside him.
Liz who seems to take on an almost councilor-like role, provides him with a meditation mix she has put together. She tells him its recorded at 40MHz and will help him clear the mental block. After that, things get very strange, but, although this segment is darkly disturbing and very well done, no answers are forthcoming about what the heck is going on.
Lucky Girl
Lucky Girl is easier to understand than the previous segment. It’s about a young woman, called Stephanie (Jennifer Buckley), who believes everything will always work out okay due to her positive mental attitude. She expects good things in the future, so that’s what she gets. At least that’s how it’s always worked for her before, so she has no fear about walking alone into a dark tunnel at night, where she encounters a woman she used to know. When the woman starts behaving strangely, Stephanie starts to walk away. Then, reminding herself she is a lucky girl, she goes back to see if the woman needs her help. She should have kept walking because something strange is afoot and all of her luck is about to run out.
The Necklace
The Necklace begins with a young woman (Daijah Peters) sitting on a bench to wait for a bus. When she sees a necklace on the ground in front of her, she picks it up and places it around her neck. Then, being a modern girl, she snaps a selfie and notices the picture shows someone looking over her shoulder. Seconds later, the picture changes and the woman is gone. It’s a rather chilling moment and things get more interesting when a stranger (Greena Park) appears and offers to help her remove the necklace when she finds that she cannot do it herself.
Stare
Starring American makeup and fashion guru Christine Di’Amore, Stare is also set in an area around a bus stop late at night. Di’Amore plays a woman who sits on a bench and becomes unnerved by a stranger sitting at the opposite side of the road. Although she is busy with her phone, she can’t help but notice the man is staring at her. The situation becomes more uncomfortable when the man (Brandon Logan Enigma) comes over and drops a piece of paper on the ground in front of her, challenging her to a staring contest. After he returns to his bench, she makes the mistake of responding to the challenge, and is the first to break eye contact, with disastrous repercussions.
Photobomb
Photobomb is one of my favorite films in The Seven Darks anthology. Again, the main character is a young woman (Rikki-lee Millbank) who is out walking the city streets alone at night. She has her phone with her, though, and is talking with her boyfriend, who is going to pick her up from the usual place. As she is walking, she notices a woman in a dressing gown behaving strangely, forcing her to stop mid-sentence. Things get extra creepy when her boyfriend asks her to send him a selfie, which she does, and the picture shows a scary face spying on her from a doorway she’s just walked past. After that, the woman discovers the camera on her phone can see things she cannot and her evening starts spiraling down into madness.
Ohio Parking Lot
Ohio Parking Lot begins with two young women, Jerica and Jamie, walking home at night. Before they split up and go their separate ways, Jamie starts talking about a guy who is driving around at night murdering people with a screwdriver and stuffing their bodies into his trunk. Jerica hadn’t heard about this, and it’s not a cheery thought for her to carry around in her mind after her friend leaves her to walk the rest of the way on her own.
As with the girl in the previous segment, Jerica stops in her usual place to wait for her boyfriend to pick her up. Unfortunately, he informs her he’s going to be late. Her response makes it clear this is a habit, and, this time, it may be a dangerous habit because, shortly after Jerica puts away her phone, a car stops at the other side of the parking lot and strange individual comes over to speak with her.
Toto’s Towing
Another story, another parking lot, and yet another girl on her own—Toto’s Towing begins with a young woman (Zendaya Andersen) finding she is locked out of her car. Obviously nervous about being stranded alone in such a potentially dangerous place, she calls a local towing firm, which agrees to send someone out.
While she is waiting, a man in a yellow, bear-like, one-piece, hooded pajama jumpsuit appears, carrying a hammer, and says the tow firm sent him. The strangely dressed individual; played by Brandon Logan Enigma, who also starred in Stare, has a very soft-spoken, almost child-like voice that only makes him appear more creepy. However, he’s quick to get her into her car and rapidly sorts out an additional problem when it refuses to start. Then the girl finds she has an even bigger problem.
The Seven Darks is only 63 minutes long, making it a lot shorter than many other horror anthology films. It’s also got a higher than average number of stories, so each one is quite short. That’s not a problem because none of them seem rushed and the length is about right because there’s not enough meat on the bones to drag them out for longer.
Although it would struggle to go head-to-head with mainstream anthology films and TV series, such as Creepshow and Tales from the Darkside, despite the lack of a credible wraparound story, The Seven Darks is surprisingly good for an indie horror film produced on a low budget. However, if you decide to watch it, don’t expect high action or to be wowed with special effects. Don’t expect to see any bloodshed either. As was the case with many pre-1980s horror films, the camera switches to another angle or scene instead of showing anything nasty—suggestive horror instead of scenes of blood and gore. Though seldom used anymore, this is a technique that can still be very effective.
Several of the segments have a distinct feel of the odd that reminds me of the original Twilight Zone TV series. Creature in the Dark and Photbomb are my two favorites. Both have a supernatural flavor but, in the case of Creature in the Dark, it could be argued Cutter is delusional and having his strange adventure courtesy of vivid hallucinations.
Even though the lack of a wraparound story is a hindrance in film form, the pre-segment clips with the phone may work better for a TV series. With a little work and slightly longer segments, the concept could work well in this format.
If anthology horror films are your thing, you may find The Seven Darks is right up your street. It may be an equally good choice for those who are seeking something a little different or want to add a little variety to their horror film diet. It won’t be for everyone—no film ever is—but, hopefully, this review has provided you with a good idea what to expect.