Review | ‘Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark’
More ‘Goosebumps’ than ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’
Many remember being a kid, skimming through their elementary schools library and picking up one of the Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark books only to freeze in fear from the chilling illustrations and horrific tales. Although the film adaptation, Scary Stories To Tell In the Dark, based on Alvin Schwartz’s 1984 book of horror short stories of the same name, does not retain the tome’s fright power, its storyline does remain true to the source and delivers vivid depictions of the monsters that terrorized us as children. The plot follows a group of teenagers who’ve found a book filled with terrifying stories which are brought to life. Though lackluster dialogue and cliché moments pervade, the film is charged with wonderful imagery that creates more of a Goosebumps-esque universe rather than the intensity of something like A Nightmare on Elm Street. Overall, the film’s fun and frightful tales are suited perfectly for younger generations in search of a scare.
