Dark Water (2005)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Walter Salles

Writers (WGA):

Kôji Suzuki (novel)
Hideo Nakata (film Honogurai mizu no soko kara) ...

Release Date:

8 July 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

This Season, The Mystery Of The Darkness Will Consume Your Life

Plot:

A mother and daughter, still wounded from a bitter custody dispute, hole up in a run-down apartment building. Adding further drama to their plight, they are targeted by the ghost of former resident.

Plot Keywords:

Apartment | Water | New York | Ceiling | School

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Thur. July 16

8:00 AM

FX

Cast

Jennifer Connelly	...	Dahlia Williams
John C. Reilly	...	Mr. Murray
Tim Roth	...	Jeff Platzer
Dougray Scott	...	Kyle Williams
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Veeck
Camryn Manheim	...	Teacher
Ariel Gade	...	Cecilia 'Ceci' Williams
Perla Haney-Jardine	...	Natasha Rimsky / Young Dahlia
Debra Monk	...	Young Dahlia's Teacher
Linda Emond	...	Mediator
Bill Buell	...	Mediator
J.R. Horne	...	Man in Train
Elina Löwensohn	...	Dahlia's Mother
Warren Belle	...	UPS Man
Alison Sealy-Smith	...	Supervisor

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, frightening sequences, disturbing images and brief language.

Runtime:

105 min | 103 min (unrated version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Sweden:15 | France:-12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Philippines:PG-13 | Germany:16 | Iceland:12 (theatrical rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Malaysia:U | USA:Unrated (unrated DVD version) | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | South Korea:12 | New Zealand:M | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | Australia:M | Ireland:15A | Finland:K-15 | Singapore:PG | Argentina:13 | Norway:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Brazil:12

Filming Locations:

Chandler Valley Center Studios - 13927 Saticoy Street, Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

A color dye usually used in concentrated gels for soft drinks was added to the water to turn it to a dark color.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Dahlia and Ceci sleeping in the same bed, Dahlia is awoken from a bad dream. The kid rolls over and pulls the blankets over her shoulder. The next shot, from the hole in the ceiling, shows the blankets around her waist.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Ceci: OK, Daddy - let's go.

Movie Connections:

Features "Dexter's Laboratory" (1996)

Soundtrack:

I Got Soul

Gives the original a nice dousing of reality.

This is not a "child talks to dead people" movie. You should rejoice. It's not a "woman fights supernatural forces" thriller. You should get down on your knees and thank the powers that be. This is not "just an unnecessary re-make of the Japanese original". It's better.

Nakata is famous for taking the long view of his characters. Keeping us safe emotionally from them in order to bring the horror to life. Salles trumps him by pulling us right into Dahlia's arms where her fear, paranoia, and despair are absolutely palpable.

This is the story of a single mother trying to survive after a nasty divorce. Trying to hold onto her daughter so she can overcome her own history of abandonment. The ghosts (whether real or imagined) are peripheral to her dilemma.

The American Dark Water, gives us the same foreboding leak, the same bleak horrific photography, the same basic plot line, and yet by taking the emphasis off the ghosts reaches a much stronger emotional resonance.

Highly recommended for those that submit themselves to movies, rather than submit movies to themselves. You know who you are.