Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Zoe Margaret Colletti Director: André Ovredal André Ovredal

Overview

Directed by André Øvredal, this horror mystery film is based on the iconic book series of the same name, written by Alvin Schwartz. Set in small town 1960s America, a mansion on the outskirts of town contains a terrible secret. It was home to a young girl named Sarah (Kathleen Pollard) who, while locked away, wrote a book of scary stories. The haunted book has now been discovered by some teenagers, unlocking untold horrors that force them to face their own fears. Starring Zoe Margaret Colletti and Michael Garza. ~ Clare Perez-Izaguirre Lopez

Product Details

Release Date:	11/05/2019
UPC:	0031398307891
Original Release:	2019
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	Lions Gate
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby AC-3 Surround Sound]
Time:	1:48:00
Sales rank:	6,491

Special Features

Dark Tales; Retro horror

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Zoe Margaret Colletti	Stella Nicholls
Michael Garza	Ramon Morales
Gabriel Rush	Auggie Hilderbrandt
Austin Abrams	Tommy
Dean Norris	Roy Nicholls
Gil Bellows	Chief Turner
Lorraine Toussaint	Lou Lou
Austin Zajur	Chuck Steinberg
Natalie Ganzhorn	Ruth
Kath Pollard	Sarah Bellows
Javier Botet	Actor
Troy James	Actor
Mark Steger	Actor
Stephanie Belding	Reception Nurse
Marie Ward	Mrs. Hildebrandt
Jane Moffat	Delanie Bellows
Andrew Jackson	Jangly Man
Tavia Pereira	Passing Nurse
Hershel Blatt	Geek
David Tompa	Doctor
Elias Edraki	Dr. Ephraim Bellows
Brandon Knox	Harold Bellows
Daniel Gravelle	Letterman
Will Carr	Ephraim Bellows
Amanda Smith	Gertrude Bellows
William Corno	Mechanic

Technical Credits

John August

Dan Hageman

Kevin Hageman

André Ovredal	Director
John August	Screenwriter
Marco Beltrami	Score Composer
David Brisbin	Production Designer
Francois Dagenais	Makeup Special Effects
J. Miles Dale	Producer
Sean Daniel	Producer
Rich Delia	Casting
Anna Drubich	Score Composer
Marcus Dunstan	Original Story
Joe Dzuban	Sound/Sound Designer
Roberto Grande	Executive Producer
Elizabeth Grave	Producer
Etienne Gravrand	Set Decoration/Design
Guillermo del Toro	Original Story,Producer
Dan Hageman	Screenwriter
Kevin Hageman	Screenwriter
Mike Hill	Makeup Special Effects
Myron Hoffert	Asst. Director
Jason Brown	Producer
Patrick Larsgaard	Editor
Joshua Long	Executive Producer
Peter Luo	Executive Producer
Daniel McGraw	Makeup
Patrick Melton	Original Story
Ruth Myers	Costumes/Costume Designer
Roman Osin	Cinematographer
Howard Paar	Musical Direction/Supervision
Regina Robb	Production Manager
Tenille Shockey	Makeup Special Effects

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
1. Scene 1
2. Scene 2
3. Scene 3
4. Scene 4
5. Scene 5
6. Scene 6
7. Scene 7
8. Scene 8
9. Scene 9
10. Scene 10
11. Scene 11
12. Scene 12
13. Scene 13
14. Scene 14
15. Scene 15
16. Scene 16
17. Scene 17

Menu

Disc #1 -- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
   Play Movie
   Scenes
   Set Up
      Audio
         English 5.1 Dolby Audio
         Spanish 5.1 Dolby Audio
         English Descriptive Audio
      Subtitles
         English
         English SDH
         Spanish
         Subtitles: Off
   Special Features
      Dark Tales
      Retro Horror
      Also From Lionsgate

Editorial Reviews

Producer and co-writerGuillermo del Toro teams up with director André Øvredal to bring horror lovers Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. Adapted from Alvin Schwartz's 1980s young adult book series, the film may not creep into viewers' minds and send tingles up their spines, but it does deliver stomach-turning frights throughout this accessible teen mystery. The movie is set in the year 1968, in Mill Valley. This small town in Pennsylvania welcomes Halloween with jack o' lanterns on its porches and pumpkin pies sitting in storefront windows. A motley crew of high school teenagers go out trick-or-treating in the neighborhood. Inebriated, the town's bullying band of jocks menace the group of friends. They retaliate and run away, eventually ending up at the Bellows mansion. There, they break into the haunted estate, where the tortured soul of Sarah Bellows resides. Stella (Zoe Margaret Colletti) and Ramón (Michael Garza) steal Sarah's haunted book. When it begins writing its own stories inked in blood, the teens suffer horrific effects and race to solve the mystery of Sarah Bellows before they're all swallowed up by the book's terrors. The horror in the movie certainly gets the skin crawling. Thanks to Del Toro's extensive experience, and thanks to its PG-13 rating, the movie succeeds over other recent horror movies that have been made for younger audiences. Where Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween and The House with a Clock in Its Walls are limited to cartoonish thrills, Del Toro evokes visceral disgust with grotesque creatures and abominable bodily horrors. While exploiting the discomforts of adolescence, he smartly chooses to portray the loss of control over one's own body in ways that are nauseously graphic, yet not gory. Supporting the ghastly visuals are the cast, who do a fine job of playing their roles and each of the actors and actresses are on point. Colletti and Garza do well in conveying the budding love interest in their characters, given the limits of the script. Natalie Ganzhorn, who plays Ruth, gives a standout performance with utterly arresting screams of fear. And Austin Abrams succeeds in his performance of Tommy, a bully whose cruelty sneers through his drunken haze. What's more is that the film achieves a modest degree of depth in an area where many horror movies fall short-the resolution of the tortured soul's pain. Stella says, "Stories hurt. Stories heal. If we repeat them enough, they become real." The story shows viewers a satisfying connection between Sarah Bellows' personal history and the pain that drives her ghostly existence, as well as the way that the pain is released so that healing can begin. There is room for improvement though. While the movie is entertaining enough, the plot is driven largely by action. This leaves the characters underdeveloped. Consider Stella's explanation of how the Sarah Bellows' book works. "You don't read the book, the book reads you," she says. There's very little exploration of how the book reads into a person's deepest, darkest fears. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark would have benefitted from deeper character development, but it succeeds in many other important ways. It's a solid film that ought to please fans of campfire horror and teen adventures, as well as those who are looking to experience family-friendly frights.

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