Betty (Deborah Harry) is preparing a dinner party, and the main course for the evening is little Timmy (Matthew Lawrence). Timmy is locked inside a cell that Betty keeps in her kitchen, and as she prepares the side dishes, he tries to buy time by reading aloud some short horror stories from a book titled Tales from the Darkside.
And it’s those very stories we get to see. In total, Timmy manages to read three tales from his book. The first is Lot 249, the second Cat from Hell, and the third Lover’s Vow.
There are many familiar and beloved faces both in front of and behind the camera. Most of them do a decent job—Steve Buscemi, Julianne Moore, and Christian Slater are all fun to watch in a film like this. But well-known musicians also deliver solid performances, including Deborah Harry (better known as Blondie) and David Johansen from the New York Dolls. No one exactly gives a standout performance, but then again, what can you expect from a film based on a TV series?
Behind the scenes, we find some top-tier names familiar to any fan of horror—Stephen King, Arthur Conan Doyle, and George A. Romero.
This is a film that’s probably best suited for teenagers, despite being packed with blood and gore. But any self-respecting teen appreciates a bit of gore, right? That said, the film never really builds up any genuine atmosphere, and the stories end up feeling quite tame and not particularly scary. Still, the entertainment value is decent—this is light entertainment, plain and simple. It works well if you’re looking for a movie that doesn’t demand much brainpower. There’s not a lot to concentrate on, not much to reflect over—just as mentioned, easygoing fun.
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