''Dark Fields'' (also ''Douglas Schulze's Dark Fields'' and ''The Rain'') is a 2009 American

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...

directed by Douglas Schulze, written by Kurt Eli Mayry and Douglas Schulze, and starring

David Carradine David Carradine ( ; born John Arthur Carradine Jr.; December 8, 1936 – June 3, 2009) was an American actor, director, and producer, whose career included over 200 major and minor roles in film, television and on stage. He was widely known ...

Dee Wallace Stone Deanna Wallace (née Bowers), also known as Dee Wallace Stone (born December 14, 1948), is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Mary Taylor in the 1982 blockbuster science-fiction film ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''. Wallace ...

Richard Lynch Richard Lynch (February 12, 1940 – June 19, 2012) was an American actor best known for portraying villains in films and television. His film credits included '' Scarecrow'', '' The Seven-Ups'' (both 1973), '' God Told Me To'' (1976), '' ...

Ellen Sandweiss Ellen Sandweiss is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cheryl Williams in ''The Evil Dead'' franchise. Early life Sandweiss was born in Detroit, Michigan and is a graduate of the University of Michigan. She went to Groves H ...

, and Sasha Higgins.

Plot

Cari Lumis, a college student, suddenly falls very ill. Panicked, she calls her parents, who tell her to return home. There, her parents reveal that her entire town has been cursed and demand that she sacrifice her younger brother to avoid an even worse curse. Cari initially goes along with her parents' wishes but rebels at the last second. The two siblings go on the run from the townspeople, who desperately try to find them. Meanwhile, flashbacks reveal intertwining tales of nineteenth century and mid-twentieth century families that attempt to deal with the same curse. Eventually, a demonic man shows up to collect on the debt owed by the town, and Cari is forced to confront him. After a series of cat and mouse games, a friendly dog appears and kills the demon.

Cast

* Sasha Higgins as Cari Lumis *

as Clive Jonis *

as Karl Lumis / Mr. Jones *

Dee Wallace Deanna Wallace (née Bowers), also known as Dee Wallace Stone (born December 14, 1948), is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Mary Taylor in the 1982 Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbuster science-fiction film ''E.T. the E ...

as Jean Applebe *

as Mandy

Production

''Dark Fields'' was shot in Michigan. Director Douglas Schulze was inspired by

Shirley Jackson Shirley Hardie Jackson (December 14, 1916 – August 8, 1965) was an American writer known primarily for her works of horror and mystery. Her writing career spanned over two decades, during which she composed six novels, two memoirs, and mor ...

's short story "

The Lottery "The Lottery" is a short story by Shirley Jackson that was first published in ''The New Yorker'' on June 26, 1948. The story describes a fictional small American community that observes an annual tradition known as "the lottery", which is int ...

" and

Michael Cunningham Michael Cunningham (born November 6, 1952) is an American novelist and screenwriter. He is best known for his 1998 novel '' The Hours'', which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Faulkner Award in 1999. Cunningham is Professor in th ...

's novel '' The Hours''. David Carradine joined the film with the restriction that his scenes be filmed while he was available between shoots for other films. This was Carradine's second-to-last film before his death.

Release

''Dark Fields'' premiered at the

Detroit Windsor International Film Festival The Detroit Windsor International Film Festival (DWIFF), which ran from 2008 to 2012, was a publicly attended film festival held each June in the Detroit–Windsor region, with events taking place in both Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario ...

on June 27, 2009. After it showed at the

Hollywood Film Festival The Hollywood Film Festival is an annual film festival that takes place in Los Angeles, California, USA. History The Hollywood Film Festival was established in 1997 by author and producer Carlos de Abreu and his wife, model Janice Pennington.P ...

, it was picked up for distribution.

Entertainment One Lionsgate Canada is a Canadian entertainment company and a subsidiary of Lionsgate Studios. Based in Toronto, the company is primarily involved in the acquisition and production of films and television series. The company began on June 1, 1973 ...

released ''Dark Fields'' on DVD March 22, 2011.

Reception

Annie Riordan of Brutal As Hell called it "a watered down version of 'The Lottery' that doesn't deserve its stars. Gordon Sullivan of

DVD Verdict DVD Verdict was a judicial-themed website for DVD reviews. The site was founded in 1999. The editor-in-chief was Michael Stailey, who owned the website between 2004 and 2016, and the site employed a large editorial staff of critics, whose revie ...

wrote that the film is too ambitious but is worth a rental for fans of the actors. Rod Lott of the ''

Oklahoma Gazette The ''Oklahoma Gazette'' is a free alt-weekly online website featuring mostly news of Greater Oklahoma City restaurants, clubs, music and local trends. The Gazette was formerly a print weekly newspaper distributed throughout the Oklahoma City ...

'' called it a "fright-free horror movie". ''Dark Fields'' won Best Michigan Film at the

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 1212023 2009 films 2009 horror films American supernatural horror films American independent films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language horror films