Dark Places

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2:30

Dark Places

R

2015

1h 43m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

22%

Tomatometer

81 Reviews

33%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

A woman (Charlize Theron) confronts traumatic, childhood memories of the murder of her mother and two sisters when she investigates the possibility that her brother (Corey Stoll) is innocent of the crime.

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Critics Consensus

Dark Places has a strong cast and bestselling source material, but none of it adds up to more than a mediocre thriller that gets tripped up on its own twists.

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Mark Kermode

Observer (UK)

Jan 24, 2016

2/5

Paquet-Brenner invests the split-time action with some brooding menace and the cinematographer, Barry Ackroyd, does his best to lend some urgency, even as things spiral from suspense into outright silliness.

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Geoffrey Macnab

Independent (UK)

Jan 22, 2016

2/5

The film, overall, is fatally uncertain of its identity - never quite certain whether it's a gruesome murder-mystery out to shock us or a heavy, character-based drama about a family torn apart.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

Jan 21, 2016

2/5

All in all, its contrivances might have been indulged more satisfyingly in a TV miniseries.

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Matt Oakes

Silver Screen Riot

Oct 14, 2026

D

A hodgepodge of movie-like parts that fail to ever click, 'Dark Places' is a monumental ball-drop on the part of writer/director Gilles Paquet-Brenner.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

May 29, 2022

2/4

The material plays like a common potboiler mystery with predictable twists and turns. That such weighty subject matter has been reduced to such banality is a tale of true crime itself.

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Mikel Zorrilla

Espinof

Apr 15, 2020

'Dark Places' is a complete waste of time that wastes Theron, Moretz and the rest of the cast to give us a lazy thriller. [Full Review in Spanish]

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Mon P

@FireflyNinja Aug 22, 2026

So much left to desire. The book was fabulous and they left so many important details out. Great cast but not well acted, felt cheaply made. The film felt rushed, no real build up to the twist.

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Cassie E

@Cassieevens Jul 31, 2026

What’s not to love!? Plot was great, cast was great. Kept me guessing until the last 10 minutes. Not sure why such a low rating. Great movie overall

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Sidmarie M

@RT07884702 Jul 23, 2026

It was interesting enough but overall I found all the characters aggravating 😣 it worth the watch but I felt it was lacking in so many areas.

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Bisquiteen T

@RT65021124 Jul 16, 2026

Gillian can't help herself. She wrote that famous "cool girl" monologue, but it's really about her, because EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. of her ridiculous stories is about how women *pretend* to be victims but oh, no, not her. She's a cool girl. She'd never care about female victims of intimate partner violence or interpersonal assault or family annihilation because she's a COOL GIRL, see!? And she'd never be a victim, either, because she does all the right things! She would never do sex work like the despicable person in this movie. I hate this Gillian woman more than words can describe. Men still don't like you, you absolute dpsht. You are NOT getting their approval with this crap. All you are getting is approval from other deluded women who think that acting like handmaids will give them a tiny bit of respite from misogyny. You're a token, and you'll be spent, Gillian. We have listened to you. Now sit down and don't open your mouth again.

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Larry D.

@RT72789593 Jul 15, 2026

The story and acting was not that good. It just didn’t keep me interested. No suspense at all .

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Ian N

@Ianandme100 Nov 6, 2025

The plot leaves a bit to be desired but the atmosphere is good and the acting is excellent. Nice nod to the satanic panic too.

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Gilles Paquet-Brenner

Director

Charlize Theron

Libby Day

Nicholas Hoult

Lyle

Chloë Grace Moretz

Diondra

Tye Sheridan

Young Ben Day

Sterling Jerins

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Synopsis

A woman (Charlize Theron) confronts traumatic, childhood memories of the murder of her mother and two sisters when she investigates the possibility that her brother (Corey Stoll) is innocent of the crime.

Director: Gilles Paquet-Brenner
Producer: Azim Bolkiah, A.J. Dix, Matt Jackson, Matthew Rhodes, Beth Kono
Screenwriter: Gilles Paquet-Brenner
Distributor: A24
Production Co: Exclusive Media Group, Mandalay Pictures, Cuatro Plus Films, Denver and Delilah Productions, Source Investments B.V.
Rating: R (Language|Drug Use|Sexual Contact|Some Disturbing Violence)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 7, 2015, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 5, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $195.5K
Runtime: 1h 43m

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