Ray Bradbury’s not exactly a Mr. Sunshine kind of guy. His wickedly downbeat takes on stories like “The Halloween Tree” or “Fahrenheit 451” carry not just a whiff, but an overpowering cloud of danger.
Even the title of the movie I’m recommending sends that chill of dread down the spine: “Something Wicked This Way Comes.” Bradbury, like Shakespeare (the author of that iconic phrase), knows how to mix the dark and the light in his entertainments.
The 1983 film of Bradbury’s novel by the same name is an imperfect movie, slow in some spots and going a bit cheap on some special effects. But Bradbury didn’t disown it altogether, for it conjures many of the same brooding fears of growing up and growing old that permeate the author’s world view.
Will and Jim are young boys looking for adventure in a windblown autumnal town somewhere in the Midwest. Mysterious hints of a carnival arriving on the edge of town lead them to investigate, and they learn far too much about the carnival’s sinister provocateur, Mr. Dark.
It seems Mr. Dark, a stand in for the universal idea of the devil, uses funhouse tricks to grant town patrons their deepest wishes. But it’s the classic “be careful what you wish for,” and Mr. Dark keeps collecting souls for his traveling show.
The boys want the knowledge of adults, and the adults — personified most poignantly by Will’s dad, Jason Robards — want the innocence and energy of youth. Robards is an older dad whom Mr. Dark taunts as a failure and a bad example for his child. Regret vies with optimism as both play across Robard’s wise face, much like Jimmy Stewart’s in “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
“Something Wicked” may be something flawed, but it will tide my family over until I find a DVD of “The Halloween Tree.”
“Something Wicked This Way Comes”
Rated: PG, for mature, scary situations
Best suited for: 7- to 11- year-old boys, Ray Bradbury fans
