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Fang Fang, You're Dead

Tim Burton and Johnny Depp bring their odd-couple chemistry to "Dark Shadows," based on the gothic soap opera from the 1960s. It's their eighth time working together and prior outings have ranged from awe inspiring ("Edward Scissorhands") to downright nauseating ("Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"). Still, hit or miss, the two can't stay away from each other - and maybe they shouldn't.

What's great about "Dark Shadows" is how it revels in its own absurdity without a hint of restraint or apology. Captain Jack Sparrow was amusing initially but the character has become like an overplayed radio hit, begging for a channel change. Depp finds his shiny new object in Barnabus, a wealthy playboy in 1752 who is careless with a witchy woman's heart (Eva Green's) and so she transforms him into a vampire and buries him alive.

He awakens in 1972 to McDonald's signs touting "9 billion served" and a strange group of hippies wondering what's so funny about peace, love and understanding. (He's hungry so he turns them into a meal - a man's gotta eat). He also finds his once-great estate, Collinwood Manor, on the verge of financial ruin with a dysfunctional family at the helm. He moves in, promising to restore their fortune. Michelle Pfeiffer, as the matriarch, looks surprisingly right at home in Burton's makeup.

There's a goofy love story between Barnabus and Bella (Victoria Winters) who is there as a caretaker for one of the children, and she reminds him of someone he loved a few centuries ago, blah blah. It's unnecessary to try and force sentiment into a silly, campy story of an uptight bygone-era vampire trying to adapt to modern society. But it's mostly a comedy and that's what it should be. There are enough one-liners, funny expressions and all-around weird moments to satisfy even the slightest fan of Burton and Depp collaborations. If you're not, stay home, because you will hate this.

The music in the film is worth mentioning: It's a hoot because it's wildly contrary to the dark, gothic scenery. ("Nights In White Satin," anyone?) There is a cameo from Alice Cooper, though, to keep it real. ("That's the ugliest woman I've ever seen," Barnabus notes.) For a nice escapist piece of eccentric goodness, get lost in "Dark Shadows."