By John Corrado

After a pretty much under the radar theatrical run, Remstar Films is releasing the thriller Dark Places on DVD.  Nearly thirty years after testifying against her brother in the murder of their mother (Christina Hendricks) and sisters, Libby Day (Charlize Theron) is contacted by a group of true crime enthusiasts under Lyle Wirth (Nicholas Hoult), who are convinced that he was wrongly convicted, forcing her to follow old clues to uncover the mystery of what really happened with her family.

Adapted from a novel by Gillian Flynn, who previously scored a hit with both the book and film of Gone Girl, Dark Places pales in comparison to other stories of its kind.  The film does boast a fine cast, who all do their best with what material they have, including Tye Sheridan and Corey Stoll who solidly portray the teen and adult incarnations of the brother in question.

But even their performances can’t hide the fact that the story around them is pretty much just a series of pulpy twists awash in melodrama.  Although similar allegations of exaggerated plotting could be levelled against Gone Girl, that film was successful because it took a darkly satirical approach in transitioning to the screen, where as Dark Places remains completely literal, often painfully so in the case of needless voiceover.  Almost relentlessly depressing, and not even particularly well made, this often feels like a TV movie, and it doesn’t really have enough redemptive qualities to warrant a recommendation.

The DVD includes no bonus features.

Dark Places is 113 minutes and rated 14A.