Review - Fright Night (2011)

I am admittedly not the biggest advocate of remakes, even though there have been many that I have enjoyed. I have always felt that there are still untapped reservoirs of creativity in Hollywood, and that the idea of the remake is a fast track to so many of those reservoirs never seeing the light of day. So when I hear about yet another remake it means one more new idea that the movie going public will never see. In the case of Fright Night, my trepidation was also due to the fact that the original was a personal favorite and one that made a huge impression on me as a young horror movie fanatic.

The original 1985 film was an extremely accessible film, especially to a preteen who loved the genre. It had a blend of horror and humor that made it quotable and rewatchable. Rewatchable to the point where my late night HBO viewings of the film probably near reached the triple digits. As much as it did resonate with my preteen sensibilities, there was an adult sophistication that hinted at themes that I could only try to understand. Themes that probably also added to those late night viewing tallies.

The original cast was an inspired choice and the chemistry on screen was evidence. Sarandon used his sex appeal as a weapon and made a formidable villain, using the naivety of William Ragadale's Charlie Brewster against him, separating him even further from his passage to adulthood. With the addition of veteran thespian Roddy McDowell, the film paid homage to its predecessors while still managing to do something that a lot of fanged flicks regretfully forget to do... it was a SHIT TON of fun. It was a vampire flick that didn't wallow in an unnecessary sense of self importance... it had a good time while finding the comedy in its subject matter without disrespecting it OR its audience. in fact, despite a few of the soundtrack choices, the film holds up surprisingly well. So well, that the idea of a remake didn't strike me as a warranted one. It was with this mindset that I went to see the remake.

What Fright Night the 2011 remake does exceptionally well is keep the fun coming alongside the scares and action. It does it so well that there are times you almost forget that you are watching a remake at all. THIS is where Fright Night succeeds... honoring the original while giving new audiences what so many remakes and even big summer blockbusters fail to do... a good time.

The remake follows the template of the original and fans of the 1985 film while find all the familiar territory that made the original so memorable. Charlie Brewster (Anton Yelchin) is a high school student struggling with coming of age and the pressures of his first real "adult" relationship. His single mother is focused on what most single mother are and finds herself replacing he idea of a spouse with her job. When the next door neighbor moves in and proves to be the quintessential hunk that suburban wives and girlfriends tend to fawn over and make the object of their masturbatory fantasies, Charlie feels the pressures of being an adult while still being looked at as a kid. The neighbor, Jerry (Colin Farrel), proves to be more of a predator than just the sexual variety after a string of murders close to home arouses the suspicions of both Charlie and his estranged friend, Ed (yes, McLovin). Soon though the idea of Jerry being a garden variety killer is dismissed and Charlie realizes he is up against a true creature of the night... one that is cunning, ruthless, and the embodiment of masculinity...something that represents Charlie's inadequacies.

As I said, the template is here. This IS Fright Night, and despite other reviews I have read, the changes to Charlie and Ed actually make a lot of sense. The 2011 Fright Night sees Charlie as a young man trying to separate himself from the friends of his past; friends whose interests in Dungeons and Dragons and youthful roleplaying might prove detrimental to Charlie's new found popularity. This is embodied in Charlie's near supernaturally HOT girlfriend. Another factor that, while Charlie is grateful, makes him uneasy, having to defend the validity of their relationship and his own worthiness to possess her affections. Granted, this is the kind of girl that more often than not would probably be having a secret romance with the flirty English Lit professor right out of college than a boy of Charlie's ranks, WHICH... actually makes the struggle not only believable but a HUGE selling point of Charlie's uneasiness when it comes to Farell's sex appeal.

The remake gets so much right that its hard not to wish that you didn't have to compare it to its predecessor at all. When you do, however, you find that the two movies own distinct voices actually compliment one another, and this is captured wholly and completely in David Tenant's Peter Vincent, a character that many were hesitant to see reprised at all. Despite my unwavering interest in all things horror, I am an avid Doctor Who fan. I think the best thing the BBC has done in years is resurrect the series and David Tenant finally gave us a doctor to rival Tom Baker's celebrated portrayal. That being said, Tenant reinvents the character without shaming the original performance (brilliantly played by Roddy McDowell) and gives us some of the better laughs of the picture.

What Fright Night should be congratulated on is giving us a fun summer movie that pays homage to the original without pissing on it. Recommended.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Review - Priest

Do you remember when there were scary vampires? I mean don't get me wrong the amount of product in Robert Pattinson hair is very fear inducing to me personally. The fact that vampires have been neutered and covered in sparkles is something I personally hate. My favorite vampire is the Nosferatu-looking menacing kind. I like a vamp that induces fear and not weakness in the knees of the ladies. Luckily for me, Priest came along and gave me some ravenous vamps to look up to.
Priest is based on the graphic novel written by Min-Woo Hyung. The story is that of humanity's centuries old battle with the vampires. In this tale vampires are bloodthirsty, very fast, very strong beasts. The human race over the centuries has barely survived the fight and the only reason they have is that the sun harms the vamps. As time progresses the world is increasingly torn apart by the battle and is only saved when the church cultivates soldiers ordained by god himself. These soldiers are called priests and are just as fast and strong as the menace they face. The preists do a very good job of erradicating the threat, almost too good. When the last major hive is taken down the church moves the populace into gaurded walled city that are completely controled by them. The priests are decommissioned and forced to lead normal lives. This is where the movie actually begins.
This film picks up after things have been quiet for a relatively long time. The main character called Priest(Paul Bettany) is called back into service when his family is attacked by a roving pack of vamps. The church denies his request to reacctivate and he less than politely does it anyway. He teams with an ex-priest played by Maggie Q and the young boyfriend of his niece played by Cam Gigandet. As a treo they tear ass across the desert in search of answers and only find more questions. The questions do get answered by another ex priest(Karl Urban) who while no longer a priest definitely has a brand new bag.
Ok brass tacks time. This film gets alot right, I mean alot. The effects are dynamic, the scares are at the level they should be, the action is fast and brutal and the use of weaponry is very unique. The vamps excrete a great kinda goo that is everywhere and the familiars they use to do their bidding are nice and creepy.
Bettany does a good job of being a low key badass. This should come as no shock for those who have seen Legion. In the same way Urban does a good job being foreboding in a "man with no name" kinda way and the vampires really set a good tone for the film.
Priest is directed by Scott Charles Stewart who also directed Legion. I really like his edge in these two films. Mr Stewart is very straight forward and unflinching in his use of violence and blood, he tends to gives no quarter to men, women or children. This gives the viewer a feeling anyone can be next. The other thing i enjoyed about his direction was his use of light and dark. When the sun is out it is REALLY out. It feels like they are really in the desert it is set in.
The film does have some flaws. Im not completely sure they are flaws for the kinda film it is but more of a rehash. It felt as if I were maybe watching Mad Max at some points. This may be of course because anything post apocalyptic kinda reminds me of Mad Max. It feels of steam punk and dirt and im not sure if its bad but kinda stale. I do believe that maybe it suffers from other films doing it maybe slightly better first. I guess my major gripe would be that the dialogue feels stale and very "action movie" like. Lotsa very dire quotes and just splashes of off-hand comedy. This film coulda used a little bit of lightheartedness to cut the grim nature.
I would say though all in all it is a much better than average film. If you are going to this movie to see Citizen Cain 2 then you will be sadly mistaken. In that vein though if you are wanting to see a fresh take on what a vampire is and a good action movie then this is your film. As a action horror film id give it a 3 outta 5.

originally posted by contributor David Winterborne

review - We are the Night

I was going to start this review out with a little dissertation on how women are crazy even when they are undead... and then I thought better of it... Eastern European women are crazy even when they're undead. Now that I've alienated half my audience... We Are the Night is not about the crazy undead of the female variety, although it might appear that way on the surface. In fact, much unlike its English dubbed trailer leads you to believe, We Are the Night is actually very much about despondency and loneliness... ok, it might also be about schmokin hot lesbian vampires too... and thank God, right?!?!? All that loneliness gets a little depressing unless you throw in a little Transylvanian girl-on-girl!!! Woot!!! Dat's wat I's sayin!!! Ahem... We Are the Night might be misinterpreted as a movie that panders to the club going, sexually experimental, feminist ravers that, for the most part, are the cardboard cut out vamps of a lot of b-movie fare as of late. If that is all you take away with you, then you have missed one of the better vampire films to come out. One that I feel falls in the same arena as Let The Right One In, Near Dark, and their deserving contemporaries.

Lena (Karoline Herfurth) lives a life dominated by running from the police, pickpocketing and navigating the German underground. Her life seems pointless, without substance, and more importantly without a sense of hope. Through her somewhat less than noble lifestyle Lena meets an overzealous adrenaline junkie cop, Tom (Max Riemelt) and three energetic, rebellious, glamorous and dangerous club goers: Louise, Charlotte and Nora.

**SPOILERS**

Ringleader of the three enigmatic, Louise (Nina Hoss), takes an instant liking to Lena's fiery spirt and inducts her into the supernatural world of the vampire. Tom continues to search for Lena whose free spirit has interested him as well and a very untraditional love triangle follows. 

The story here is simple enough and the conflict is as tired as the premise of most vampire movies to date. Lena rejects her new vampire habits, condemns her peers for their bloodlust and seeks to pursue Tom's affections. Again, I said simple and tired, right? C'mon... I can still have self awareness and like this movie... Don't hate!!! It is director Dennis Gansel that takes the tale and gives it life that reaches beyond the story. Gansel's vampires are struggling to hold on to anything that gives them humanity, and, in doing this, makes them somewhat more human than they're breathing counterparts. They are tragic, they are hopeless, and their animosity allows them to stave their misgivings, losing themselves in indulgences, creating each moment with enough intensity to erase those before it. We get the feeling that this is cheap band-aid psychological reparations and each vampire in the original core three is slowly losing themselves to their own despair. Louise has created a war on men, both alive and undead, almost singlehandedly wiping out the male population of bloodsuckers. Charlotte is lost in her bygone days of the roaring twenties, never giving up the grief that she felt for her loved ones, while Nora is living the life of a spoiled teenager, looking for the affections of men that she is doomed to destroy. They are sisters in bondage and Lena starts a chain of events that leads each to greater examine their immortality. It is Louise that struggles to create a world where she can no longer cling to humanity, finding companionship so strong and eternal that no world, living or undead has to matter anymore. Lena represents her golden ticket and it ultimately, is her undoing. 

German language with English subtitles, We Are the Night is heavy on atmosphere, not so much on dialogue and allows the actors to emote with more than just their words. Karoline Herfurth takes full advantage of this and allows it to flesh out a character that at times the script neglects to do. Max Riemelt feels the stiffest here, but slides easily into the love interest role and doesn't distract from the real star here which is Torsten Breuer's cinematography. Shot for shot, this is a gorgeous film. Breuer and Gansel manage to submerge their nocturnal shots in brilliant, saturated color while keeping our daytime in We Are the Night monochromatic and cold. The movie's pace is just right for its content and the conclusion is a torrent of rollercoaster camera theatrics. We Are the Night might not satisfy the most critical of vampire enthusiasts, but it holds its own enough to warrant repeat viewings and a place side by side some of the sub-genre's best offerings. Highly Recommended.

Review - Stakeland

Jim Mickle's Stake Land ( available now on VOD) proves two things:

1. Successful horror movies not only realize their own limitations, but are able to play off of them effectively, making them work towards the story instead of against it and...

2. In Stake Land, only rednecks can hear you scream... oh yeah... apparently when the vampire apocalypse comes the only things left besides the cockroaches are the Duke boys....

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

Following the cross country exploits of Mister ( Nick Demici) and his helper Martin (Connor Paolo) as they battle their way through a vampire ravaged America after Martins's family is savagely murdred..err...eaten... Stake Land takes itself just seriously enough that the action, when it comes, never feels tired or old hat... just necessary. That is probably one of the stronger aspects of the film, and one that, in the end, makes it so successful. Stake Land manages to introduce a very large idea without making it bloated or a parody of itself. It hits the notes exactly as it should, and although it slows down a little towards the end of the second act, it keeps us interested by filling it with characters, even those that are only brief in the appearances.

Don't get me wrong when I nitpick for a bit of a lag. The boys and new recruit Belle (Danielle Harris) have plenty to do between saving nuns, escaping religious zealots and ultimately going head to head with holy roller turned uber vamp, the head of "the brotherhood". The threats in Stake Land are all very real and add to the idea that the solidarity and safety of this country hangs tenuously by some very flimsy threads. It is in fact, the sociopolitical messages that people might find a little preachy here. They are ever present and definitely reinforce the overall dissent that gas prices and the war on terror have brought upon American's citizens.

Ok, ok... let's get to the the meat of the matter... how are the vampires? The great thing about Stake Land is that in the strength of its characters we are able to see the vampires for exactly what the filmmakers intended them to be... a nice gory backdrop to a really nice, memorable character study. HOWEVER, in case you feel that was a bit of a cop out.... the vampires don't waste any time in Stake Land. They are animals, they are a sickness and they are EXTREMELY aggressive. We don't get bogged down in the science of it, but there is enough exposition to tell us that there are different kinds, some harder to kill than others, and, like most viruses, the plague has the ability to mutate.

Oh... yeah, you get plenty of Deliverance extras here.. enough to shake your banjo, webbed feet and prehensile tails at. We do get the sense though that the better part of the country has been turned into Flint, MI, so it doesn't seem like a reach. Being a midwest native, I had a few flashbacks and even found myself errantly praying to the patron saint of pig squealing man-love, Ned Beatty.

Stake Land has gained a lot of acclaim in the horror community and it shows a self awareness that although might seem heavy on the message, is definitely welcomed in an industry that is increasingly mired in reboots, remakes and and endless direct to video sequels. Mickle is definitely a fresh voice and one to keep our eyes on. Highly Recommended.