Futuristic Vampires and a Bloody Mess (Daybreakers and Halloween II)

DAYBREAKERS (10):
This ain’t Twilight, kiddies! You won’t find any glowing, amorous fang-bearing heartthrobs for pre-teen girls to drool over in this decidedly darker vampire tale. This is more reminiscent of Blade (98) in terms of story, tone, and bloodletting.

And that’s a relief, because I’m tired of this schmaltzy romantic vampire trend (don’t get me wrong though, HBO’s True Blood is the shiznit, but it manages to mix the romantic element in to a show with a lot more to offer than some hunky dude with fangs). Vampires are supposed to be seductive and sexualized but in a creepy way; in my book, they shouldn’t look like they’re in a teenybopper boy band.

However, while I enjoyed Daybreakers and its darker depiction of Dracula’s brethren, it is not without fault. In fact, many ideas and scenes were slightly (to overtly) ridiculous to the point that they detracted greatly from the movie as a whole. Not to mention an all-too abrupt, lame ending. Still, the premise itself was excellent (though not entirely original, in the sense that humans have been used as an energy source in movies such as the Matrix) and there were many ideas and scenes that were cooler than MC Hammer’s pants (in the ‘80s when he dropped his first album, of course).

The Spiereg brothers did a good job alluding to the issue of dwindling resources (i.e. food, oil, water, etc. in place of blood) in our own society and provide a terrifying allegory about what our future may hold (i.e. the rich and elite may still be able to afford oil and water but others will wither and die). The movie effectively serves as a metaphor for (and denunciation of) corporate greed and its human cost, suggesting that corporations are sucking the life’s blood right out of us (literally!). Also, the military claims it is looking for blood substitutes (a.k.a. sustainable resources) but in reality its only concern is more profit.

The Subsiders, (bloodstarved mutant vampires) were an ingenious addition to vampire lore and WETA (the Kiwis who made Gollum and friends look so good in Lord of the Rings) does an exceptional job with the creature effects. The acting is decent enough (though not great by any means) and the cinematography is superb. The story is well crafted, but as I said a couple of the brothers’ brainchildren should never have been born…or well…should have been aborted. Namely, the vampire cure, which I will not divulge here, but we’ll just say I was less than impressed with that one and the way it was presented and handled (not that I have a better idea, mind you).

Also, the film is somewhat schizophrenic and felt as if it were two different movies at times. It started off well with a grim, thoughtful tone, somehow reminding me of Gattaca (97) with vampires. At some point, the tone shifted and the movie went from creepy dark sci-fi thriller to a poorly paced wannabe action movie with less-than clever dialogue. Then the two merge into one and the movie peters out into something pretty badass, but the not-so spectacular tacked-on ending left me a bit dissatisfied.

Gorehounds will probably get their fill, those infatuated with bloodsuckers will get an intriguing and unique sci-fi spin on the genre, and the ponderers will get a bit to think about. But all in all, it’s just a fun, dark ride that you probably won’t remember all that well in a year or two.
7.5/10

HALLOWEEN II (09):

Buckets of blood, but not as many buckets as I expected. Zombie spares viewers some of the bloodshed, merely showing the thrust of the knife in several scenes. Of course, faces still get stomped, blood does spatter on walls, and necks get snapped like twigs every fifteen minutes or so, but I was surprised with Zombie’s decision to “cop out” with certain kills (I mean, his last name is Zombie).

Still, this is a sick, twisted flick, but fans of Zombie’s first take on the franchise will likely be disappointed. As will pretty much anyone else. It’s still worth a rental for avid slasher aficionados such as myself and even the casual horror fan, but other viewers should probably steer clear (in fact, veer off the road and over a cliff to get away from this mess if you have to).

I liked the “White Horse” element and the Friday the 13th/Psycho-style mommie obsession rip-off/addition to the story (especially how Mother and the childish version of Michael Myers guide the titular killer). It’s somewhat entertaining, I dug the brutality of many of the murders and the film is kind of scary in this regard at times. But, the lack of genuine suspense, the absence of the mask (which is where Mr. Myers derived much of his power to frighten), the excessively curse-laden and often weak as a cripple dialogue, and the by-the-numbers nature of the whole show left me rather crestfallen.

5.4/10