Starring: Josh Hartnett, Melissa George, Ben Foster.
Directed by: David Slade
Review Written By: The Grief Tourist
Cinema has become rather obsessed with human monsters of late. What with Saw, Wolf Creek, Hills Have Eyes and Hostel, amongst others, you would think that humans were the only things to fear in the world of film. 30 Day of Night therefore is a welcome change from the torturous exploitation of humans onto humans. We are going into territory that has been neglected recently, the world of vampires! The film is an adaptation of a successful comic book miniseries by Steve Niles and manages not only to be a breath of fresh air away from gore, sick puzzles and online murdering. It is also bloody good.
The story follows the residents of Barrow, Alaska who have the unfortunate occurrence of 30 days of night every winter. This essentially, coupled with the intense weather, makes the town unreachable for the duration of the 30 days and, more problematically for the residents of the town, inescapable. The day before the 30 days of night a strange man arrives through the snow (actor Ben Foster) and he makes sure that communications are severed with the outside world, all sled dogs are killed, and everyone’s mobile phones are burned and destroyed. We soon learn why he has gone to these lengths when a group of vampires arrive in the town and are set to stay from the whole month. As they murder and pillage their way through the town we follow Sheriff Eben Oleson (Josh Harnett), his estranged wife Stella Olesen (Melissa George), Eben’s brother Jack Olesen and several others as they attempt to survive the month. The pace of the film is just right, allowing just enough time for you to like the characters before mayhem breaks loose. Apart from some minor plot clichés the whole concept of the film is pretty original, it is the first film Ghost House Pictures have made for an adult audience and is also therefore (unsurprisingly) its best product to date.
The film benefits very much from having a strong cast as one of its strengths as it allows us to bond with the characters before the vampire hordes arrive. Josh Harnett gives a surprisingly mature performance throughout, proving that he is an actor who is just getting better with age. Ben Foster gives a maniacal turn as the stranger who seems to worship the creatures of the night, you can tell he loved every minute of it. Melissa George gives a fine performance also, thankfully proving that women can be strong in horror films and not run away screaming at every available opportunity.
David Slade directs the film most competently, giving a stark, cold feel to the preceedings that enhances the film above most American horror’s ‘point and shoot’ approach of film making. He has created a film that reinvigorates the vampire genre and hopefully the overall monster genre as well and that is something we should all appreciate. As fine as films like Saw are, it is time to take a break from psycho murderers and let the children of the night back into films once more. 30 Day of Night is a wonderful starting point.MOVIE MAESTRO RATING:
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