Director: Tom Holland
Rating: 3 out of 10
Look at the production date on this one, folks. We all know what the 80's were about: big hair, big shoulders, loud colors, and a lot of shallow films and songs. Well, this flick is no different. Just imagine what an 80's vampire movie would be like and you'd probably come up with this same concept: neighbor moves in next door to a horror-obsessed teenage kid, the neighbor turns out to be a vampire, the kid tells everyone but they don't believe him (can we give up this tedious plot entry for good? Just once I want the main character to tell someone something crazy and have them say "I fuckin' knew it!!"), and the kid, with the help of a tv vampire slayer, has to take down the vampire himself. Yawn.
I'd put this film in the same boat as another vampire comedy of the 80's, Once Bitten. At least that film had Jim Carrey in an early starring role, the protagonist in this film, Charlie, played by William Ragsdale, is someone I want to punch in the face repeatedly. Same thing with his friend "Evil", one of the most annoying characters ever portrayed on the big screen. Charlie spends most of the film in a constant panic that seems to cause him to do stupid things at an alarming rate. I don't know if the character was written this way or if the actor played him that way but it's just irritating to watch. Somehow this movie garnered a 6.8 rating at IMDB, I just don't see it. If you view it as a light comedy with vampires and some gore I could give it a 5, maybe. But it's tagged "horror", and this damn thing just isn't a horror movie.
The one redeeming factor is Chris Sarandon, who plays the vampire in question. This is actually the second film on my list featuring Chris Sarandon in a lead role, any idea what the other is? I'm not giving the answer. He plays a pompous socialite so well that he makes you hate him, as you should. He just chews every scene into gumbo and the other actors don't stand a chance. He's play a similar role a few years later as Prince Humperdink in The Princess Bride, amd he's great at it.
Maybe this movie would be more fun the second time through now that I know what I'm getting. But don't expect a horror movie.
Next: Hellraiser
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