This particular horror fan was not overly impressed with the original "Fright Night" back in 1985. It had an amusing
premise, to be sure, in which a real vampire bamboozles his teenage would-be
nemesis by playing on and defying the ostensible rules of fictional vampire
lore. (In its way, it was a significant precursor to "Scream.") But despite the undervalued Chris Sarandon really, um, sinking his teeth into
the role of vampire-next-door, the film's execution -- it was the directorial
debut of its writer, Tom Holland -- was largely on the flat side. I
recall the picture often playing as a rather outré episode of "Murder, She
Wrote," or something, an impression no doubt bolstered by Roddy McDowall's presence in the film as a showbiz
vampire hunter. Nothing against "Murder, She Wrote," mind you. Just not my idea
of a model for a horror film.
But what do I know? My research prior to seeing this seemingly improbable
remake reveals that "Fright Night" was a formative experience in the viewing
lives of horror fans a generation (perhaps even two!) younger than myself. These
are strange times, when the specter of potential sacrilege looms over the
updating of what so many had considered so inconsequential a film. Going in
unencumbered by such considerations/assumptions, I was pretty pleasantly
surprised by this version. This "Fright Night" is directed by Craig Gillespie (whose own quasi-outré indie
near-hit, "Lars and the Real Girl," was preceded by a long
stint of making commercials) and stars Anton Yelchin (the new Chekov, speaking
of remakes) as Charley the teen vampire hunter, Imogen Poots as his toothsome
girlfriend, and Colin Farrell in a less conventionally suave
iteration of the Sarandon vampire role. It's exhilaratingly fast, nastily witty,
and replete with both suspense set pieces that take the time they need to get
under your skin and unashamed-to-be-completely-blatant shocks and 3-D effects.
"Buffy the
Vampire Slayer"-alumna and screenwriter here Marti Noxon (who, oddly enough,
was also responsible for penning this year's from-hunger "I Am Number Four") cleverly locates the action in
a suburb of Vegas, where nocturnal workers who black out their windows to sleep
during the day aren't all that odd, and makes the showbiz vampire hunter a Criss Angel/David Copperfield-style
cheeseball strip illusionist. (The tetchy but eventually valuable sot is
hilariously incarnated by David Tennant, the latter-day Doctor Who.)
Farrell, whose comedic chops helped him almost walk away with the decidedly
mixed "Horrible Bosses" earlier this summer, really goes
to town as the oddly pale, hunky and loutishly charming Jerry (and yes, it is
oft remarked as to what a goofy name for a vampire that is), a bloodsucker who
likes nothing more than to suck down a cold Bud and check out a little "Real
Housewives" on the tube after a long night drawing blood. He's hilariously
cocky, and while he flouts some of the vampire "rules," he's still hemmed in by
the most basic. One of the film's best scenes has him standing in Charley's
doorway, waiting for that legendary invitation inside, bantering with his teen
would-be host, while Charley, still not yet sure if this guy's a vampire or if
he himself is going crazy, keeps stalling him at the threshold.
Most of the rest of the film's delights are not as subtle or deliberately
paced, but they're real. The teen component of the picture is plucked from a
sub-John Hughes sphere and delivered squarely into the
realm of "Superbad" and its like, with the sublimely dweeby
Christopher Mintz-Plasse bringing a
great charge to the apparently legendary role of Ed, or "Evil Ed," the nerd
friend that the evolving Charley has left behind (to date girls and stuff) and
who gets back at Charley for his spurning by ...
Well, if you've seen the original, you know how, and if you haven't, I won't
spoil it. This "Fright Night" isn't a horror movie game-changer, but it delivers
its knowingly unrefined thrills in a smart, engaging and not unpleasantly
ruthless way, and never lets its cheekiness get in the way of its creepiness.
Well done, and much better than acceptable for a seat-rest-grabbing night at the
movies.
Glenn Kenny is chief film critic for MSN Movies. He was the chief film
critic for Premiere magazine from 1998 to 2007. He contributes to various
publications and websites, and blogs at http://somecamerunning.typepad.com.
He lives in Brooklyn.
For more movie news, follow MSN Movies on Facebook and Twitter.
This particular horror fan was not overly impressed with the original "Fright Night" back in 1985. It had an amusing
premise, to be sure, in which a real vampire bamboozles his teenage would-be
nemesis by playing on and defying the ostensible rules of fictional vampire
lore. (In its way, it was a significant precursor to "Scream.") But despite the undervalued Chris Sarandon really, um, sinking his teeth into
the role of vampire-next-door, the film's execution -- it was the directorial
debut of its writer, Tom Holland -- was largely on the flat side. I
recall the picture often playing as a rather outré episode of "Murder, She
Wrote," or something, an impression no doubt bolstered by Roddy McDowall's presence in the film as a showbiz
vampire hunter. Nothing against "Murder, She Wrote," mind you. Just not my idea
of a model for a horror film.
But what do I know? My research prior to seeing this seemingly improbable
remake reveals that "Fright Night" was a formative experience in the viewing
lives of horror fans a generation (perhaps even two!) younger than myself. These
are strange times, when the specter of potential sacrilege looms over the
updating of what so many had considered so inconsequential a film. Going in
unencumbered by such considerations/assumptions, I was pretty pleasantly
surprised by this version. This "Fright Night" is directed by Craig Gillespie (whose own quasi-outré indie
near-hit, "Lars and the Real Girl," was preceded by a long
stint of making commercials) and stars Anton Yelchin (the new Chekov, speaking
of remakes) as Charley the teen vampire hunter, Imogen Poots as his toothsome
girlfriend, and Colin Farrell in a less conventionally suave
iteration of the Sarandon vampire role. It's exhilaratingly fast, nastily witty,
and replete with both suspense set pieces that take the time they need to get
under your skin and unashamed-to-be-completely-blatant shocks and 3-D effects.
"Buffy the
Vampire Slayer"-alumna and screenwriter here Marti Noxon (who, oddly enough,
was also responsible for penning this year's from-hunger "I Am Number Four") cleverly locates the action in
a suburb of Vegas, where nocturnal workers who black out their windows to sleep
during the day aren't all that odd, and makes the showbiz vampire hunter a Criss Angel/David Copperfield-style
cheeseball strip illusionist. (The tetchy but eventually valuable sot is
hilariously incarnated by David Tennant, the latter-day Doctor Who.)
Farrell, whose comedic chops helped him almost walk away with the decidedly
mixed "Horrible Bosses" earlier this summer, really goes
to town as the oddly pale, hunky and loutishly charming Jerry (and yes, it is
oft remarked as to what a goofy name for a vampire that is), a bloodsucker who
likes nothing more than to suck down a cold Bud and check out a little "Real
Housewives" on the tube after a long night drawing blood. He's hilariously
cocky, and while he flouts some of the vampire "rules," he's still hemmed in by
the most basic. One of the film's best scenes has him standing in Charley's
doorway, waiting for that legendary invitation inside, bantering with his teen
would-be host, while Charley, still not yet sure if this guy's a vampire or if
he himself is going crazy, keeps stalling him at the threshold.
Most of the rest of the film's delights are not as subtle or deliberately
paced, but they're real. The teen component of the picture is plucked from a
sub-John Hughes sphere and delivered squarely into the
realm of "Superbad" and its like, with the sublimely dweeby
Christopher Mintz-Plasse bringing a
great charge to the apparently legendary role of Ed, or "Evil Ed," the nerd
friend that the evolving Charley has left behind (to date girls and stuff) and
who gets back at Charley for his spurning by ...
Well, if you've seen the original, you know how, and if you haven't, I won't
spoil it. This "Fright Night" isn't a horror movie game-changer, but it delivers
its knowingly unrefined thrills in a smart, engaging and not unpleasantly
ruthless way, and never lets its cheekiness get in the way of its creepiness.
Well done, and much better than acceptable for a seat-rest-grabbing night at the
movies.
Glenn Kenny is chief film critic for MSN Movies. He was the chief film
critic for Premiere magazine from 1998 to 2007. He contributes to various
publications and websites, and blogs at http://somecamerunning.typepad.com.
He lives in Brooklyn.
For more movie news, follow MSN Movies on Facebook and Twitter.
