30 days of fright...

Rating: 10/10 (21 October 2007)

Superb cinematography and special effects combine with outstanding performances and literate storytelling to produce one of the few truly epic vampire films in 30 DAYS OF NIGHT. The director's acute focus on his stellar cast and their would-be killers accounts in no small part for the effectiveness of this film; in fact, in the hands of a lesser filmmaker (of whom there are all too many these days), this could very easily have deteriorated into another stinkfest. From the moment the "Renfield" character wanders from the ice-bound ship, it's clear that this isn't going to be just another hokey, ho-hum horror movie: the fx are so beautifully integrated into the gorgeously-shot sequence that it suggests at once that fright film fans are in for a (trick or) treat. This early promise is fully realized. The aerial sequence showing the overwhelming assault on the hapless townsfolk calls to mind the very roots of the legend itself, and suggests that the horrifying legends stemmed not from some faint scratching at the door and imaginations run wild but from some unforgettable night of bloodletting that must needs endure in legend thenceforth. Like the Nazi occupation of Europe that followed. (The parallel is there: the survivors hide out like the family of Anne Frank, and the town itself looks like and is laid out not unlike a concentration camp.) The final decision of the Hartnett character makes sense, given the situation, and makes for one of the most poignant endings I've ever seen in a fright film. 30 DAYS OF NIGHT is everything one could ask for in a fright film. Bravo.