Innovative and atmospheric Vampire movie

Rating: 7/10 (11 April 2008)

The Arctic circle isn't exactly the place you'd normally expect to find Vampires, but that's where they head in 30 Days of Night, a refreshing take on an over-populated genre that sees an isolated Alaskan town besieged by a pack of bloodsuckers during a month of constant darkness. It's not a classic horror by any means but it has several tricks up its sleeve to ensure that the film remains one of the more memorable of its ilk and definitely a decent choice for a night in with the TV on.
What makes 30 Days Of Night so unique is down to several things. Firstly, the setting - the sweeping Alaskan wilderness lends a wonderfully doom-laden atmosphere to the film; the town losing all touch with the outside world as the sun sets. The frozen and desolate landscape makes the battle for survival seem all the more fruitless, as well as lending itself to some eerily beautiful cinematography. Second are the Vampires themselves. On film, they normally seem to be portrayed as tragic figures of eternal darkness (a la Interview with the Vampire) or trenchcoat wearing hedonists that listen to Industrial music (see; the Blade trilogy or Buffy the Vampire Slayer). The ones in 30 Days Of Night however are neither, they're just voracious animals who delight in ripping people to pieces and don't think twice about tormenting young girls for the sake of their bloodlust. Yes okay, the aforementioned trenchcoats are still in place but these aren't a group of hip youngsters who supplement their slaughter with pop culture references, they're pure evil unleashed in its most primitive form. And at least they don't all have New Rock boots on.
Thirdly there's the acting. Josh Hartnett is reliably down to earth as the local sheriff but quite frankly, him and his relatives/friends/co workers are all rather dull. Thank God then for Danny Huston and Ben Foster as the villains, Huston going beyond the call-of-duty to deliver a frighteningly convincing portrayal of the pack leader, while Foster exudes menace as his human agent. Foster especially is terrific, giving a deliciously creepy performance that is almost certainly going to get him typecast in similar roles from now on. He's so unsettling in fact that it's almost a relief when the pack turns up and start tearing the limbs off townspeople. Sure, your arm might be gone from the elbow down and the stump is already frosting over with ichor, but at least you don't have to hang out with that weird Southern boy anymore.
That being said, 30 Days Of Night is no instant classic by any stretch, but is a taut and effective little shocker with some grisly set pieces to keep the adrenaline going. Mark Boone's rampage with some heavy duty mining equipment at the half way point is the obvious highlight and there's plenty of factory machines for characters to get minced up in. Shame then that pacing of the film is at odds with itself, days flashing past abruptly and without any change to the present scenario. Plus, a sizable portion of the story relies heavily on the "we've got to get across town, hope we don't meet any vampires" theme. Once they've run to the restaurant, then an attic, then a convenience store, then a factory you'll be screaming at them to simply stay where they are. By and large though, this is a survival horror that relies entirely on the atmosphere and it remains constantly foreboding and oppressive throughout. Well worth a watch indeed.