Best partial beheading...ever!

Rating: 6/10 (24 October 2007)

I'll start with
The bad:
-It starts off slow in what may have been an attempt to build atmosphere and character development, but it didn't really work for me. -The random kills scattered through the first half weren't great, either. I would've rather seen a single shot of the action instead of many jump cuts - it would've been much more disturbing and horrifying. -The token little (vampire) girl saying, "Wanna play with me?" was a failed attempt to be scary. It could've earned points for showing her get killed on screen. -The vampires' dialogue was cheesy.
The good:
-Easily the best decapitation I've ever seen in a film, horror or otherwise. The camera is right in there for the best possible shot, and the make-up effects are flawless and incredibly realistic. Up until this point the gore had been lacking, but this made it all worthwhile for a gore aficionado like myself. Really - it knocks DAY OF THE DEAD out of my previous top gore scene. -Like Slade's previous film, HARD CANDY, it was shot beautifully. Several shots reminded me of paintings - stylish, morbid paintings. -One particularly impressive overhead shot carries you over a street of the town as vampires slay their prey in splashes of blood against the snow. -The beautiful ending (I won't give it away). I wasn't expecting to be moved as much as I was.
30 DAYS OF NIGHT was definitely worth seeing. I'll probably buy it when it comes out on DVD. It's safe to say that this is the most well-made vampire movie I've seen (although I haven't seen many). I have a feeling that it'll be ranked up there with the heavyweight hard- hitting survival horror films one day, such as DAWN OF THE DEAD and THE THING.