Better than I thought, not as good as it should have been

Rating: 6/10 (23 June 2012)

So close! That was my first thought when the credits for Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter began to roll. I am no fan of the book, I was only mildly excited for the movie, and I came out mildly disappointed. Why? Because it could have been so much more! It SHOULD have been. If the first half of this movie is any indication, it had big, metaphorical aspirations.
However, the final result is still quite decent. No, not decent as in, "Oh, look at its title! Shut off your brain and have a good time!" No, not decent as in, "I had a fun time and the blood was really cool!" This movie was legitimately decent.
The whole concept of transforming the ideology of slavery into an embodiment of evil is clever, and this idea is not lost on the script's translation to the big screen. On one side of the spectrum, this movie can be viewed purely as a metaphor for Lincoln's historical deeds and character.
However, this concept also sets up AL:VH for its biggest flaw. The first half of the film runs with this alternate universe for Abraham Lincoln, and it succeeds wildly. We are given characters we accept, circumstances we appreciate, and relationships with which we agree. The pace is frenetic, the dialogue well-executed, and the acting enjoyable.
But instead of keeping this attitude throughout its run time, the movie changes mood. Near the halfway point, the movie loses momentum due to a stale plot development that allows for the vampires to be leading the South in the Civil War. The action becomes "meh" and the characters no longer seem like legitimate people.
Why doesn't it work? Firstly, AL:VH tries too hard to include more history in its second half. With Lincoln as president and leading the Civil War, the vampire actions seems out of place and just silly. This is because instead of REPLACING the historical events with the metaphorical vampires, or at least downplaying the history, AL:VH tries to reconcile the two and the result is downright boring (for example, did anyone REALLY care about that whole "get the silver to Gettysburg" plot line?) Also, we are subjected to some seriously bad makeup. The "aging" between early Lincoln to president Lincoln consists of a few wrinkles and a beard, and the co-stars fare even worse. Also, side characters stick around for too long, and we don't care about them. The shopkeeper is a poorly written character and never has a fleshed out personality, and Lincoln's black friend (whose unremarkable name escapes me) is also too insignificant but inexplicably good at killing vampires.
In the end, DO SEE Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter for its cool action (eons ahead of that atrocity with similar effects, "Immortals"), great visuals, and hints of moral poignancy and historical metaphors. But don't expect complete satisfaction.