Charlie Brewster (Anton Yelchin) has a new neighbor named Jerry (Colin Farrell) who may be more than he appears. After a string of disappearances, Charlie’s former BFF, Ed (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), alerts him that Jerry is a vampire. Charlie is of course hesitant to believe this but after his own observation he has no choice but to accept it and defed his mother (Toni Collette) and girlfriend (Imogen Poots) from the killing machine next door.
Fright Night is a remake of a 1985 film… that as of this writing, I have not seen. I’m sure Charlie’s throwback footwear is an homage to the original. I’m less concerned about the differences between the 1985 and 2011 versions and more focused on how this take stands up.
Though stylish, the visuals of Fright Night don’t do much to support the hollow characters. Charlie goes to school all of twice, has no relationship with the staff, mention of grades, or hopes for the future. Makes me wish my folks had relocated to Las Vegas, as their school system appears to have cured teen anxiety.
Jerry is a vampire, this much is certain. He’s vampire enough for this movie despite picking and choosing which elements or lore will affect his lifestyle. Crosses? No problemo. Holy water? A little worse, but an irritant at best. Sunlight makes the vampires of Fright Night wish they were Cullens. What is most confusing is the diet of Jerry. It doesn’t seem that he requires blood to feed, he gets that much out of an apple.
Many of the victims of Jerry’s feeding frenzy are additions to his family. What it takes to turn a human into a vampire isn’t consistent. Sometimes a bite on the neck will do, but some folks die from the same wound.
This is a 3D movie and I saw it as such. Unfortunately the 3D is lackluster. I’m finding that dark movies are not producing the best 3D images and this is one ever night movie. When characters aren’t in immediate danger, there is no 3D. It’s only once someone has to present a cross to the camera or the embers of a flame blow past that the extra ticket price comes out of hiding.
In dealing with Jerry, Charlie seeks expert advice and the nearby Las Vegas strip is home to the foremost expert on vampires, Peter Vincent (David Tennant). His stage production affords him a gothic penthouse/museum, and it just so happens that between Peter and his main squeeze Fright Night finally finds believable characters with needs and motives.
3D and a lack of established characters aside, the elements of danger presented in Fright Night are preceded with the lethargic monologs of a Bond villain. I’m not sure if it’s Farrel or the character of Jerry, but either way having a vampire living next door is not all that frightening. For an R rated movie that takes itself very seriously with few moments of comic relief, Fright Night doesn’t chill. Like The Lost Boys, there’s a fun element to the vampire hunting but nothing to have the audience leery of the ride home. **
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