FRIGHT NIGHT – The Review

Something is amiss as kids and adults from a Vegas suburbia slowly begin to disappear. Many homes in the neighborhood are empty due to foreclosure which makes it ripe for anyone to take up residence in a town that comes alive at night. Enter senior high school student Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin), former geek and now the cool guy who’s dating the girl of his dreams Amy (Imogen Poots). His big head has led him to abandon his former best friend Ed (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) who’s been trying to warn Charley and anyone who will listen that people are missing. Ed suspects the new guy, Jerry (Colin Farrell), who’s just moved in next door to Charley and his mom (Toni Collette). No one but Ed seems to notice Jerry’s unusual comings and goings and goes as far as to film the guy so he can prove the myth that vampires will come across as invisible if recorded. It’s not until Charley rescues a woman from Jerry’s house that he realizes the hunky construction worker is the evil one who’s been preying on his neighborhood.

In the same vein as the original, lonely Ed is turned into a vampire and Charley finds himself alone and unable to convince anyone that there’s a vampire among them. After being spied on enough, Jerry goes on the attack by blowing up the Brewster’s house and chases after Charley, Amy and Mrs. Brewster into the night. In a confrontation on the dark highway, along with being rear-ended by an unsuspecting driver, Charley’s mom is severely injured and hospitalized. There’s only once place to turn now. Charley goes for help with his vampire problem to Las Vegas illusionist Peter Vincent, deliciously played by David Tennant. He’s more than a little bonkers on stage during his show, all clad in leather and long haired, but with the wig off the magician is a disenchanted, shell of a man.

Once the realization sets in that he and Jerry have some back history, and sufficiently scared enough, Vincent decides he may have more expertise on this Nosferatu than he first thought. With only thoughts of surviving, Charley and Vincent venture deep into the vampire’s sanctuary for a final confrontation with Jerry and his multiple rows of shark-like teeth.

FRIGHT NIGHT plays out like a coming of age story wrapped within a vampire tale. Everyone can identify with that stage in life when you journey from adolescence to grownup, and in Charley’s case, hero. The audience can empathize and connect with Noxon’s script that’s a finely balanced tale of gore and humor. Ironically it’s Jerry who forces him into deciding what’s really important in life. There’s no denial that the once-geek Charley is desperately attempting to shy away from the fact that he really was a geek. He’s abandoned his old friends for the new, in-crowd cohorts. He’s making choices on how he views his Mom and friends and before he realizes he’s confronted by a vampire who he has to defeat.

Colin Farrell is terrifyingly sexy as Jerry. He’s very convincing as the 400 year old, charismatic killer who’s main purpose in life is to exist and feed, feed, feed. FRIGHT NIGHT’s CGI vampire metamorphosis is actually quite good alongside all the 3D crosses, blood and body parts flying at you, but ultimately it’s David Tennant’s turn as vampire slayer, Peter Vincent, that’s the red icing on the cake. Immortalized in the original by Roddy McDowall, Tennant really has the most fun as the self-proclaimed vampire expert who loves two things in life – sex and booze. Behind the facade of itchy leather and Vegas penthouse, Tennant is very believable as a guy who’s more comfortable in a t-shirt, jeans and sneakers.

FRIGHT NIGHT is that refreshingly, fanged remake that surpasses the original as a “staked through the heart” horror film. TWILIGHT fans need not apply

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Visit the film’s official site: http://www.welcometofrightnight.com/. “Like” FRIGHT NIGHT on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/frightnightmovie and follow the film on Twitter: http://twitter.com/FrightNight2011