Fright Night (2011) – Review

Review: Fright Night is yet another film in which Hollywood (in this case Disney) tries to cash in on the current (and maybe fleeting) vampire craze – and not only that, it is also a remake. But, much like last year’s Let Me In (a remake of Let the Right One In), this version of Fright Night is just as good as the original. Director Craig Gillespie’s film has fun action, a wonderful dark aesthetic and sort of a mix between a dark and light tone (dark in terms of visual, narrative content and the amazing score and light in terms of the Marti Noxon’s jovial spirit of the script and the fun the actors have with their characters), leading to a film that works quite well – being both entertaining and scary. It exists in a grey area between being a comedy adventure and a horror adventure, but seems to focus more on the horror aspects. The comedy works for the most part (mostly centering on two characters: Peter Vincent and Ed), but the film is not nearly funny enough to really be deemed a comedy. It is much more an action horror adventure (that also has funny moments, similar to say Raiders of the Lost Ark, minus the horror genre). Thus, those looking for laughs as the primary reason for seeing it may be left feeling a bit disappointed (and that is really only a critique on the expectations of viewers). Going in cold (as in knowing nothing) or expecting a horror film, it plays much better. To a degree (and I feel this is true about many films with characters that are not quite fleshed out enough or have potential for more – aka the narrative is not tight or strong enough to make the film feel fully complete or sufficient as is), Fright Night may have worked better with everyone involved as a miniseries. The characters have a lot of rich potential and the narrative feels very rushed, having to get through the whole story in less than two hours. Since there is so much plot to get through, the characters do not have enough depth (for my liking). That said, the story is good enough, Gillespie’s narrative does not stall or drag and viewers want to see the resolution and are thus kept interested despite the weaker characters (though, I imagine the film does not work as well on repeat viewings). All in all, Fright Night is a fun and enjoyable horror adventure (in a genre that seldom delivers anything but crap) that is worth seeing.

Technical, aesthetic & acting achievements: Craig Gillespie seemed like a good choice coming into the film from a comedy perspective (having a drama/indie style of comedy), but really what worked the best was the horror aesthetic he created for the film (it is my favorite of his three to date). The great aesthetic look of the film also has a lot to do with the excellent work by cinematographer Javier Aguirresarobe (who in a weaker year than this, as this year has featured a lot of really well shot films, his work might be up for a yearend LeapBackBlog award) and production designer Richard Bridgland (Las Vegas and the cookie-cutter residential development made for a great setting). Ramin Djawadi’s score is pitch-perfect. It is menacing, has sort of a classic horror throwback to it and fits the material very well (definitely among my favorite scores of the year, here is a suite). Gillespie (et al.) also did a fantastic job casting the film. Toni Collette, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Imogen Poots (a star to watch) are great in their supporting roles, but David Tennant is brilliant (very funny and charismatic). As good as Tennant is, Colin Farrell steals the movie. Jerry the vampire seems to be a part that is just right for him – brooding good looks, an ironic sense of humor and yet still able to come across as frightening and dangerous. Anton Yelchin is good in the lead, but a bit overshadowed.

Summary & score: Horror films are rarely good these days, but Fright Night is a funny and action packed adventure horror. 7/10

Stars to Watch: Part 6 – Movies Spotlight – August 2011

Cinema constantly has new talent each and every year, making great films and opening audiences’ eyes to new characters, stories and worlds. August offers new films from three such talents.

Jessica Chastain

What She’s Been In:

Chastain, 30, got her start in 2004 with a role in the TV adaptation of Dark Shadows. From there, she continued to get small TV parts (shows like Veronica Mars, ER, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, and Journeyman) until 2008 when she got her first feature film role in Jolene, for which she receive acclaim from critics winning the Seattle International Film Festival award for Best Actress. Next she co-starred in another small film Stolen. But, big things were just around the corner.

Breakthrough:

Chastain won the role as Mrs. O’Brien in Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life, starring opposite Brad Pitt. She is fantastic in the film, giving a performance that is both strong and completely venerable. In a way, she serves as the film’s emotional heart. Though she began work on other big roles prior, The Tree of Life is her first major starring feature film performance showcasing her talent to critics, fans and industry professional yielding her a very busy schedule – not including The Tree of Life she has eight films due in 2011/2012. She is likely to be 2011’s breakthrough female star.

August Film:

In August, she co-stars in The Help with Emma Stone, Viola Davis and Bryce Dallas Howard. The film is about a young writer, Skeeter, who decides to do an article from the perspective of the black house workers in her southern hometown. The film taps into the civil rights moment of the time, and one that is still on-going. Chastain plays the newest resident to Jackson, Mississippi, who forms a friendship with Minny, one of the disgruntled house workers. 

Upcoming:

Chastain has a ton of stuff coming out – in September she co-stars in The Debt and Take Shelter. The Debt is about three Jewish operatives that hide a terrible secret, while Take Shelter is about a man who is plagued with apocalyptic visions which begin to take an effect on his family. Then, she stars in Al Pacino’s adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s play Wilde Salome and co-stars in Texas Killing Fields about a local detective who teams up with a NYC cop to investigate a series of unsolved murders. In 2012 she has two high profile prestige projects: Terrence Malick’s untitled new film, a love story also starring Rachel McAdams, Ben Affleck, Rachel Weisz, and Javier Barden, and John Hillcoat’s The Wettest Country in the World about Depression-era bootleggers. It also has a wonderful cast with Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman and Mia Wasikowska.

Career Highlights:

1)      The Tree of Life (2011) – leading* [Rent]

*Editor’s picks

Anton Yelchin

What He’s Been In:

Yelchin, 22, got his start at the age of nine in the indie film A Man is Mostly Water. From there he continued to get small film roles in 15 Minutes, Along Came a Spider and Hearts in Atlantis. However, TV offered him bigger opportunities and provided his career a spark. He appeared in Taken, The Practice, Without a Trace, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and NYPD Blue before getting a series regular role in Huff. Meanwhile, he was also receiving bigger feature film roles, co-starring in House of D and supporting in Fierce People and Alpha Dog. Recently, he appeared as Mel Gibson’s son in The Beaver and voiced Clumsy in The Smurfs.

Breakthrough:

Yelchin’s breakthrough came in two parts: first he had his first leading role in Charlie Bartlett, with Robert Downey Jr., Hope Davis and Kat Dennings in support. He is quite good in the film, garnering recognition across Hollywood, leading to part two. He next won huge supporting roles, playing iconic characters in two of the 2009’s biggest films: J.J. Abrams’s Star Trek and Terminator Salvation (playing Chekov and Kyle Reese respectively). Being the biggest movies of his career, Yelchin’s face is now recognizable to many movie fans.

August Film:

In August he stars in the remake of Fright Night (the original came out in 1985), playing opposite Colin Farrell, David Tennant, Imogen Poots (another star to watch, see below), Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and Toni Collette.  The film is about Charley Brewster, a teenager living in a suburb of Las Vegas who suspects his new neighbor is a vampire. Yelchin plays Charley. The film is directed by Craig Gillespie and looks to be a great mix of action, horror and comedy.

Upcoming:

Yelchin has a lot upcoming, mostly indie films but also a few Hollywood productions. In late 2011, he co-stars with Felicity Jones and Jennifer Lawrence (another star to watch) in the romance Like Crazy, which won Best Film at Sundance. He has a supporting role in Roland Joffe’s lesbian love story You and I and co-stars with Emma Roberts (yet another star to watch) in the teen drama/romance Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac (though both of these films are struggling to get distribution and may both go straight to video). In 2012 he is set to star in Odd Thomas, a mystery thriller with Tim Robbins, Willem Dafoe and 50 Cent, and The Winter Queen, an action crime drama with Milla Jovovich. In 2013, he will reprise his role of Chekov in the next installment of Star Trek.

Career Highlights:

1)      House of D (2004) – leading [DVD/Rent]

2)      Alpha Dog (2006) – supporting [Blu-ray/DVD/Rent]

3)      Charlie Bartlett (2007) – leading [DVD/Rent]

4)      Star Trek (2009) – supporting* [Blu-ray/DVD/Rent]

5)      Terminator Salvation (2009) – supporting [Blu-ray/DVD/Rent]

6)      The Beaver (2011) – supporting [Blu-ray/DVD/Rent]

7)      Like Crazy (2011) – leading [Rent]

*Editor’s picks

Imogen Poots

What She’s Been In:

Poots, 22, got her start as a model while also taking a role in one episode of the British series Casualty in 2004. Her first film role (and second role overall) came in 2006 when she was cast as Young Valerie in V for Vendetta. Then she started to garner more work, appearing in 28 Weeks Later, Miss Austen Regrets, Me and Orson Welles, Waking Madison, Chatroom, Christopher and His Kind, and the TV series Bouquet of Barbed Wire – mostly all British productions.

Breakthrough:

Poots’s breakthrough (for more avid film viewers, as these movies were not widely seen) came in the form of four films released in 2010 and 2011. The first of which was Solitary Man, starring Michael Douglas and Jesse Eisenberg. Poots has only a small role, but commands the screen. Next, she had another small role in the action adventure Centurion with Michael Fassbender (a star to watch); while her role was again small she again made an impact on the film. She was perfect in the role of Blanche Ingram in Cary Fukunaga’s Jane Eyre. And finally, she played a great mean boarding school girl in Cracks, playing well off Juno Temple. While all four roles were quite small, Poots stood out in each film.

August Film:

In August, Poots co-stars with Aton Yelchin in Fright Night (see above). It is her first big Hollywood role and should get her name and face out there in the States. I like her poster for the film (as seen here, though it is not as good as David Tennant’s) and on a side note, KiD CuDi’s music video for the film is great. She plays the role of Amy in the film, Charley’s love interest and friend, who the vampire, played by Colin Farrell, also takes an interest in.

Upcoming:

Poots looks to have a breakthrough year in 2011/2012 as in addition to Fright Night, Jane Eyre and Cracks she has seven films scheduled for release. First, she co-stars in A Late Quartet about a world-renowned string quartet that struggles to stay together, with Christopher Walken, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Catherine Keener. Then, she co-stars with Craig Roberts and Kevin McKidd in Comes a Bright Day, a theist thriller. Next, she co-stars with Juno Temple and Emily Mortimer in the thriller A Single Shot, to be followed by a drama The Laureate with Orlando Bloom and Kerry Condon. Then, she co-stars with Penn Badgley in the music drama Greetings from Tim Buckley, with James McAvoy and Jamie Bell in the crime comedy/drama Filth, and finally with Richard Ried and Julie Christie in the vampire romance (because another one cannot hurt) Hello Darkness.

Career Highlights:

1)      Centurion (2010) – supporting [Blu-ray/DVD/Rent]

2)      Cracks (2011) – supporting [DVD/Rent]

3)      Jane Eyre (2011) – supporting* [Blu-ray/DVD/Rent]

*Editor’s picks

At the Movies – August 2011 – Part 2: Hollywood Films

Romance and Rom-Coms:

One Day (Lone Scherfig) – Romance – Aug 19

Summary: The film is about Dexter and Em, who spend their college graduation night together and develop a deep love affair. They are then shown on each subsequent year on the same date to see how their lives have progressed – sometimes they are together and sometimes not – but their story is one of love across time (and that is not the cheesiest thing I have ever written…Or maybe it is, who is keeping score?). Filmmakers: Danish director Lone Scherfig is coming off maybe her best work with An Education, looking to have another Oscar-type hit. She is working with a very good European crew including composer Rachel Portman (whose work on Never Let Me Go was beautiful and among my favorite scores of last year), cinematographer Benoit Delhomme (The Proposition) and production designer Mark Tildesley (who has done fabulous work for Danny Boyle in the past). Cast: The film stars Anne Hathaway (but really, we are all just waiting for The Dark Knight Rises) and Jim Sturgess and features supporting work from Patricia Clarkson, Romola Garai, and Jodie Whittaker. Expectations: The combo of Hathaway and Sturgess just seems like someone pulled the lever on the Hollywood machine that matches approximately aged good-looking stars and their names popped out. This feels like just another run-of-the-mill gimmick romance drama, but hopefully I am wrong and it will rise above. Check out the trailer.

Serious Films:

The Help (Tate Taylor) – Drama – Aug 10

Summary: The film (based on the popular book by Kathryn Stockett) is about Skeeter, a college graduate who gets a job writing for a newspaper. She decides to write a piece about her southern hometown’s unspoken code of rules and behavior, interviewing three women that work in the employ of local households. Filmmakers: Writer-director Tate Taylor makes his feature directorial debut and is working with producer Chris Columbus (Home Alone), very good composer Thomas Newman (The Adjustment Bureau), cinematographer Stephen Goldblatt (Closer), and production designer Mark Ricker (Conviction). Cast: It has a great cast with Emma Stone starring and supporting work from Bryce Dallas Howard, Jessica Chastain, Mike Vogel, Mary Steenburgen, Allison Janney, Viola Davis, Sissy Spacek, and Octavia Spencer. Expectations: Emma Stone is building up quite a resume for herself (with Easy A, Zombieland, Superbad, Crazy, Stupid, Love. and the upcoming The Amazing Spider-Man). The film looks to be good based on strong performances throughout its cast. And while it takes place in the 1960s, it addresses relevant issues even today (sadly), and has the potential to be a moving and powerful piece. Check out the trailer.

Action/Adventure:

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Rupert Wyatt) – Adventure – Aug 5

Summary: (This needs to addressed first, because it is silly: the original tile was ‘Rise of the Apes’, which is far superior and actually makes sense, but test audiences, who classically ruin cinema and yet misguided Hollywood studio people put so much stock in them, anyway, test audiences were confused and thus we have ‘of the Planet’ added so test audiences know it is part of the Planet of the Apes franchise…Yeah, I know) the film is about the origin story of how the apes took over Earth beginning with experiments in genetic engineering intelligence on apes in San Francisco (the best part about prequels is that we all already know how it turns out going in, but you can say that about most Hollywood movies, so I guess it does not really matter).  Filmmakers: Newcomer director Rupert Wyatt had a moderately received hit in the U.K. with The Escapist and somehow parlayed that into getting the job on this film. It will be interesting to see how he handles a big film. He is working with some good people though, with composer Patrick Doyle (Thor), awesome cinematographer Andrew Lesnie (The Lovely Bones) and production designer Claude Pare (Barney’s Version). Cast: He also has a good cast with James Franco and Andy Serkis starring and additional work from Tom Felton, Brian Cox, Freida Pinto, John Lithgow, Tyler Labine, David Hewlett, and David Oyelowo. Expectations: There is pretty much no pressure on this film to be good. It could be terrible and still be considerably better than the last installment in the series (Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes). Though, Fox probably wants a hit, yet placing the film in August does maybe raise some questions. The trailer is decent and it looks entertaining. Plus, WETA did the visual effects (the studio behind Lord of the Rings). Check out the trailer.

Conan the Barbarian (Marcus Nispel) – Adventure – Aug 19

Summary: A remake of the 1982 film of the same name, it is about Conan the Cimmerian on a quest to seek revenge on the murderer of his father and slaughterer of his village. Filmmakers: Director Marcus Nispel is probably a good choice to make this film (one that comes with low expectations, really, and he did make the completely ridiculous Pathfinder which is in the same genre), as he will probably get the tone and action right (and that is all that matters for the intended audience, at least I imagine no one actually expects this to be good or anything more than mindless entertainment). The principal crew is essentially a B-movie crew with composer Tyler Bates (who is an A-movie composer working often with Zack Snyder), cinematographer Thomas Kloss (who mostly works on music videos) and production designer Chris August (who does B-movie action). Cast: The cast features newcomer Jason Momoa in the lead and supporting work from Rachel Nichols, Stephen Lang, Rose McGowan, Said Taghmaoui, and Ron Perlman. Expectations: For this film to be a success (in terms of its potential) all it really needs is good action set pieces and some semblance of a plot. Will I see this in theatres? No. Will I rent this? Yes. Even when a film is fundamentally bad or on the low scale of good, if it is entertaining and action packed, I can forgive a lot and enjoy (somewhat) watching it. This is all I can expect from this film. Check out the trailer.

Colombiana (Olivier Megaton) – Action – Aug 26

Summary: The film is about a young woman, Cataleya, who becomes an assassin after her parents are murdered in front of her as a child in Bogota, looking to avenge their deaths. Filmmakers: While this is directed by Olivier Megaton, it is for all intents and purposes a Luc Besson film (as he is writing, producing and the director and crew are in his stable, for example Megaton directed Transporter 3). Nathaniel Mechaly (Taken) is scoring, Romain Lacourbas (making his feature debut) is shooting and Patrick Durand (also worked on Transporter 3) is designing the film. Cast: It stars Zoe Saldana (and was created as a vehicle for her) and features Cliff Curtis, Michael Vartan and Jordi Molla. Expectations: Luc Besson’s action films are generally good (stuff like: Taken, Kiss of the Dragon, From Paris with Love, Danny the Dog, and The Transporter), or at the very least entertaining. And, Zoe Saldana seems like a good choice to feature in his brand of film (coming off good action work in Star Trek, Avatar and especially for this film The Losers). Like Conan the Barbarian, I am probably not going to see this one in theatres, but it should make for an entertaining rental. Check out the trailer.

Comedy:

The Change-Up (David Dobkin) – Comedy – Aug 5

Summary: The film is about two friends, one married with kids and the other a single guy, who switch bodies (and comedy ensues apparently). Filmmakers: Director David Dobkin looked to be an A-list comedy director coming off Wedding Crashers in 2005, but his follow up was the poorly received both critically (though I liked it) and commercially Fred Claus in 2007. He is certainly hoping for a hit with The Change-Up. He has a good crew on the film with composer John Debney (No Strings Attached), cinematographer Eric Edwards (Knocked Up) and production designer Barry Robison (who he did Wedding Crashers with). Cast: The film stars Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman (who have seemingly maybe oversaturated the market as we just saw Reynolds in Green Lantern and Bateman in Horrible Bosses, both in starring roles). The supporting cast is great with Leslie Mann, Olivia Wilde and Alan Arkin. Expectations: Even though this plot device (switching bodies) has been done ad nauseam (we are all looking at you Kirk Cameron and Dudley Moore), this still looks like it will probably be funny and entertaining.  It also helps that it has an R rating. If Bateman and Reynolds make a good onscreen team, this will probably turn out to be good (thanks, John Madden), plus Mann and Arkin are always great in support. Check out the trailer.

Horror:

Final Destination 5 (Steve Quale) – Thriller – Aug 12

Summary: The film is about survivors of a suspension-bridge collapse (who were supposed to die) who now must escape Death any way they can – even trading a life for a life. Filmmakers:  Director Steve Quale makes his feature debut, but he did direct the second unit on Avatar. He has a decent crew with action composer Brian Tyler (Fast Five), cinematographer Brian Pearson (Drive Angry 3D) and production designer David Sandefur (Repo Men). Cast: The film stars Nicholas D’Agosto and also features P.J. Byrne, Emma Bell, David Koechner, and Courtney B. Vance. Expectations: As the fifth film in the franchise, we all know what to expect going in – elaborate death sequences. But with the rise (of the awful and terrible 99% of the time technology) 3D, series fans can experience the crazy deaths in a whole new way (a sentence that was probably taken out of the film’s promotional materials). The fourth film in the series (The Final Destination, promising to be the last one might guess from the title) was fairly terrible. This looks to be an improvement, but really none of the films have been really that good (Final Destination being far and away the best). Check out the trailer.

Fright Night (Craig Gillespie) – Horror Comedy – Aug 19

Summary: A remake of the 1985 cult classic, the film is about a teenager in Las Vegas who suspects one of his neighbors is a vampire. Filmmakers: Director Craig Gillespie is an interesting choice to tackle the film as he has a decent comedy and drama (Lars and the Real Girls and United State of Tara) background, but no previous work in horror. However, with a screenplay by Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum Marti Noxon, the film will hopefully capture both the horror and comedy aspects of the original. The principal crew is also very good with composer Ramin Djawadi (Game of Thrones), cinematographer Javier Aguirresarobe (Vicky Cristina Barcelona) and production designer Richard Bridgland (Unknown). Cast: The cast is also made up of a great group of actors with Anton Yelchin starring and supporting work from Colin Farrell, David Tennant, Christopher Mintz-Plasse (McLovin), Imogen Poots, Toni Collette, and Dave Franco. Expectations: The trailer looks good. The cast is awesome. Yelchin and Poots are ready to be breakout stars. Tennant is well known in the U.K. for Doctor Who, and hopefully this will get him more film work in the States. I also think Gillespie and Noxon will make a good team. This certainly has the best potential of the films not already listed to be the film of the month. Check out the trailer. Review.

Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (Troy Nixey) – Horror – Aug 26

Summary: The film (also a remake) is about a young girl who is sent to live with her father. She discovers, however, that there are creatures living in this new house that want to capture her and make her one of their own. Filmmakers: The first thing you need to know about this film is that it is produced and written by Guillermo del Toro (too bad he is not directing too). Director Troy Nixey is making his feature debut, working with composers Marco Beltrami (Scream 4) and Buck Sanders (The Hurt Locker), cinematographer Oliver Stapleton (The Proposal) and production designer Roger Ford (Peter Pan). Cast: The film stars Bailee Madison who has been good in her previous supporting roles and features supporting work from Guy Piece, Katie Holmes, Alan Dale, and Jack Thompson. Expectations: Knowing that del Toro is involved, one can expect great creature designs and an overall wonderful aesthetic and tonal feel and look. However, it does have a big red flag, as it was made by Disney but they dumped it not wanting to spend more money marketing it, and thus it was delayed by a year (never a good sign) as it looked for a new distributor. At the same time though, the film looks pretty scary (which is a good sign). Check out the trailer.