Fright Night

When it comes to failed re-makes of films there is always one underlying reason why they never catch on with a new audience. That being that the audience has already seen the original, loved it, so why make a new version at all? Director Craig Gillespie’s remake of Fright Night just about avoids this trap as though the original was well received at the time, it’s more of a cult film than anything of real quality. Plus, Gillespie’s new version is a bit of a blast. Plot wise we have teenager Charley (Anton Yelchin) who, after suspicions that his new neighbour Jerry (Colin Farrell) is a vampire, ropes in alleged vampire killer and Las Vegas entertainer Peter Vincent (David Tennant). What follows is lots of fun silliness involving all three and a story line that nods to vampire folklore whilst taking the mickey out of it at the same time. Gillespie’s last film was 2007’s intriguing, but somewhat overrated Lars and The Real Girl. That film suffered from its plodding pace, but there’s no worry of that here as Gillespie moves the film along at a brisk rate and there’s little filler. No wonder he’s been snapped up for the upcoming Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. There’s plenty of blood here, but it’s mainly computer generated and horror veterans won’t find anything remotely scary during the running time. However, that’s because Gillespie has opted for more of a Sam Raimi approach to proceedings i.e. make them jump and laugh at the same time. It works well throughout highlighted best in the films signature moment, a car chase scene shot in one continuous take that thrills as much as it provides chuckles. Plus fans of the original can look out for Chris Sarandon’s brief appearance during this scene. What also makes the film a success is that all the actors are all in on the joke. Yelchin delivers his lines with a welcome dryness, Farrell has fun in a performance full of jitters and menace, and Tennant, (near unrecognisable at the start) hams it up to an enjoyable degree. On the negative side of things the decisions of some of the characters takes some serious suspension of disbelief and any plot twists are easy to spot well in advance. Plus, I watched this in 2D and the scenes that have been purposely shot for 3D stick out like a sore thumb, in terms of their visuals and also how superfluous they are to the story line itself. Overall though, if the Twilight films have sucked your enjoyment of cinema dry, then this is the perfect antidote to get your blood pumping again.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict

On paper this didn’t look like much so it’s a welcome surprise what entertainment it is. Rating: 7/10.