Synopsis - For 30 days every winter, the isolated town of Barrow, Alaska is plunged into a state of complete darkness. It’s a bitter time when most of the inhabitants head south. This winter, a mysterious group of strangers appear: bloodthirsty vampires. Led by the sinister Marlow (Danny Huston), the merciless vampires take advantage of the uninterrupted darkness to feed on the residents remaining in town. Barrow’s Sheriff Eben (Josh Hartnett), his estranged wife, Stella (Melissa George), and an ever-shrinking group of survivors must do anything they can to last until daylight in 30 Days of Night.
The scary vampire movie is back, and with a bang!
I must admit I was surprised when I first watched ‘30 Days Of Night’. I really wasn’t expecting it to be quite so scary or unnerving. Atmospheric, dark and tense, I was on the edge of my seat. One thing I would recommend is not watching it with the lights off, unless you really want to be freaked out.
The premise, vampires attack a town in Alaska where the sun doesn’t shine for 30 days, is one of those ideas you really wish you’d have come up with first. Once you’ve heard it, it seems obvious and surprising that no-one used it before now.
Yes, there are cliches. There are the usual stereotypical characters you find in most horror movies, however they’ve managed to give them a bit more depth than usual. You do care about the characters and their plight.
Josh Hartnett and Melissa George perform admirably, with Hartnett giving one of his better performances. However the cast stand out is Danny Huston as the villainous Marlow. He is literally evil personified and the most convincingly scary vampire I have ever seen on screen.
David Slade pulls out all the stops, with some brilliant direction and creepy camera angles. The gore is toned just right, and the most impressive shot has to be the overhead pan of the town as the vampires feast on the townsfolk.
This is a vampire movie that doesn’t suck, and that is a rarity. Intense and Horrific, we have an all new reason to fear the dark!
The DVD comes with numerous ‘Making Of’ documentaries, detailing almost every aspect of the production. It’s well worth watching these if you are interested in how movies are put together, as these are all informative and of a better than usual quality for DVD extras.
Movie Viewed and Reviewed by Christopher Herbert
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