CAST: Josh Hartnett, Melissa George, Danny Huston, Ben Foster, Mark Boone Junior
REVIEW:
30 Days of Night, adapted from the graphic novel by Steve Niles (who also co-wrote the screenplay with Stuart Beattie) and a product of director David Slade and producer Sam Raimi’s (director of the Spider-Man films) Ghost House Pictures, isn’t the groundbreaking, revolutionary entry in the vampire genre that some have hyped it up to be, but it’s got a few attributes that make it an above-average bloodsucker flick: if the characters occasionally make dubious strategic decisions, they at least remain plausible characters and a level above the brainless vampire fodder we sometimes see, and the vampires themselves are no-nonsense, badass ravening killers who seem like they’d go through the foppish, angst-ridden types from Interview With The Vampire like mincemeat. The best, or at least most original thing about 30 Days of Night is its devious premise—a remote Alaskan town where the sun doesn’t show for thirty days—that seems so obviously perfect for a vampire flick that it’s a wonder no one ever thought of it before. The movie itself doesn’t achieve the nerve-wracking tension of something like 28 Days Later—which it is occasionally reminiscent of—but it supplies a healthy helping of suspense, plenty of bloody mayhem to satisfy hardcore gore fans, and most importantly, keeps the audience riveted from start to finish. Continue reading
DIRECTOR: Shekhar Kapur
CAST: Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush, Clive Owen, Abbie Cornish
REVIEW:
Shekhar Kapur’s sequel to his 1998 lavish historical costume drama Elizabeth, despite reuniting the director, screenwriter Michael Hirst, and stars Cate Blanchett and Geoffrey Rush, is an example of a sequel being, if not a precipitous drop, at least a downgrade from its predecessor. Elizabeth: The Golden Age, while including some rousing moments, too often feels more like a lavish costume soap opera than the intrigue potboiler of its predecessor.
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