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Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Vampire's Day Soiree

For all of those romantics celebrating February 14th with hearts and candy . . . this post may not be for you. For everyone who’s said “Valentine’s Day sucks!” today, you've come to the right place.

Thanks to Holly at Holly’s Horrorland, the “V” in V-Day no longer stands for Valentine; instead it stands for Vampire! So when I say that today bites . . . I mean that literally. 

I’ve done a few posts about vampires in the past (see here), and anyone who’s ever read my blog knows that Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of my all-time favorite t.v. shows. But I thought today I’d talk about a few modern vampire movies that I feel have been . . . overlooked.

Starting with Dracula 2000. I think it’s a real shame that more people haven’t seen this movie. While, yes, it does have some ridiculous parts, and some of the acting could use a little work, I think overall it deserves a little more respect than it’s probably been given. For one thing, I think Gerard Butler as Dracula was a terrific choice. He manages to be creepy and seductive at the same time, and I maintain that the scene where he walks into the record store is one of the best representations of age-old Dracula enthralling modern society. Furthermore, I think the plot of Dracula 2000 was incredibly inventive. Their twist on the original legends was unexpected and really exciting. I can’t say more without spoilers, but I definitely recommend this movie to fans of the genre.

The next movie I want to mention is Daybreakers. When it came out in 2009, I had no idea what it was about. I’d seen very few trailers or advertising. However, when I went to the theater one rainy afternoon, I was pleasantly surprised. While most vampire movies are set in our modern world with vampires living in secret, this one isn’t; rather, it depicts a world where vampires are on top and humans that have gone into hiding. It definitely made for an entertaining change. I’ve always wondered what it would be like if vampires took their place at the top of the social food chain – and this movie showed us. Again, this one is definitely worth looking in to. 

Last but not least, Ultraviolet.  So, I must admit, this is not the best film I’ve ever seen. In fact, when my friends and I went to see it, I was the only one who actually liked it . . . and even I thought it was just fair. But there were some appealing aspects. For one, I really like stories about dystopian worlds. Corrupt governments ruling with an iron fist, small groups of resistance fighters, etc. All made for an interesting, if not noteworthy, story. And while some of the fight scenes were often over the top and hard to follow, I thought the focus on Six as a potential weapon against the hemophages, and the unusual ways in which the hemophage virus spread redeemed the overall film.

So thanks to Holly for hosting, and check out the links on her blog if you want to read more about vampires. Happy Valentine’s Vampire Day!

12 comments:

  1. Happy Vampire Day to you too! :) So, it sounds like Dracula 2000 has the most going on creatively? I'm always up for watching a new vampire movie, and these are all new to me!

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  2. I loved Gerard Butler as a vampire... I really like Daybreakers too. I've never seen UltraViolet, and I'm a big fan of Milla Jovovich. I didn't even know it was a vampire movie. I put it my Netflix que. You have an eclectic blog too! You don't see many of those... I'm a new stalker! =)

    Happy Vampy Fangy Day!
    Annie

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  3. Oh how I heart you, my lovely BWFF/cheesey romance hater friend! You make me laugh!!

    P.s. What does it say about our friendship that I only made it through about 30 min. of Ultraviolet before turning it off? At least you admit it was not so stellar of a film.... haha ( : Daybreakers on the other hand, I might have to check out... hot guys? YES PLEASE!

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  4. Happy Vampire Day to you too. :) Joss Whedon is pure genius. Have you ever watched NightWatch and DayWatch? Two awesome vampire films. I wish they'd get around to making the third one in the trilogy.

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  5. I've been contemplating watching Dracula 2000 for a while. If you say it's good, I'll give it a go.

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  6. Justine - yes, Dracula 2000 is my favorite, thought I would absolutely recommend Daybreakers. I love them both.

    Annie - Thanks for much for stopping by! I'm glad you liked my blog; yours is definitely one I'll be tuning in to. Clearly you have terrific taste :)

    Julie - No, I won't hate you for not loving Ultraviolet. Few (beside me) do. Your still my BWFF.

    Christine - I know...he really, really is. The truth is, I've never even heard of those two movies. I am rectifying that as we speak (or type)!

    Charlotte - you won't be disappointed. It's definitely worth watching.

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  7. I'm a huge fan of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' too! As I mingle during this soiree, I'm surprised to find out just how many vampire films I've missed. I'll add your 3 to my watch list.

    Happy Valentine's/Vampire's Day!

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  8. Thanks for the movie reviews. :)

    I hope you had a great Valentine's Day!

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  9. I haven't seen any of those, but now I want to. Actually, I've always wanted to see Daybreakers, just never got around to it. And I don't know about you, but I love movies that feature Milla Jovovich kicking butt (5th Element, anyone??).
    Aaaaand, I'm a major sucker for the Blade trinity. Talk about ridiculous, yes? Although, I didn't particularly care for the second (too dark). The third is my favorite because 1) DRACULA IS GORGEOUS and 2) Ryan Reynolds being hot and funny. 'Nuff said.

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  10. I like Blade!!! lol. Is it bad that I never realized Ultraviolet was about vampires? Guess I never paid any attention. Definitely like the sound of Daybreakers! Think I'm checking that one out!

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  11. Haha! I love that your V-Day is Vampire Day! Love, love, love it. (How appropriate is that? :)) Also: Buffy is my all time fave too.

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  12. I loved Daybreakers. It was pretty cool to see how they twisted the normal vampire story around, and it was pretty creative to have a blood shortage too. :-) I gave you a couple awards! Drop by and grab them whenever :-)

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