30 Days of Night (Blu-ray)

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Edit: This review had previously contained an error stating that 20th Century Fox was the studio releasing this film. The review has been updated to correctly state that Sony Pictures is the proud owner of the film. The reviewer apologizes for any confusion due to the error and promises to listen to a Spice Girls album in punishment.

Vampire films are among my favorite guilty pleasures. Some of the films I enjoy have been met with warm critical receptions such as "Bram Stoker's Dracula" and the original silent film featuring a vampire, "Nosferatu." Others have not been reviewed too favorably, but I still enjoy them. John Carpenter's "Vampires" and the Wes Craven produced "Dracula 2000" comes to mind as films that few others consider entertainment. I absolutely loved the first "Blade" film, but wasn't overly excited about either of the sequels. Historically, the various Hammer films starring Christopher Lee as the titular Dracula are among some of my favorite cult horror films. The 1987 vampire western "Near Dark" with Lance Henriksen and Bill Paxton is another cult classic I've enjoyed over the years. Other entertaining movies featuring a lethal bite include "The Lost Boys," "From Dusk Till Dawn" and the "Underworld" films. Of course, when it comes to guilty pleasure vampire films, can anything top the German film "The Vampire Happening?"
With my love of movies featuring monsters with overdeveloped maxillary canines, I was excited to see cult horror director Sam Raimi move away from helming the "Spider-Man" franchise for a short while and produce the vampire picture "30 Days of Night." Raimi's "Evil Dead" films are among my favorite horror films and although I would have loved to have seen Raimi direct the film and Bruce Campbell portray the town's sheriff as the primary hero, I was content to see how his role as producer of the comic book series would translate to the big screen. The Michigan native has long talked about returning to the horror genre and is a noted fan of both comics and horror films. "30 Days of Night" seemed a safe bet to both entertain me and feed my nearly insatiable hunger for vampire films.
An added bonus to the film was the simple fact that Josh Hartnett was attached to the film. Hartnett is a talented young actor that has typically committed to solid films with a good story to tell. I can forgive him for the early misstep in starring in "Pearl Harbor," and I blame his involvement in "Hollywood Homicide" as a desire to work with Harrison Ford. After all, who wouldn't sign to a project where they co-star with Indiana Jones? "Black Hawk Down" was a very good film. "Sin City," "The Black Dahlia" and "Lucky Number Slevin" are three top-notch films where Hartnett had a starring role. There was always a danger in Hartnett starring in another horror film as mundane as his earlier efforts in either "Halloween H20" or "The Faculty," but I have faith in the older and wiser star.
I won't beat around the bush; Hartnett is just fine in the film, but there are a few issues with "30 Days of Night" that prevents the film from rising above mediocrity. It isn't a bad film and there are some very entertaining moments in the David Slade directed film. The first major issue involves the passing of time. Sometimes, films do an excellent job of conveying a change in time. In "30 Days of Night," the scruffy beard of Hartnett and on-screen text are the only indicators that the survivors of Barrow, Alaska are nearing the end of their thirty days of no sunlight. It was difficult to tell one day from the next while watching the film and with survivors have little to no inherent decline in conditions aside from a lack of shaving cream, "30 Days of Night" didn't fully explore the dangers of trying to survive in more isolated conditions than the true and sad story of young Anne Frank. A number of people hiding in an attic with little to no food and no heat in the deep interior of Alaska have more to worry about than vampires, but you wouldn't have fully understood that from watching this film.
Another problem with the film was a lack of any real tension in the film. With the issue of isolation weighing heavily on the minds of the characters, some were beginning to go stir crazy. However, none of their actions were particularly unexpected or surprising. An impression was never given that those surviving were of any danger to the others and this lack-of-suspense continued to subplots pertaining to survivors that were bitten by the vampires and destined to join their ranks. It was easy to gauge who was going to turn to a vampire and of those who turned, the survivors either requested death or telegraphed their intentions. It was also pretty easy to gauge who was going to die and when the vampires were going to strike. Wide angle shots established the danger before it occurred and other establishing shots showed which vampires were on the prowl before they bore their fangs. While there were a couple brief 'frights' in the film, this was a generally tame horror film.
"30 Days of Night" isn´t the most accurate film, either. The film takes a number of liberties into creating a perfect setting for the nomadic vampires. The actual town of Barrow finds itself succumbed to nightfall for over two months, so technically, the vampires would have had much longer to feast upon their pray. Unfortunately, Barrow doesn´t seal itself off from the outside world and citizens do not flee their town during the ´not quite dark the entire time´ blackout that finds some ´lighter´ times during the period when it is more of a dusk feeling than complete night. People come and go during this time and the population of the actual town is nearly ten times that which was shown in the film, so the vampires would have had longer to eat and a far larger buffet. Of course, this is a fictional film, so it is hard to knock it for simply borrowing the name of a town. Just a few little tidbits to point out.
The remaining aspects of the film are generally handled pretty well. The fleshing out of main characters was handled rather nicely. Whether it is the strained relationship between Sheriff Eben Oleson (Josh Hartnett) and his estranged wife Stella Oleson (Melissa George) or the growing up under fire rise to adulthood of younger brother Jake Oleson (Mark Rendell), "30 Days of Night" was populated with convincing and honest characters. The vampires, including leader Marlow (Danny Huston) and Iris (Megan Franich) were both convincing and their European aristocratic demeanor served the villains well, as did the language created for the film to serve as the vampire's ancient tongue. The horrendous physical attacks and over-the-top penchant for violence provided the most ominous moments to "30 Days of Night" and I thoroughly enjoyed watching vampires dive into homes through windows to extract their meals.
The films pacing and visuals are both well done. There is no denying that "30 Days of Night" isn´t a slickly produced film. There are numerous CGI created gore sequences that are among the best of last year´s crop of horror films. I particularly liked the blood splattered streets of Barrow. That was a nice touch and cemented the notion that there was a massive amount of murder that took place once the sun set for its month long disappearance. Although much of the cast spends time in a cramped attic during a large portion of the thirty days, the film never slows down. There is always something gone and quick pacing benefits in having the film not quite convey the passing of time effectively. "30 Days of Night" is far from being a boring film and is fast-paced and eventful.