Caffeinated Clint
By Kris Ashton
Which hare-brained studio exec first decreed that what was happening on screen also needed to be pointed out via dialogue? ”He’s coming this way!” a character might shriek as the villain, er, comes her way. A number of these Captain Obvious script moments are small scars on an otherwise handsome horror movie called ”30 Days of Night”.
Our setting is Barrow, the northern-most town in Alaska. For 30 days each year, Barrow is plunged into continuous night and the population drops to a few hundred. This skeleton crew consists of a special breed that braves boredom and blizzards to keep the town livable. But this year, staying alive is going to be a much bigger challenge – because a coven of vampires has chosen to use the conveniently nocturnal Barrow as a feeding ground!
Perhaps because it is based on a story from a less demanding medium (comics), ”30 Days of Night” doesn’t always make sense. The vampires are inexplicably inactive at times when they should be hunting their prey and some of the humans make questionable decisions. But one such decision also results in a climactic scene of almost unimaginable emotional power, so it (along with the abovementioned dialogue-as-stage-direction) is easier to forgive than it might otherwise be.
For a horror movie, acting plays a surprisingly major part in ”30 Days of Night” – although it’s less surprising when you notice David Slade (”Hard Candy”) is in the director’s chair. He’s clearly a filmmaker who values acting, and these performances far exceed the standard scream-and-run formula. Josh Hartnett gives amazing depth to what is essentially a one-dimensional hero, while Melissa George’s role could well be the one that establishes the Aussie actress as a Hollywood star. It’s her first movie where she really becomes her character and it’s possible to forget she used to be on ”Home & Away”.
This review would not be complete without mentioning New Zealand effects companies Weta Digital and Digipost. Their shrewd application of CGI is dazzling but not so overdone that the viewer’s eye grows tired and cynical. It’s heartening to see this in an age where so many films default to maximum CG rather than considering what is most appropriate for the scene in question. The make-up effects are nothing to sneeze at, either, the vampires reminiscent of (but much more sinister than) the cat beings in ”Sleepwalkers” (1992).
While it’s far from a perfect movie, ”30 Days of Night” is entertaining and scary without being brainless, heartless or over-the-top. It’s a shame more popcorn movies are not made in this vein.
Blu-Ray Details and Extras
Besides the odd bit of blurriness, this is a near-perfect print. The film was made for Blu-Ray! Colours, not that you see a lot of them being that the movie is set – as the title implies – at night, are good, and the blacks are solid. There’s nothing to complain about really at all.
Audio-wise, the Dolby TrueHD soundtrack is equally as pleasing. You’ll swear the vamps are coming up from behind you!
Extras include numerous featurettes (covering everything you’d possibly want to know about the film – and the legend of the vampire), an informative and entertaining commentary track from actors Josh Hartnett and Melissa George and producer Rob Tapert, as well as trailers for other pics.
One of the best value Blu-Ray releases around with most stores selling the title for as little as $25.
