I've been balancing out my high-minded exploration of the Korean cinematic renaissance with a thoroughly proletarian binge of mainstream exploitation films.
I've been thoroughly disenchanted by what passes for 'exploitation' in mainstream Hollywood for quite a while. Having grown up amidst the glittering spires of Hollywood's golden age of exploitation, before it was levelled by the home video tsunami, modern offerings generally leave me cold.
This one was no exception.
In spite of a can't miss 'high concept' plot (vampires vs werewolves in a global battle for nighttime supremacy!), some good-on-paper casting (Kate Bekinsdale, Bill Nighey) and some nifty special effects this one mostly fell flat on its face.
Kate was put in an acting straight jacket, not allowed to do anything besides stare at the action with brooding petulance from behind greasy black bangs. This kind of schtick works best with limited actors- think Bruce Willis in Pulp Fiction. It seems something of a crime to inflict those kinds of restrictions on a talented actress.
Also, it wouldn't hurt a bit if she ate a sandwitch or two.
And Bill Nighey was both the high point and the downfall of the flim.
It was an example of absolutely disasterous casting- he brought such flawlessly graceful majesty to the role of the elder uber-vampire lord that he made the rest of the indifferent cast look like Our Gang rejects who'd decided to put on a show in the old vacant lot.
And that's not even adressing the legion of gaping, oozing holes in the badly concieved script.
A note on the werewolves:
It's pathetic that they couldn't outperform the transformation scenes from 1981'sThe Howling with a big effects budget and computer technology. PATHETIC.
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