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Is it just me or are the majority of vampires these days just whining pussies? All frilly cuffs and no balls. I want to see mean bastards like the family in Near Dark or in the case of Fright Night one hell of a classy vamp that leans back towards the old school. These aren’t vampires that just sit around feeling sorry for themselves, they are more interested with finding lunch.
When I was younger a friend of mine had a Betamax video player (remember them?) And the only two decent movies he had were Friday the 13th Part 2 and Fright Night. As a result many an evening was spent with a few brews watching and re-watching this movie.
I’m happy to say that after 15 years my enjoyment of Fright Night is still there.
On to the movie itself then.
Charlie Brewster (William Ragsdale) is just your typical teenage kid, he sits up late watching cheesy old horror flicks, does badly at school and makes out with his girlfriend Amy (Amanda Bearse).
That is until a new neighbors moves in next door. There is something not quite right. Girls arrive but never leave, and was that a coffin he saw them carrying down into the cellar? Damn, could his neighbor, the suave Jerry Dandridge (Chris Sarandon) be a vampire of all things? Well, there have been an unusual amount of murders recently so anything is possible.
Amy just thinks he is playing games, being that all he does is watch his favorite actor Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowell in superb form) kill vampires, in an endless stream of Hammer style vamp flicks, on late night TV.
He goes to his friend Evil Ed for help, and of course he doesn’t take him seriously, he even calls the police in. All to no avail.
As a last resort Charlie contacts the actor Peter Vincent, who is a great throw back to actors such like Peter Cushing, and tries to get him to help.
At first Vincent just brushes Charlie off thinking he is just playing games with him, but finally comes around after he is paid by Amy and Ed to pay the vamp a visit.
Hang on, didn’t Charlie’s friends think he was off his rocker too? Indeed they did, the reason they paid Peter Vincent to visit Dandridge was to prove that he wasn’t a vampire. Oh how devious of them.
When they arrive on mass at the Dandridge residence they give him what is supposed to be holy water, it’s not of course, and all is fine. That is until Vincent notices Jerry’s lack of reflection in a mirror.
Vincent now drops a load and hightails it out of there with Charlie hot on his heels. Now will he believe him?
He believes him alright but still refuses to help, that is until Amy gets taken in by the bloodsucker who thinks she is a dead ringer of a past lover.
From here on in it’s a race to kill Dandridge before sunrise or else Amy will be joining the legions of the undead.
Fright Night is definitely a case of a studio horror movie getting it all right.
The script is just a joy to listen to, with virtually every member of the cast having some laugh out loud moments. The only possible weak link is the main character Charlie, who to tell the truth just seems to whine and moan throughout the whole movie. I can live with that though as it is more than compensated by everyone elses lines. It’s a simple plot but sometimes simple is good, no point over complicating things just for the sake of it.
A good script is like having a case of beer but no cooler if the performances aren’t up to scratch. Well, we lucked out here as every performance is just delightful, from the leading roles of Sarandon and McDowell right down to the supporting cast; in particular Stephen Geoffreys and Jonathan Stark (who plays Sarandon’s housemate).
For a movie that has just passed 20 years old the special effects have stood the test of time remarkably well. A transformation scene that uses no CGI trickery is just great, as well as numerous other shots.
So often the acting is the weakest link in horror, but not here that’s for sure. Makes a nice change I can tell you.
Although this was made with tongue firmly in cheek, it works well as both a horror movie or as a comedy. I laughed at the right places, and whilst it is not a scary movie the horror is done just as well. A top movie that deserves dusting off and re-watching time and time again.
An excellent movie that has been let down by an inexcusable release from Columbia Tristar. Extras? Yeah right. Whoever put this release together should have been shot, then resuscitate and shot again. I mean all you get is a trailer and nothing else. That’s a fucking crime in my book I can tell you. Hopefully one day this will get a special edition release that it deserves.
Shit hot movie that is worth buying despite the shocking lack of any extras.
