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Released by: Dreamworks
Released on: December 13, 2011.
Director: Craig Gillespie
Cast: Anton Yelchin, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Colin Farrell, Toni Collette, David Tennant, Imogen Poots
Year: 2011
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The Movie:
Craig Gillespie;s 2011 remake of Fright Night could have been a lot worse than it is. Granted, it also could have been a lot better but there are worse remakes out there than this one. What is surprising, however, is how much it rips off Disturbia and The Lost Boys as much as it 'reinterprets' the 1985 original of the same name.
Set in a suburb of Las Vegas, the film follows a teenage boy named Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin) who lives with his MILF-tastic single mom (Toni Collette) and hangs out with his foxy girlfriend, Amy Peterson (Imogen 'I have the best last name ever' Poots), when he's not trying to fix his motorbike, that is. Charley's life changes in a weird way when a new guy moves in next door named Jerry (Colin Farrell). Not only is his mom instantly attracted to the guy but he keeps strange hours. Though his explanation that he works nights could be legit, Charley's nerdy childhood friend, Ed (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), is convinced that Jerry is a vampire and points to the disappearance of a few of their classmates as evidence.
Charley obviously thinks Ed is nuts but eventually Ed convinces him to help him snoop, at which point Charley realizes that, nope, Ed's actually figured this one out. Once Jerry realizes that Charley is on to him, he aims to take him out of the equation and he uses Amy to do it, leaving only a bizarre magician and occultist named Peter Vincent (David Tennant) to help him rescue Amy before she's turned into one of Jerry's minions.
You've got to give the filmmakers credit for earning their R rating here, even if most of the gore scenes are not only done with some very obvious CGI but are also done in a such a way as to take advantage of the 3D gimmick that the movie used when it played theatrically. This could have very easily turned into some sort of lame Twilight inspired cash-in and thankfully it didn't go that way even if it does play up Ferrell's handsomeness at every given opportunity. Instead, as mentioned, the film borrows very heavily from Distrubia and The Lost Boys, the first in terms of story structure, the second in terms of vampire hunting and weaponry.
As far as the cast are concerned, Ferrell is actually pretty good as the dreamy vampire next door. He's got the right sort of self assured attitude here and he fits the part well, having his way with a few of the local ladies and obviously enjoying tormenting people when he can. Anton Yelchin is a bit flat in the lead but he's not awful, and Toni Collette makes for a likeable enough mom. Imogen Poots is also decent as Charley's love interest, and plenty easy on the eyes as well, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse is good as Charley's geeky friend. How much you get out of David Tennent's take on the Peter Vincent character will probably depend on your appreciate for Chris Angel type characters, however, and as good as Tennent is as Doctor Who, he's kind of goofy here and not in an enjoyable way. The characters, however, are pretty flat so while most do a fine job with the material, the material itself doesn't offer much depth and this shallow quality lends itself to the visuals as well. There's really not much style here, the film is kind of bland looking and the effects digitally rendered to the point that they're very obviously just that - effects. So while this is all passably entertaining, there's nothing really memorable about it and without someone possessing the charm of someone like Roddy McDowell to carry the picture, it winds up pretty remarkably forgettable.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Dreamworks' AVC encoded 1080p high definition 1.78.1 widescreen transfer is as strong as you'd expect from such a recent big studio blockbuster. Detail is strong throughout, and generally the image is without fault - even in the darker scenes, of which there are many. The basement of the house where the finale takes place shows some interesting detail as does the scene that takes place on the highway outside of Las Vegas. Skin tones look appropriately lifelike when they're supposed to an equally appropriately sickly when the movie calls for it. There are no compression artifacts to note nor are there any problems with edge enhancement or aliasing. All in all, this is pretty much as perfect as it could be, a very slick and glossy looking presentation if ever there was one.
Just as impressive is the English language DTS-HD 7.1 Master Audio mix. There's plenty of surround activity here, coming at you from every one of the speakers in your set up, with plenty of great low end rumble coming from the subwoofer as well. You'll notice this any time a vampire decides to attack or feed but you'll also notice it in the more action oriented scenes like the chase on the highway. Dialogue stays crystal clear and the levels are always well balanced and there are no problems with hiss or distortion. The score also sounds very good here, from the instrumental bits that pepper the film to the soundtrack selections used throughout the movie. Optional standard DTS 5.1 mixes are provided in Spanish and in French with subtitles available in those same two languages and closed captioning offered up in English, French and Spanish.
The extras on this release are a good bit skimpier than you'd probably expect, but here's what you'll find should you decide to dig. First up is a two minute fake promo spot called Peter Vincent: Come Swim in My Mind, which is a goofy look at Vincent's stage show seen in the movie. The eight minute long How to Make a Funny Vampire Movie Guide is a collection of cast and crew interviews, most of which discuss mixing up the different elements that make their way into the movies and the effects and gore scenes.
Aside from that, there are five minutes of inconsequential deleted scenes, the complete Squid Man video (clips of which are seen in the movie), three minutes of bloopers and a Kid Cudi music video. Animated menus and chapter stops are also included and all of the extras are in high definition. A second disc includes a DVD copy of the movie and both discs fit inside a standard Blu-ray keepcase which in turn fits inside a slipcase.
The Final Word:
While the audio and video quality is top notch throughout, the supplements on this release are lame and the movie itself nothing more than forgettable entertainment, though a few interesting ideas and a good performance from Farrell can't make up for the film's flaws. It's a painless enough watch, but not something you're going to need to see more than once, but Dreamworks sure did a great job on the technical side of things.
Click on the images below for full size Blu-ray screen caps!
