There is an absence of horror films this year. The ones that have come out aren’t good enough to even remember (except Insidious). A lot of scary movies are just being remade and Fright Night has become the latest one. Now that may sound like bad news at first, since most remakes never measure up to the original. But, now the good news: it is just as good if not better than the original from 1985. The horror-comedy makes itself modern and has a great cast lead by one cool dude named Colin Farrell.
Fright Night is simply about the vampire next door. Charlie Brewster (Anton Yelchin) used to be a nerd. Him and his best friend Ed (Christopher-Mintz Plasse) would have fake fights in a fantasy world….something we all probably are guilty of. But, they were still doing it in high school.
However, Charlie is now a senior and has become part of the popular crowd. He’s going out with the hottest girl in their entire high school. But, he has also ditched Ed and can’t even take the chance of being seen with him anymore. Using some blackmailing techniques, Ed gets a chance to speak to Charlie and make him aware of his new neighbor Jerry (Colin Farrell) and his unusual activities at night.
Of course, Charlie doesn’t believe one bit of it at first. But once more and more people begin to vanish and then witnessing for himself what Jerry is capable of, he is forced to become a believer. So, it is left up to him to save the ladies in his life and find a way to put a stop to this monster who appears to be a nice guy, but will sink his teeth in to you as soon as you look away.
Yelchin is a talented young actor and we’ve seen proof of that in movies like Charlie Bartlett and earlier this year in The Beaver. He fits right in to his character who seems like an asshole at first, but we have to keep in mind that he is in high school. We all know how important it is to be popular there. He puts up one hell of a fight, but it’s Farrell’s performance that delivers the knockout punch. He is a dark-eyed badass that can be charming one second and vicious the next. It looks like everyone involved is having a good time, but there is no one having more fun than Farrell. His involvement makes the movie feel more energized and legitimate. Fright Night is good, but Farrell is great in it.
Director Craig Gillespie shows great confidence by giving the audience something we have seen before, but making it feel brand new all over again. Fright Night is light and fun, and it actually successfully makes you laugh and jump out of your seat a little. The vampire transformations look nice, the action sequences are exciting, and the movie actually shows some intelligence. That is tough to find, especially in vampire movies (I am looking at you, Twilight). But, in the end, it’s Farrell’s movie all the way.
Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
Check out the SoBros Shop. Become a Patron. Give us money for no reason. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter @SoBrosNetwork. Watch on YouTube.
