30 Days of Night

The sheriff (Josh Hartnett) of a remote Alaskan town leads a small band of survivors against a ruthless group of vampires during the town’s annual month of darkness.

30 Days of Night is a frustratingly middle of the road vampire picture that could have been much better.

The film looks great. The New Zealand locations do a reasonable job of doubling for Alaska, and director David Slade includes a number of dynamite original shots (love that bird’s-eye-view tracking shot over the town as the vampires invade).

And about those vampires. Danny Huston is great as the head baddie, and all of them do a great job at coming across as ageless monsters.

Unfortunately, 30 Days of Night is far from perfect. For starters, despite the snow covered locales, none of the actors ever look cold. No flush cheeks, no red noses. While this is fine (even necessary) for the vampires, it’s a missed opportunity for the rest of the cast.

And speaking of those vampires. Director Slade’s insistence that they stalk around roaring like something out of Jurassic Park gets old very quick.

Next, there’s Josh Hartnett. At 29 he’s hardly believable as the sheriff of a remote Alaskan town. While the rest of the cast looks just like what’d you’d expect to find in a town plunged into darkness for thirty straight days a year, Hartnett is too young and too soft.

Finally, there’s the script by Steve Niles, Stuart Beattie and Brian Nelson. While the premise is dynamite, the execution leaves much to be desired. It’s packed full of expositionary dialog, and more than a few trite moments (the Alzheimer father, the asthma).

Fans of the genre should find it passable, but a better script and an older lead (Kurt Russell would have been perfect) might have elevated this to something special.