Review of Daybreakers (2010) by Erik J — 29 Jun 2011

2019: Ten years ago a plague has turned most of the population into Vampires. The dominant species the Vampires have adapted to living on the planet and hunt down the remaining humans to harvest for blood. But with humans an endangered species, the blood supply is running low, poorer areas are already experiancing shortages, and a Vampire that goes without blood turns feral. Researcher and Vampire Edward Dalton (Ethan Hawke) teams up with human survivrors Willem Dafoe and Claudia Karvan to find a cure for Vampirism...but Vampirism is big business and Edwards boss Mr. Bromley (Sam Neil) has no interest in finding a cure.

Less horror and more sci-fi. Daybreakers proudly and openly uses a world of Vampires running out of blood as a stand in/allegory for Peak Oil and it works brilliantly. Rest assured these are not sparkly Twilight Vampires, these are blood drinkers who turn nasty when they starve. Ethan Hawke isn't at the top of his game here course I might just be too used to seeing him as a cop in a morally questionable situation (see Training Day and Brooklyn's Finest), not to say that he does a bad job, he doesn't. Wilem Dafoe is great as the ex-Vampire Elvis totting a crossbow and a love of muscle cars, and Claudia Karavan (apparently big in Australia, first I've seen of her) holds her own well. Isabel Lucas and Michael Dorman as a human surivivor and a Vampire Soldier round out the cast. Sam Neil however steals every scene he's in as a Corporate Tycoon/Vampire a combination that I'm sure in the midst of economic crisis many well find apporpriate. Daybreakers has a vision and commits to it, making it one of the more unique viewing experiances, I say check it out.