Review of Fright Night (1985) by Terry W — 07 Feb 2010
It's not straight forward horror, nor is it straight forward camp. It milks the two ingredients effectively enough to make sure your ass is entertained. And entertain me it did. What makes this vampire movie a step up from others around this time was that it wasn't exactly doing the "hipster" thing and making vampires modern badasses (though that was cool too) and more into making it more like the classic vampire movies such as the Hammer films (at one point one of them is on the TV in the movie).
There are nods left and right to classic vampire rules/films and they were displayed with a lot of class while being able to poke fun at itself. The effects are still outstanding and we see a lot of gory treats here.
I don't think movie would've worked half as well without its lead vampire character. Chris Sarandon has a hoot with the role and gets into it so much that I pretty much believed he was the real thing.
He also has a sexual appealance that I can't shake and I'm a straight man! William Ragsdale whines a tad too much but it doesn't hurt the movie one bit. He plays a teenager so it's expected.
Amanda Bearse was really awkward and just didn't seem to fit. Stephen Geoffreys gives a very oddball performance and it somehow fit. Roddy McDowall was a perfect choice to play the counterpart 'Vampire Hunter' to the teens.
He brings an old school vibe to the movie. Jonathan Stark doesn't have to do much but stands out on his threatening presence alone. Tom Holland gives some cool angles and has atmosphere spread throughout the whole movie.
There's even hints of music video here which added a touch of coolness. The movie isn't without its much-ups. It's fairly predictable at times, there's a death scene that DRAGS and some weird choices made to help the story, but I still can't help but give it a perfect rating.
It's a vampire film that combines the old with the new (or new at the time) all wrapped in that "fun" 80s vibe those movies had back then. I can't wait to see this one again!
This review of Fright Night (1985) was written by Terry W on 07 Feb 2010.
Fright Night has generally received positive reviews.
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