Review of Near Dark (1987) by Andrew R — 03 May 2011

Maybe this was interesting when it was released for a different take on the vampire myth, and for its Tangerine Dream score set against this very dark subject matter.

But really, it's so ordinary compared to more recent films. The vampires are basically human savages, with personalities that are plainly unlikeable. They just annoyed me every time they opened their mouths. I much prefer the coldly manipulative Let The Right One In or the out-and-out beasts from 30 Days of Night.

The smalltown mundanity and closed community seemed almost an afterthought - again, go to Barrow, Alaska for a better take on this.

The one theme that could have been worth exploring was 'is it worth having to kill for eternal life'... but this was basically glossed over in really trite dialogue and then resolved in a ridiculous back-room transfusion.

And while parts of the score were interesting, a good deal of the time it was overpowering and annoying.