Welcome, To Fright Night!
1985, A
few years before The Lost Boys and Near Dark were released and vampires became
cool. Tom Holland released a movie that perfectly encapsulates 80s horror. Fright
Night is a thrilling and humorous tale concerning horror-loving teenager
Charley Brewster (William Ragsdale) discovering that his new neighbor, suave
and sophisticated Jerry Dandrige (Chris Sarandon) is a vampire, and his
attempts to thwart the ghoulish newcomer with a little help from his friends
and his longtime vampire hunter hero.
From the
opening shot of a full moon, a single howl lets you know you’re in for a treat.
The hints of folklore and mythology come quick, letting the audience know
what’s to come. With Fright Night, Holland perfectly blends elements of horror,
mystery, comedy and an overwhelming sense of nostalgia and reference toward
classic horror, but what makes "Fright Night" work is that it has FUN
with the genre without ever becoming condescending to it. And what fun it is.
The film moves at a great, economic pace, and is filled with some amazing
practical effects, A particular highlight is how deliciously gory the film is
-- and there are some real standout spooks here, none of which rely on jump
scares but on anticipation. It’s thrilling with a slow-paced eerie atmosphere,
building tension in a way that is certain even though it takes it’s time. It’s
more than evident that Holland spent a good deal of time watching Hammer films.
The times have changed for these midnight movies though, allowing them to
become darker, sexier and bloodier.
It's easy
to dismiss Fright Night as a simple vampire movie. On its surface it's a story
about a young man and an old man battling a vampire, with the youth trying to
save the one he loves and the elder trying to find meaning in his wasted life.
However, these simple concepts are the blood slicked portals through which a
deeper meaning can be found. This is a film about relationships, coming of age
and sexual awakening. There's the skin-deep level in which Charlie and Amy
flirt with losing their virginity. There's the romanticized, sexy dangerous
fantasy of Amy and Dandridge, Evil Eds self-reflection and the pseudo father
son relationship between Charlie and Peter Vincent. Most importantly, however
is how each of the character's relates to the central dilemma and how their
various actions produce a menagerie of results. While Charlie's friend Evil
chooses to embrace the darkness in order to feel whole and embrace his outcome,
Peter Vincent chooses to fight it for the exact same reason. Dandridge gives
his would be killers a plethora of opportunities to escape and only truly
commits to non-essential violence when pressured. Both Vincent and Dandridge
spend the bulk of the narrative trying to avoid conflicts in favor of living
out their existences in relative peace, despite the vampire having to kill and
Vincent being a faded star desperate for the limelight. Everyone in Holland's
world is a loner and it's how each one uses their individuality that makes
Fright Night quite a unique horror experience.
The charm
and charisma of the Fright Night cast is one of the main reasons for its
success. Swapping cape for a turtleneck, Chris Sarandon's magnetic allure as
the undead creature of the night Jerry Dandridge is presented here as a lost
soul, tormented by his past who straddles the divide between menace and charm
in every interaction. He embodies every trait a vampire should. He's sensual,
alluring, menacing, petty, witty and he turns into a mean monster when he's
pissed. Roddy McDowall is gloriously over the top as " vampire expert
Peter Vincent, fully enjoying himself as a hammy amalgamation of the men he
took his name, Vincent Price and Peter Cushing. McDowall just brings an air of
class, maturity, and wit to the proceedings. William Ragsdale does an excellent
job portraying the lead hormonal teen Charlie, whose erotic predispositions are
abruptly shattered by a real-life nightmare, taking the pituitary output to a
lizard brain level of self-preservation. Charlie's transition from hapless
victim to fierce vampire hunter is aided by some amazing makeup work from Ken
Diaz, which allows the viewer to visually chart Charlie's progression
throughout the movie. Amanda Bearse is great too as Charley's love interest
Amy, who becomes enticed under Jerry's hypnotic charms. She starts off as the
typical doe-eyed teenager but gradually becomes more mature and voluptuous
during her vampiric transformation towards the end. And of course, there’s
Stephen Geoffreys as Charley’s best friend Evil Ed. His performance will either
entertain or enrage you--it differs from person to person. Either way, his
woeful battle with life and who he is, is an essay in itself.
Tom Holland
executes his vision with finesse, delivering an atmospheric cinematic artistry
that generates so much charm and warmth with its semi-light-meets-semi-earnest tone.
With its nicely stuffed story, solid scares, and neatly drawn characters, the
film will always stand out as a completely satisfying tribute to the movies of yesteryear.
Many people bemoan today that they don’t make horror movies like they did back
in the 80s. When this is a movie that wholeheartedly in 1985
thought--"they don’t make movies like they used to". This is one of
those films that sums up exactly what I love about the 80s. There is a charm
and an honesty that would make it painfully cheesy and stupid in any other era,
but in the 80s, it's solid gold. It was a time of reflection and admiration for
the ancient scrolls, a time of change but also a time of resurgence, Fright Night"
is a fast-paced film, the movie sprints out of the gate and rarely lets up
creating a frenetic, dizzying pace as we watch a bumbling teen, try and fend
off against a crafty nemesis who's ahead of him at every turn.
Fright Night Is Available Now On Blu Ray
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