VAMPIRES (1998)


RATING: ½


By Shawn McKenna
Date Reviewed: 10/13/99

"We have all become God's madmen, all of us.." -- Van Helsing in Bram Stoker's Dracula

I have noticed that every vampire film has its own sets of rules on vampires. Whether it be if they can transform into separate forms, most films a vampire can only transform into a bat while in Bram Stoker's Dracula Dracula could transform into multiple apparitions, or if crosses can ward vampires each film has its own set of maxims. Now in John Carpenter's Vampires crosses do not work, garlic does not work, stakes thorough the heart work, I think they forgot about holy water, and it is a good thing to lop off the heads and burn the carcasses of the victims. The vampires themselves are superstrong, cannot be out at daytime, and cannot transform themselves into anything.

The origin of vampirism is peculiar to each movie. Most are originated with Dracula or Cain. Here we have Valek (Thomas Ian Griffith) an ex-clergyman who was transformed into the living dead after a botched exorcism. He has prayed on mankind for over 600 years. He now is looking for the Black Cross that will allow him to walk the day with impunity. Now Valek is played with some gusto, but the other vampires are all backdrop characters that never distinguish themselves. I really wish that vampires would be more interesting than just one-dimensional killing machines. This is one of the reasons that so many people liked Ann Rice's novels. Her vampires have more depth. However, they are whiny.

Jack Crow played by James Woods is my favorite character. He acts with humor and cynicism. His parents have been killed by vampires and he is employed by the Church to wipe out the bloodsuckers. Valek wiped out, his current team except for Montoya (Daniel Baldwin), after they were set-up. Jack wants revenge.

Carpenter's directing is quite good. The action scenes are thrilling and viscerally entertaining. The problem with most of Carpenter's work is that he has a penchant for picking mediocre scripts. Escape from LA and Escape from New York were both exciting films that had script problems. Vampires is no different. This is a film that plays well in the theater, but is a bit bogged down on the small screen (unless your small screen is 50"). If you like horror, then you will probably like this film. If you want a little more 'fang' to your film, than watch Fright Night or Bram Stoker's Dracula.



VAMPIRES (1998)
CAST
Jack Crow: James Woods
Montoya: Daniel Baldwin
Katrina: Sheryl Lee
Valek: Thomas Ian Griffith
Father Adam Guiteau: Tim Guinee
CREDITS
Director: John Carpenter
Written by: John Steakley and Don Jakoby
STATS
Running Time: 107m.
Rated: R
Genre: Horror/Action
Country: USA


Other Critics:

Roger Ebert
Leonard Maltin ????