Premise: A boy discovers his new neighbor is a vampire.
This is a movie that effectively pulls off a tricky balance. It's a fairly serious horror movie but also a comedic take on B-horror movies. Getting that wrong can undermine both. Getting it right can be a lot of fun. Fright Night starts right by literally beginning with the Peter Vincent late night B-movie show It immediately tells us what the movie is pulling from. That way, someone like the cooky mom isn't out of place. Or the friend who turns into a vampire. That character can only exist in a movie with a sense of humor.
I like that we find out early that the neighbor really is a vampire. It's
annoying when movies try to conceal that. Dude, I saw the trailer, read the
description on the site, and/or saw the poster art. Why are you acting like the
audience will be surprised by this? So, it's nice that Fright Night
makes it more about him convincing everyone else. And even that doesn't go on
too long. Peter Vincent figures it out too, but he's rightfully paralyzed when
it comes to what he should do.
Sure, the movie is a little cheesy. The performances could use some work. It was fun trying to figure out what I knew Amanda Bearse from. That she went from this to Married...with Children in two years is insane. Then again, how are we not more surprised that Katey Sagal was only 33 when that show started? I enjoyed the movie though for what it is.
Verdict: Weakly Recommend
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