Vampires Break Out in Daybreakers
Thanks to Shock Till You Drop, the trailer for the latest release by Lionsgate has taken the web by storm and the horror blog-o-sphere has been buzzing about the newest vampire movie to contribute to the the rise of bloodsuckers in 21st century film.
Daybreakers stars Ethan Hawke as Edward Dalton who works as the chief hematologist at Bromley Marks Pharmecueticals, the leading supplier of farmed blood for the world's vampire population.The lab itself is like something out of the Matrix, with rows upon rows of humans suspended in midair as machines gather their blood, a much more sophisticated operation than the blood farms depicted in the vampire film Blade Trinity.
It seems like these vampires are on top of world, until their blood supply beings to run out and the search for a blood-substitute hits a wall. Without their food supply, the vampires revert into hideous creatures that resemble a much scarier version of Gary Oldman's bat-man in Bram Stoker's Dracula. Dalton is approached by a band of renegade bloodsuckers who have found the cure for vampirism and want to rebuild the human race. Chaos and violence inevitably ensues.
The film achieves the feel of a 1920s vision of the future with it's monochromatic color scheme, use of neon, Ethan Hawke's Dick Tracey fedora, and the sweet-looking vampire hop girl at the blood bar. My favorite bit of old-time political paraphernalia from the trailer is the sign that reads "Capture Humans" with a vampirized Uncle Sam entreating young vamps to "Join [the vampire army] Now!"
Daybreakers seems like an ambitious political commentary as it presents a ruling class of mostly white vampires who feed on the human minority to survive. I think it's no mistake that one of the human victims seen in the trailer is vaguely Hispanic and gets tasered with a cattle prod by vampire military operatives. I look forward to seeing what this film might have to say about race relations in the US and if it offers an interesting critique of dominant institutions.
Daybreakers stars Ethan Hawke as Edward Dalton who works as the chief hematologist at Bromley Marks Pharmecueticals, the leading supplier of farmed blood for the world's vampire population.The lab itself is like something out of the Matrix, with rows upon rows of humans suspended in midair as machines gather their blood, a much more sophisticated operation than the blood farms depicted in the vampire film Blade Trinity.It seems like these vampires are on top of world, until their blood supply beings to run out and the search for a blood-substitute hits a wall. Without their food supply, the vampires revert into hideous creatures that resemble a much scarier version of Gary Oldman's bat-man in Bram Stoker's Dracula. Dalton is approached by a band of renegade bloodsuckers who have found the cure for vampirism and want to rebuild the human race. Chaos and violence inevitably ensues.
The film achieves the feel of a 1920s vision of the future with it's monochromatic color scheme, use of neon, Ethan Hawke's Dick Tracey fedora, and the sweet-looking vampire hop girl at the blood bar. My favorite bit of old-time political paraphernalia from the trailer is the sign that reads "Capture Humans" with a vampirized Uncle Sam entreating young vamps to "Join [the vampire army] Now!" Daybreakers seems like an ambitious political commentary as it presents a ruling class of mostly white vampires who feed on the human minority to survive. I think it's no mistake that one of the human victims seen in the trailer is vaguely Hispanic and gets tasered with a cattle prod by vampire military operatives. I look forward to seeing what this film might have to say about race relations in the US and if it offers an interesting critique of dominant institutions.
You make an interesting point abot the films aesthetics... May distract from Ethan's blandness ;)
ReplyDeleteI know, with him it's kind of hit and miss. I loved him in Gattaca but Assault on Precinct 13 was just blah.
ReplyDeleteThis looks great and I can't wait to see it!!
ReplyDeleteGeof,
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to see it as well. It's about time we saw a smart vampire movie as an alternative to Twilight and New Moon.