Fright Night (1985)
Fangs, fun, and 80s neon - Fright Night proves that vampires never really go out of style
Fright Night is a film that celebrates the vampire movies of old while bringing them into the 1980s. On the surface, it seems quite cheesy, but there's a lot more to it than just over-exaggerated make-up and sharpened incisors.
Charlie Brewster (William Ragsdale) and his girlfriend Amy Peterson (Amanda Bearse) are fans of Fright Night, a late night television show presented by "vampire hunter" Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall). Distracting Charlie from a night of passion with Amy is the arrival of some new neighbours. It doesn't take long for Charlie to suspect, and subsequently discover, that his new neighbour, Jerry Dandrige (Chris Sarandon), is actually a vampire.
Of course, nobody believes Charlie. His friend, Evil Ed (Stephen Geoffreys), provides him with the usual list of tricks and tactics when dealing with vampires, e.g. stringing up garlic, stake through the heart, brandishing a crucifix, not inviting them in, etc. but without actual evidence, Charlie's a little stuck. Charlie turns to TV vampire hunter Peter Vincent, who wants nothing to do with it, what with being a fictional character with a fading career. Amy and Ed also call on Peter for help, but with the intention to disprove Charlie's theory. Although, when Peter notices that Jerry doesn't have a reflection, the reality of what he is hits him. Amy and Ed also later discover the truth about Jerry in their own individual ways, and it all culminates in a climax featuring some very impressive transformations, clever effects and over-the-top monster make-up.
There are a couple of scenes where Jerry seduces Amy - one in a nightclub and one in his home. Both are particularly well done - the nightclub scene is full of flashing disco lights, lots of neon, and 1980s fashion and music. The transition to the much more traditional scene at Jerry's home, decorated like an 18th Century mansion, works brilliantly, and serves as a bridge between old vampire flicks and modern horror. You do get the feeling that Jerry has truly mesmorised Amy and that she does want what happens next. It also humanises Jerry and makes him less like an emotionless blood-sucking vampire.
Fright Night is also surprisingly deep in its treatment of "Evil" Ed's storyline, and that of Peter Vincent. He clearly knows that his days are numbered as a caricature of the Peter Cushing, Vincent Price (hence his name!) vampire movies of old, and he just wants to be left alone. It's as if his days of playing a role of a vampire hunter has actually made him fearful of them, but we do get to see him go from being reluctantly dragged into the situation to becoming an actual hero.
The film also features lots of humour. It might at first seem like it's parodying the style of Hammer horror films of the 50s, 60s and 70s, but it is in fact honouring them. In a decade which was dominated by psychotic serial killers in masks killing virgins (a point that Fright Night actually makes), this was something refreshing. It's got its own style, and paved the way for vampire films to become cool again, and vampires themselves to become desirable. We'd later see films such as The Lost Boys, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Interview with a Vampire, all the way through to the Twilight series. Fright Night probably wasn't the film that caused this to happen, but it definitely helped the genre on its way.
Although it's not a particularly gory film, it does feature some amazing, and somewhat horrific, effects and transformations - notably those involving Jerry's house mate, Billy, and Ed. Performances throughout are all really good, and the whole package, cinematography, soundtrack and all, just work really well together. This definitely impressed me more than I expected.