8.5 / 10

“30 Days of Night” was originally an astounding graphic novel by Steve Niles.

The cinematic adaptation of the same name centers around estranged-husband-and-wife sheriff team Eben and Stella Oleson (Josh Hartnett and Melissa George).

The two are thrust into the middle of a brutal and ghastly vampire assault in Barrow, Alaska – where, for 30 days every year, the sun goes down and doesn’t come back up.

This allows for a sadistic gang of vampires to come and wreak havoc with no fear of immediate daylight. Eben and Stella are soon among a small band of survivors who must stay hidden and outlast the vampires for an entire month.

This film does not pretend to be scary like many modern would-be “horror” films do. It doesn’t resort to cheap scares for thrills. More than anything, “30 Days of Night” is a very creepy and nearly effortless envisioning of a monster that people are still fascinated with: The vampire.

The immortal beings in this film, led by the ever-psychotic Marlow (Danny Huston), aren’t humorous figures who deliver witty one-liners. None of them appear charismatic or likeable, rather vile and barbaric animals whose instincts dictate their every move.

Director David Slade has come close to revamping (no pun intended) this genre in the way that “28 Days Later” revitalized zombie movies.

Where this film succeeds is in its own realized intelligence. The graphic novel provides for a solid story structure that gives a level of depth that characters in this genre rarely receive.

Though the graphic novel is more promising in content and certainly worth a read, Slade’s work here is commendable. He does great justice to the aesthetics of the original material. This movie is as heartless as “Hostel,” but far less stupid. True horror fans will enjoy this intelligent thriller.

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