Every Halloween, I review a classic horror film I haven’t seen before. This year, it’s the original Fright Night (1985).
This movie had been on my to watch list for a long time. I’m so glad I finally watched it. It’s a pretty solid vampire movie. It’s not too scary but it does feature amazing special effects and makeup.
I love the premise of the film. Three teenagers enlist a washed up horror TV host to help them defeat a neighborhood vampire. Imagine Elvira or Svengoolie hunting down a real live monster and you’ve got an idea of how much fun this film is. In fact, Roddy McDowall’s Peter Vincent is not only my favorite thing about the movie but a new all-time favorite horror character. He plays an actor who starred as a vampire killer in a string of old movies. The film honestly suffers every minute he’s not on screen.
The movie starts out a little slow. It doesn’t really kick into gear until about thirty minutes in. The main character isn’t that likeable. He also has a best friend nicknamed Evil who should have been named Really Annoying instead. There’s nothing like a good sidekick and he’s nothing like a good sidekick. The half-hour mark is about when the first major vampire encounter happens and Roddy McDowall really becomes a part of the film. The other performance that significantly elevates the movie is Chris Sarandon as the vampire Dandridge. He is casually menacing.
If you’re a vampire fan who’s looking for something fun and a little creepy that won’t keep you up all night, Fright Night is the film for you.
Note: There is a 1988 sequel but it’s not available on DVD or streaming. It appears that it may be on Youtube.
Pairs well with: fellow 1980s vampire flick The Lost Boys.
Happy Halloween, everyone! I’m currently working on my monster blog post featuring every possible Oscar contender for 2021. It’s going to be scary good. I’m also publishing a post on RunPee soon about current and upcoming Blumhouse releases. (RunPee is the handy app that lets you know the best time to go to the bathroom during a movie.) You can find my previous RunPee blog posts here. To stay up to date with the latest movie news and reviews, subscribe to the mailing list and like the Facebook page.