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The very first shot of this movie and I have the biggest grin on my face. The cheesiest
horror movie in human history plays on the TV while the main characters make out and
it sort of sets the tone for the entire movie in a way. I mean, yeah it's a horror movie
with vampires and such, but it's still got this campiness to it that just makes it so
much fun to watch. If you want an introduction to 80s horror movies, this is it. The characters,
the pacing, the special effects, the score, it's got the 80s aesthetic perfectly down-pat.
This story is classic. The pacing is, well it's almost Hitchcock-ian, Rear-Window type
of stuff. I'm going to be bringing this up more in the remake when I get to it, but there's
something very cool about how the film takes its time to establish the human characters
before the fangs are bared. It's a really good thing the characters are established
early on because the well written characters are what stop this film from being 100% camp.
Because let's face it, this film is campy as balls. Take for instance, the scene where
*SPOILER ALERT* Amy gets bitten. It's so over-the-top sexualised to the point where it comes off
like some kind of 80s ballad music-video, and then I remember that Chris Sarandon is
an adult and Amanda Bearse is a teenager. Along with seducing a teenager, there is so
much campy *** that Jerry does, like in the nightclub, with his gaudy sweater, or when
he reacts to the cross and goes "AUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!", and of course there's "Welcome to Fright Night,
for real", or when he has all of that vampire make-up on his face. I mean, the man can barely
speak. "KEEEEEELLLFFFFFOOOOOMMEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHMEEEEEEE!!!!!" It's so delightfully hammy.
Then we get to Evil Ed...Evil f**king Ed. Every line that Stephen Geoffreys delivers
is so unnecessarily over the top that it's instantly made memorable. The cast is definitely
having a lot of fun with their roles, and you know what? If their having so much fun,
then f**k it, so will I. But I think none of the actors have as much
fun in their roles as Roddy MacDowell as Peter Vincent, Vampire Killer. You can tell he's
really loving switching from cowardly to bravado-inducing thespian. He shows up late in the movie, but
when he does he leaves a lasting impression. This movie has some fantastic practical special
effects. They may be obvious effects, but they just look so cool, with the exception
of Jerry's make-up. Amanda Bearse looks insanely attractive in her vampire make-up and I think
I might need some therapy because I might be bat-*** insane. Speaking of bats, when
Jerry turns into a bat or when his final form gets revealed, it's some great puppetry.
Yeah, I don't take this film seriously, but if there's one thing about 80s horror, it's
that you never take it seriously. You may have specific horror moments you hold dear
that still get you even after all this time, but I'm sure as a whole, you'll find 80s horror
quite dated. And you know what, that's perfectly fine.
Just because something isn't as effective as it was back in its heyday, does not mean
that it isn't effective at all. Fright Night may not be as scary as it was back in 1985,
but it is still one of those movies where every time I watch it, I have a bloody great
time. It's creative, it's clever, it's got great characters, an interesting premise and
it's a lot of campy fun. Plus it's a billion times better than the *** that passes for
vampire-fiction these days.