30 Days of Night (2007) User Reviews

A very underrated film ( American C+Movie ) My Ratings 8/10

[THE-BEACON-OF-MOVIES-RAFA · 8/10 · 10 March 2020]

I really do not understand what these critics are based to rate a movie, this excellent movie has a horrible rating when others are not so good they have excellent rating, 30 days of night is a clear example that we can not judge a movie based on Critics

AN ACTION PACKED HORROR THRILLER THAT MADE VAMPIRES SCARY AGAIN!!!

[lukem-52760 · 8/10 · 9 December 2018]

WOW what a fantastic & scary Horror movie this is!!!! "30 Days of Night" deserves to be double billed with John Carpenters The Thing!!! "30 Days of Night" is the best Vampire film ever made, it's a Horror that actually shows Vampires to be terrifying ferocious creatures & this film totally made Vampires terrifying again!!! Also this film is a visual stylishly stunning treat with beautiful & eerie cinematography as well as a scary as hell raw icey-cold musical score that is truly haunting & very unnerving.

This is also the great underrated Josh Hartnett's best movie & Role, here he gives one fine solid leading man performance!!! As i said this Wintertime Horror made vampires absolutely terrifying again!!! like primal beasts hunting it's prey, the scariest vampires I've ever seen so far in a vampire movie...Ever!!! The vampires look scary as hell & the bleak snowbound setting is really unsettling especially when it gets dark for 30 days of night!!! This also has the best lead performance given by the underrated "Josh Hartnett" who i think is a cool guy & a great lead ever since seeing him in Halloween H20 (1998), The Faculty (1998) & Black Hawk Down (2001) he was great in those movies but has also been in alot of terrible films, he is excellent here as the sheriff of this little winter town in Alaska. Here Josh plays it very serious & intense & his performance comes off completely believable as you can see the fear in his eyes!!! Sheriff Eban is A great character for a Horror movie. The rest of the cast are all great like "melissa George" who is a strong tough female lead here & the always intense & creepy "Ben Foster" who is very scary here!!! The Atmosphere is very intense it's got that isolated "John Carpenter" feel to it that filled his movies with dread & works perfectly here, think of two "Carpenter" films mixed together with "The Thing" & "Vampires" & that's the kind of Horror this is, the atmosphere & mood is dark & creepy. Now this may not be an absolute Masterpiece & the ending didn't play out how i would've liked but it's definitely Excellent & deserves to be a Cult Classic in the future!!!

This is a blast of a brutal & violent vampire frenzy survival Horror film, It's also a blood soaked splatter fest with real looking fake blood spilling out all the over the place like the old school Horror films we grew up watching & loving. The setting is cold snowy & bleak, then comes nightfall & then comes the vampires & then it's full on survive the nights & fight till the end. A scary thrill ride Horror Thriller, Gritty,brutal,Raw & scary makes this one of the best vampire movies ever made!!! Up there with "The Lost Boys" "From Dusk Till Dawn" & "Vampires" Yes "30 Days of Night" is a superb, Thrilling & intense Horror movie with bursts of savage violence & blood splattered action!!! A real scary blast of Horror & Action.

Very good movie, quiet scary.

[DaRetroChick · 8/10 · 30 December 2011]

Okay, this is a scary film actually worth watching.

I've seen quiet a lot of vampire/zombie movies, and this one stands out to me, because even though it sometimes uses a bit of gore, that's not what makes it scary.

It's the tension. You just don't know what is going to happen next, the atmosphere is very creepy and the movie just gets through to you, like you can almost feel the Alaskan cold. Most scary movies I see end really badly, this one sort of did as well, but with a bit of romance.

The thing that scared me the most about it is the vampires, I mean, you wont want one of them coming into your room at night.

Overall, very good and worth watching..

8/10

Great setting but disjointed

[Ioreka · 7/10 · 12 February 2021]

Pretty good movie with great vampire concept and fantastic premise and setting. Characters do make you care, atmosphere is strong, and in places it's tense and scary. Would have benefitted from extending the first 'what's going on?' section of the film, which was excellent and resolves a little too quickly. Then reduce the length of the second half which is a bit disjointed, and you don't always know why the characters are doing what they decide to do. Gets a bit random, to be honest. Still enjoyable though.

Violent, Bleak, And Fun

[electronmove · 7/10 · 21 March 2022]

These vampires are more like wild savages than the charming and seductive Dracula or the stylish and clever Lestat. Instead we get rampant bloodshed across the Alaskan winter landscape with our protagonists trapped in a hopeless situation, turning it into a hopeful one as they just barely survive, being hunted by the seemingly-invincible vampire menace, until the tables gradually turn.

Very good vampire movie.

[Dodge-Zombie · 7/10 · 13 July 2022]

Well acted, well directed, great cast and a very good story.

Something different to most vampire movies. Mostly very good effects and a decent amount of pretty serious gore.

Not perfect by any means but highly enjoyable in my opinion and has some great music too.

Definitely worth a watch for any vampire fans.

Recommended.

Better than many a vampire film.

[stevelomas-69401 · 7/10 · 1 December 2019]

It's a reasonably original take that visually strip mines the comics it was born from. If you can ignore the very silly denouement and the odd way they have of showing the flow of time then this is a solid tense action horror.

Unique take on the vampire genre

[stevelivesey67 · 8/10 · 20 April 2022]

Good movie. Scary, original and well made.

Great acting with Hartnett, Houston and Foster being creepy/heroic.

Well written and executed.

More like a 7.5 but what the heck it ain't a 6.6 like it's showing.

Very good film for its genre.

[Bigs944 · 7/10 · 13 October 2007]

I had the opportunity to see this film tonight at a free screening at a theater in Chelsea, NY with the director David Spade, Melissa George and Josh Hartnett all present at the screening and I walked in expecting another run of the mill vampire movie and walked away pleasantly surprised.

It's no question that over the last 9 years the whole Vampire trend has been overdone to death. Blade spawned a sudden interest in a subject that has been around forever but hadn't been refreshed in quite some time. After Blade, enter Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series and so on and so forth until the whole vampire trend had well worn its welcome. A few years pass and here's yet another vampire story. What makes this story any different? The graphic novel, 30 Days of Night, put together by the talented team that worked on Todd McFarlane's stunning "Hellspawn" series, Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith found a way to do something creative within the vampire realm, and its completely to do with premise.

That premise being, vampires being allowed to run amok freely in Alaska during a 30 day period when there is no sun to force them into hibernation during the day. Its simple yet fresh enough to maintain my interest, it's a wonder no one had thought to write this story until now.

What's important to note is that the story does not go into too much detail about the leading characters personal lives, nor does it go into too much detail about the vampires themselves. We don't know how they came to be and what their philosophy is (besides sucking blood) and that's a good thing, Its plunged strait into action and this lack of over characterization, actually helps to strengthen this story.

Despite the Alaska angle the film and the story itself is nothing really original. Even the vampires themselves are nothing we haven't seen before. Black trench coats and a mouthful of fangs, speaking in a foreign tongue with an evil squeal. But it's okay. I've seen it before but that doesn't mean that it's not going to make the movie any less entertaining.

Where this movie is successful is in the fact that it's handled in a very realistic way. Nothing is too over the top, Evan; Josh Hartnett's character is a believable and very human sheriff. He doesn't do anything in this movie that doesn't seem plausible, in fact the film has very little cringe moments and hardy any cheesy dialogue.

But it doesn't take itself too seriously either. It is what it is; an extremely gory movie about vampires killing people and it's thrilling, entertaining and put together very well. Its so basic that it works, not since the Decent had I seen a horror movie that succeeded in this matter by keeping the story basic and believable and not relying on cheap tricks to try and thrill the audience. Of course there's the sudden jump moments, but you don't see Even leaping over dumpsters shooting off semi-automatic weapons and spurting out one liners.

When it comes to the films performances, the supporting actors do a good job and the ever dopey and extremely untalented Josh Hartnett whom I never fail to dislike, in everything he does, somehow seemed almost likable in this movie and I don't know why, but I did like him in this roll.

Some of the shots in this movie are incredible; I can honestly say I've never seen anything like a few scenes that popped up in this movie. There's an overhead shot that spans the entire town amidst all of the chaos of the vampire attack and I can honestly say it is breathtaking.

Overall it's a very strong film for its genre, dare I say one of the best. You simply can't compare it to Citizen Cane, or the Godfather but for what it is, its very good. If you like graphic novels, liked the Decent, like horror or sci-fi. Or Vampires. You'll be pleased. Well worth it for free and if I had played would be satisfied.

Good stuff

[meliajanssen · 29 September 2009]

I thought this would be just another horror zombie flick but as it turns out, it was actually quite a good movie. Yes, we've all seen the plot before but the 30 days without sun scenario actually gave the movie a big part of its realism. I get crazy enough during the short winter days so I can't imagine what your mind does to you if you don't see the sun for a whole month. The action is real and the survivors don't go to any extraordinary means to stay alive, they just used good old-fashioned group work. There were some good performance from the lead and it was nice to see Josh Harnett isn't just another pretty Hollywood face. The ending has a real nice melancholic twist to it.

Only Had to Get 1 Thing Right...And it DOES!

[damianphelps · 8/10 · 8 January 2021]

Atmosphere.

What a brilliant place to set a movie where the creatures rely on the night for their strength. No place to escape, no respite, 30 Days of , we are coming to get you!

Its a simple story, with good acting and a great style, but it is the unrelenting onslaught with relief a long way off in the future that sets up and carries the movie towards success.

Awesome fun :)

Out for blood

[KoolCatReviews · 7/10 · 5 June 2022]

This movie contains the right amout of action, to dialogue to set up. It peaks in the middle section were it is absolutely gripping. It dies get weaker towards the end as the intensity feels like it dips. Overall this is what you want from an action movie, original setting, a worthwhile but not lengthy set up and good gripping action.

Good, but Should Have Been Better

[koltonbrett · 7/10 · 28 January 2022]

The northern most town in the US during a month of darkness is a fantastic setting for a thriller/horror movie. Does this story do the setting justice? It could have been better but it definitely could have been worse. The vampires that descend upon this small town are indeed monstrous. They're violent and smart but also very animalistic. They quickly reduce the population of this town to a small few. The biggest problem with this movie is that the characters are not very interesting. Most of them seem to serve no real purpose. The main duo are given a complicated relationship to make them more interesting but we're never really told why this relationship is strained. This movie is at times suspenseful as the small group of survivors hide out in one place or another. In my opinion, most of this town's residents aren't the surviving type, which is odd considering where they live. As the story goes from the first day to spanning the 30 days, it begins feeling a bit erratic. The movie struggles to make it feel like this significant amount of time has passed. Even with its issues, 30 Days of Night has its good thriller/horror moments making it entertaining enough.

A good vampire movie, but the feeling we get is that the end result could be one of the most amazing in recent times, but some flaws are visible

[fernandoschiavi · 6/10 · 14 November 2021]

30 Days of Night is an adaptation of the comic written by Steve Niles with art by Ben Templesmith which is published by IDW since 2002. What Steve Niles did was to gather stories and legends that are common knowledge to perform an original story with great potential for both comics m (original media), as for the others since the idea would work perfectly well also in sitcoms and movies (how this adaptation). All we know for certain locations in cities, especially the poles with the same characteristics of constant cold like Alaska, the sun appears and hardly at certain times when the days are longer with large periods in the dark. We also know all the fascination vampire stories have always generated at all. The entire atmosphere of mystery and fear at these beings is something that provokes curiosity and attraction. And the idea of getting thirty days isolated in the cold, without notice, in the dark, trying to survive amidst vampires is, by itself, a situation that creates fear. Was ready the scenario of what could be one of the most terrifying movies and interesting movie. The film is competent, but suffers at some points.

Barrow, Alaska. During the 30 days of the local winter the city is in complete darkness. Almost all city residents decide to leave there these days, leaving for somewhere less depressing and frozen. Those who stay have to await the return of the sun and life. Something changes, however, when a stranger comes to town and announces that the end is near. They gradually falling energy, telephones, internet and all sorts of communication with the outside world. Initially interpreting such acts as acts of vandalism, the local sheriff, Eben Oleson (Josh Hartnett), deals with his own personal problems such as cancer of her grandmother (Elizabeth McRae) and teenage brother Jake (Mark Rendall). Additionally, to deal particularly with the recent separation from his wife, Stella (Melissa George), who was for him to refuse to have children, even with both still harboring feelings for one another. When the officer and the other residents realize what is happening, it is too late. Only decapitation or ultraviolet radiation can deter the creatures. As a direct confrontation is almost suicide and the sun will not rise for the next thirty days Barrow, what remains for the group of survivors led by Sheriff's hiding until dawn.

The adaptation was written for the screen by Stuart Beattie, Brian Nelson and the actual creator of the comic Steve Niles, which certainly contributes greatly to the work keep the main feature of the comic. The writing team can better explain some ideas of comics and there are no problems when it is wisely discarded in film, for example, the sub-plot of vampire hunters who comes from New Orleans. Spare, so more time to develop the drama of the city and the characters. Another point is the protagonist couple Eben and Stella. In the comics the two are very much in love, because in the movie they are separating. Surely this is a device used to enhance the final climax of the plot. And it works well, especially since the development of the other characters is poorly performed.

Sam Raimi, who directed the horror classic The Evil Dead (1981) was very interested in the project and even thought about driving it, but it ended up being just as a producer, passing the command to David Slade, I had only the excellent thriller Hardy Candy (2005) on his resume. In his first work, Slade actually managed to create a constant atmosphere of tension with few resources, scenarios and focusing dialogues and actions in almost two competent actors (Patrick Wilson and Ellen Page).

With a budget of $ 32 million, Slade is competent, but the feeling is that it is still the story could have been better explored. Maybe not the fault of the director who managed to create a great backdrop for the development of suspense, but mostly by script. The script does not work to present and create a bond with the characters the audience. Especially for a small group of people trying to survive the onslaught of vampires, this development that would make us care about the anxieties and dramas was essential. Even the protagonist couple Eben and Stella are poorly developed. We stayed the whole movie trying to know the real reasons that caused parted, and fail to see the chemistry between the actors. They end up looking like two more people in the group trying to survive and when you try to speak more of their relationship, always seems forced and out of place in the general context. Even the couple's friends in the film do not know exactly what happened in their relationship. This all undermines the very act of selfless Eben at the conclusion of the plot. Already the other human actors, are used only for issues narratives. The exploration of the personal dramas of the characters was essential to amplify the terror and the public more involved. Slade loses all chances to create an interesting drama amid suspense, from the plight survivors. Never see them struggling every day, that would make everything more realistic. What becomes more important is Eben's brother, Jake. The movie does not invest much in the suffering of the boy to see the death of a loved one, or during a violent act he is forced to commit. The character, however, appears to be recovered shortly thereafter.

Vampires also arise only as the great villains bloodsuckers. Besides the characters practically limited to grunt and open mouth showing teeth, any question that addressed some of the secular history of the group is not even mentioned. 30 Days of Night also fails to follow the rules of their own world. Little is revealed about how vampires die, but at some point we deducting the only two modes are by decapitation or by ultraviolet light. At one point, a character says that they withstand bullets, but soon after they fall with a few shots. They feel the shots but not enough to be killed? Or are they dead? We cannot know. Sometimes they achieve speeding cars, while in others they cannot get a kind of tractor.

The passage of time is also somewhat misplaced. Speak a few times even as missing until this nightmare is over, and when it is spoken there is a enormous amount of days between the actions of the film. There is a feeling that something is progressive. This spacing day is poorly explained. Virtually the entire first half occurs during the first day of winter, as residents look for ways to escape the attacks. Soon after the plot jumps seven days, revealing that the characters are still in the same place where they decided to hide. How to survive until then? Vampires stopped attacking? It is not natural to the audience as if they were gaps to be filled.

Josh Hartnett and Melissa George not compromise even with little chance to build a relationship between your characters. Ben Foster can deliver a performance slightly above average as odd that announces the arrival of vampires. Danny Huston as the leader of the vampires, Marlow also has little to stand out, as well as his followers.

Editing Art Jones is good, but at times when the group tries to hide the film's pace plummets, and the suspense gives way to boredom. But the action scenes interim know well with others and that feeling of monotony is largely forgotten at the end of the projection. Already the art direction of the double Nigel Churcher and Mark Robinse, and photography Jo Willems work hard to promote the construction of fear. The Snow White and the visual presence of vampires in each scenario because of the gloomy weather needed immediately. The sense of isolation from humans, the climate always night and look that resembles the one used in the comic is very satisfactory. The general plan air showing the initial attack of the vampires in the bloodbath contrasts with the white snow is very well directed.

David Slade sins mainly not create anything new to the Vampires, just before reusing elements already used for humans. The camera shows Slade shameless massacres occurring in Barrow, and not excessively fast assembly appeals to the more violent scenes, further increasing the impact of the images. The violence and excessive blood eventually prevailing to the script that has several flaws. It is a good vampire movie, but the feeling we get is that the end result could be one of the most amazing in recent times, but that just ended up being a good movie.

A Good, Action-Packed Horror Movie

[Uriah43 · 7/10 · 1 October 2012]

There are several good things about this film that differentiates it from the average vampire story line. The idea of using a small, Arctic town like Barrow, Alaska, creates all kinds of unique opportunities that most movies of this genre don't have available to them. For example, because of its geographic location it has "30 days of night" which gives the vampires a totally new lethal capability as they now have 24 hours in a day to wreak havoc. And they take maximum advantage of this new opportunity. Additionally, the extreme winter environment and the geographic isolation provide a new set of difficulties for the humans in their desperate attempt to stay alive. Another difference is the ugliness of these vampires and their behavior which is much more savage than most "typical" vampires presented in films today. They enjoy tormenting their prey. As far as the film is concerned, it was nominated in 2008 for a Saturn Award for "Best Horror Film" along with "Best Makeup". It boasts plenty of action, but this detracts a bit from the overall acting performances. While both Josh Hartnett (playing the lead character of Sheriff "Eben Oleson") and Melissa George (playing his estranged wife "Stella Oleson") performed adequately, the rest of the characters weren't well-developed, and it showed. All in all, though, this was a good, action-packed horror movie that makes good use of the dark ambiance and original concepts.

Best horror movie in years

[otakucore · 10/10 · 31 December 2011]

I don't know how this slipped under the radar. The main character is shown to be making hard choices before the first vampire even appears and every scene, practically, is a moral dilemma with great play on viewer expectation. The performances, writing, editing and shot selection all are excellent. Josh Hartnett and, to my surprise, Ben Foster (who knew he was a great actor even before Rampart) were incredible.

I hate to say this because it pisses me off to no end when I hear it from fans of The Matrix Reloaded and The Fountain, but the haters seem to be thick. Every negative review I read demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of the vampire myth (particularly a confusion between the semantic and syntactic aspects of genre).

The writers of this film understand vampires. The vampire is pure narcissism incarnate, utterly lacking in empathy, sympathy, and mercy; and the film expresses that through action and dialogue to an extraordinary degree. Vampires lack what makes us fundamentally human, and the horror genre itself is about the delineation between human and monster. Where this movie really shines is in how it shows that we have to make hard choices and become monsters ourselves to fight evil. I rank it right up there with Dracula.

Real Vampires

[luckybuccaneer · 7/10 · 4 January 2021]

No souls, no angst, no creepy falling in love with teenage girls...finally, vampires that just eat you. Love it! Old school horror at its finest.

A Boosting Addition to the Genre

[billion_mucks · 6/10 · 21 November 2007]

I am not a stainless fan of vampire movies, I just enjoy them when casually seeing one. I put them in the same bag that zombie flicks, so I have faith in the genre. This movie treats the story of a survivor group running away from a crew of Vampires, summoned in the darkness of an inevitable night. This optic more likely belongs to a class A Zombie, where they always run from their chasers, so expect changes.

"30 days of night" follows an interesting premise, with a new perspective, that moved me to see it. In an isolated town in Alaska, which it summons into a month of darkness, inhabitants will have to fight with a bloodthirsty gang of vampires. The movie doubles your breathing rate, grips you to the seat and prepares you for the gore spectacle with previous innuendos: a music that is both eerie and attractive, like a northern wind blowing. The constant snow falling gives a ghostly appearance to the show, the dampened and subdued lights form the perfect stage for the action to develop and an appropriate, narrow fast editing. Thanks to the brutal make up and great acting, the Vampires look soul-less and real monsters, that are not moved by a logic, nor softened as Anne's Rice; but into their brutal needs of feeding like a hound of animals.

Always with your blood frozen and your hairs paralyzed, the movie just keeps you guessing when you are going to get a big sudden scare. There is an extensive make up work (basic for movies like these), that make vampires scary and impervious, frightening with the way they walk, move and gesture. Would I mind having one of them at home.

Remind you of the gruesome parts, where skin is torn down like play-doll, the fans and new experience seekers will be satisfied. There is a mild character development, where we only ground for few of them.

"30 days of night" doesn't include a major budget. Expect what the poster and trailer promises. Tension, great action development, entertainment and:

-Oh yes, there will be blood.

30 Days Of Night A Decent Horror Thriller

[tburke85 · 7/10 · 18 May 2009]

30 Days Of Night is a decent horror thriller with an interesting premise. The whole cast do an admirable job in their roles including Josh Hartnett as Sheriff Eben Olsen, Melissa George as his wife Stella Olsen, Danny Huston as the ruthless vampire leader Marlow, and Ben Foster in a small role as a mysterious stranger. Hartnett and George do a good job as the leads of the film desperately trying to survive the onslaught unleashed by bloodthirsty vampires in an Alaskan town where there are thirty days of night. A perfect place for these kind of creatures if they could ever exist anyway. Huston makes for a menacing Marlow. His role couldn't been bigger considering Huston doesn't show up as Marlow for a while and he doesn't have that much dialogue either. But Huston makes the best of the role he does have as the sadistic vampire leader. The same can go for Foster whose especially creepy as The Stranger but unfortunately his part in the movie is cut short. From the action which is pretty much non-stop, to the suspense and horror, 30 Days Of Night is an above average vampire movie with just enough bite, blood, and suspense that does have some flaws but the movie over all is an entertaining horror thriller. If you're a fan of these sort of films then I'm sure you'll enjoy this one as well.

This is a masterpiece and a magnificent addition to the vampire genre

[kevin_robbins · 10/10 · 28 September 2021]

30 Days of Night (2007) is currently available on Amazon Prime, Hulu and Pluto. I actually have this poster in my house signed by Steve Niles (comic book author). The storyline follows a small Alaskan town when a group of Vampires arrive on the first night where they go into 30 Days of darkness. Will anyone in town survive? This movie is directed by David Slade (Hard Candy) and stars Josh Hartnett (The Faculty), Melissa George (Hunted), Danny Huston (Children of Ben), Ben Foster (3:10 to Yuma) and Mark Boone Junior (Memento). The storyline and concept for this is absolutely awesome. The vampire depiction is very creative and felt new age. The gore, use of blood and kill scenes are very good. The cast is very well selected and I loved the characters and their subplots. The film also has a nice buildup to the invasion and then kicks into high gear once the vampires arrive and has a realistic ending to make the film even more intense. Overall this is a masterpiece and a magnificent addition to the vampire genre. This is an easy 10/10 for me.

Conventional Vampire Flick with a Few Twists

[jcallows · 7/10 · 17 February 2009]

There's nothing new about this vampire film. It's your basic vampire/zombie film about a group of townspeople making that familiar last stand with the usual bittersweet ending. But this was what we came here for, wasn't it?

Anyway, sure, these vampire/zombie films have been done before many times, but I'm a sucker for them and can probably see many more for years to come. Still, this film could've been done better.

First of all, it just took too long to see the vampires. We have to wait about 30 minutes of setup and dialog to get to them. Now, we all know this is a vampire movie and if you're gonna keep us waiting to see them, there'd better be a good reason. And there wasn't. All that waiting and listening to dialog was just to describe a background that was clear from the start and to develop characters who we ended up not caring much about anyway.

But once the vampires showed up, things got more interesting. Visually, anyway. Otherwise it's just the usual monsters running amok killing everyone. It was just cool to see heads being decapitated. I don't think I've ever seen so many heads being cut off in such graphic detail in one film. Pretty neat. But it could've been gorier had the wood chipper been used more. It was shown early in the film as if it was going figure prominently in the ending, but, unfortunately, it didn't.

The editing of this film was strange. Or perhaps it was the direction. People would just appear or disappear without much explanation. It was like in one scene someone was wondering "what happened to so-and-so" and in the next scene that so-and-so simply just reappeared without explanation of what happened in between. Then there was this other scene where the sheriff and his friend had to break from the group to look for another hideout. They struggled to get there as they fought vampires along the way, but they finally succeeded. And in the next scene we saw the rest of the group just appear in the new hideout. They were just sitting there calmly as if they had found safer path or had just been teleported somehow. Pretty odd.

The ending was a conventional vampire movie ending, but with an interesting twist.

As vampire movies go, despite the slow start, odd dialog, characters I didn't care much about and some strange editing choices, this film had enough gore and suspense and an interesting ending to keep me entertained.

Best Vampire Movie in Over a Decade

[WriterDave · 8/10 · 23 October 2007]

As night begins to fall for a thirty day spell over a small Alaskan outpost village, a motley crew of vampires comes waltzing in for a feast in David Slade's adaptation of the graphic novel, "30 Days of Night." Ever since "Interview with the Vampire" vampires have been depicted in films as something hip, cool, and sexy. Recently the idea of becoming a vampire is like making a fashion statement or becoming a Scientologist. In "30 Days of Night" the vampires are nameless, cunning, animal-like bloodsuckers and far from mindless zombies (which have been more popular of late). Finally, vampires are restored to film as monsters to be feared and not as some sympathetic and alluring subculture.

The film grabs you from its opening shot of a man walking through a desolate snow covered landscape away from an ominous boat docked in the ice and never lets go. Director Slade wisely avoids many of the seizure-inducing trappings of recent horror films. Sure, there are the prerequisite quick-cuts in the intimate scenes of carnage, but there are also haunting wide-angled shots and one expertly staged bird's-eye-view crane shot when the vampires first begin dragging people out of their houses into the street. While successfully adapting some of the great imagery from the graphic novel, Slade is fully aware that this is still a film and shies away from CGI and overly-stylized lighting and effects that would detract from the sense of realism necessary in a far-fetched horror film such as this.

Slade also makes good use of his cast. Danny Huston is perfectly creepy as the vampires' leader. Josh Hartnett, who is typically miscast and emotionless, actually fits well the role of a wooden Sheriff of a remote Alaskan town. Ben Foster, who always overacts, is used effectively here in a bit role as an over-the-top Reinfield-like character who ushers the vampires' arrival in town. Melissa George is pretty and sympathetic as Hartnett's estranged wife. Like many serious horror films of recent memory ("Dawn of the Dead" or "The Descent") the film attempts some character development that is often "emo" but never overplays its hand.

Aside from being better directed and better acted than your run-of-the-mill horror flick, "30 Days of Night" is also fantastically gory. Decaptation aficionados will especially rejoice. Refreshing, too, is the way it takes its gore and action dead seriously. There are no silly one-liners or graphic sight gags. The characters are deeply affected by what they witness and what they have to do to survive. This is pure horror, and it's relentless.

Yes, there are some missteps with the film's pacing and some huge leaps of logic in the amount of time that passes between events. However, for the shear originality of its central conceit, the intensity of the gore, and the haunting quality of many of its signature shots, David Slade's "30 Days of Night" is the most exhilarating horror film since Danny Boyle's original "28 Days Later" and the best vampire film since Francis Ford Coppola delivered "Bram Stoker's Dracula" back in 1992.

Humorous to the Desensitized

[intruderz_ · 6/10 · 17 October 2007]

This movie centers around senseless violence with little character attachment, which means if you've seen any horror movies in the last two decades is not very new.

BUT This movie was interesting for three main reasons.

1) The violence is excessive, funny, and usually the best parts of the movie (in that Bruce Cambell kind of way).

2) There's no boring/forced emotional moments like 90% of Hollywood movies. It avoided cliché by seeming like its about to have this big emotional and moral moment after someone gets killed or the main characters bad relationship gets brought up. But then it cuts right back to the horror and violence. Right then, you could hear the audience let out a sigh, clearly bored of THAT formula.

3) The settings and premise. The town looks great and being completely cut off from the world with 30 days of no sunshine adds a great atmosphere and tension.

As for the actors, its the standard Hollywood mix. I found Josh to be decent (nothing special) and his ex-girlfriend was annoying and unattractive.

Besides that the movie has the standard mindless filler actors who do the really obvious stupid ideas like yelling in the streets.

To get right to the point, you'll get a good laugh and it's above average for its genre. Would I pay to see it again? Probably not but I'm happy I got free tickets to see a private screening.

30 Days of Night Later

[waywarddrifters · 5/10 · 12 September 2021]

I saw this film in the theater when it was released. I was.expecting something epic, and got an "all right" movie. I mean, it's basically 28 Days Later with fangs. I revisited it tonight wondering if it could be more appreciated with time. Sadly, it just can't. The film is well shot, well acted, and a great concept. What ruins it for me is the vampires. From the silly look many of them have to the "language" they speak. It's just too much a product of its time. Had it been made twenty or thirty years earlier, it might have been something for the record books. Instead, it is an "okay" movie that is worth a watch.

Thoughts On 30 Days Of Night

[Ms_Carter · 7/10 · 24 January 2022]

When I think of movies about vampires I think of them as slow sensual seductive creatures Not in this movie their horrible screeching creatures and move with lightning speed The story is different they are fast smart and blood thirsty and absolutely no remorse for their actions I can't say this movie doesn't have any flaws because it does But it's refreshing and different.