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Blade is back and in big trouble; after the Vampire Nation frames him for a brutal killing, he has to contend with the FBI. Not only that, but the vampires have brought back the granddaddy of them all; Dracula. And they plan to use him to create a new breed of vampires, a breed that can survive in daylight…so Blade may not be the only Daywalker. He has no choice but to turn to the human vampire hunters known as the Nightstalkers (led by Abraham Whistler’s daughter Abigail) to foil the vampires’ plan.
Having written a lot of films in the past twenty, years (including the first two “Blade” films) David S Goyer has finally landed in the director’s chair. His previous work as a writer has either been very silly or almost gothically dark. It is therefore surprising that his latest effort (he is also the writer of this outing) has taken a different turn. The previous “Blade” films were distinct from each other, but still had the same dark sensibilities. They deal with a conflicted hero who has to fight the dark side of his nature and the vampires who embody it. The third film in the franchise is visually and verbally lighter than its predecessors. Blade is still fighting the vampires and their minions, has plenty of gadgets to play with and avoids human contact. But he resorts more often to John Shaft blaxploitation-style quips and cusses, is less dour and has joined forces with a couple of photogenic human sidekicks. There is plenty of daylight footage that smacks of a lower budget than the first two films because night shoots are costly. There is more banter and comedy in this film and the majority of this is provided by wise-cracking vampire hunter Hannibal King, who is a love-him or hate-him character that I found most amusing. Others would say he and Abigail
Whistler are merely a cynical marketing ploy to launch a spin-off franchise now that Wesley Snipes is knocking on a bit. The lighter tone makes the film feel more like a comic book adaptation than the previous offerings and it compares well to many of the recent additions to this genre, even if it doesn’t have the wow factor we have come to expect. It enables the director to indulge some poetic license, allowing his three main characters to walk through a city, armed to the teeth in broad daylight, without anyone batting an eyelid.
Goyer has gone for a bigger cast of heroes and villains than either of the previous films and this brings its own problems. He sacrifices character development for big fights and explosions. Not that there’s anything wrong with that in an action film. It means we see less of Blade and the character is therefore less effective. We are introduced to a whole load of stereotypical good guys that we don’t have enough time to get to know, so we don’t care when they die. Having two villains is problematic because one represents the camp excesses of the vampires, while the other shows their brutish nature and sheer power. Why not have one character that encompasses both?
Though Wesley Snipes has successfully played the titular hero in twice before, it seems as though the development of his character arc has arrested somewhere and even regressed. The Blade we see here is not the same dour monosyllabic but really hard vampire killer we know from his other outings. He has unaccountably acquired feelings and a John Shaft vocabulary and delivery that feels at odds with the character as we know him. It still works, but Snipes’ performance feels like a fond farewell to the character rather than a continuation of his story. And the editing in some of the fight scenes suggests that Snipes may not be quite as nimble as he used to be.
Kris Kristofferson gives a terrible return performance as Blade’s mentor, Abraham Whistler. It is as though the spark has gone out of him and his dreary, stilted delivery suggests that he played the role once more under duress or tightly binding contract. Thankfully he doesn’t appear for long.
Jessica Biel provides eye-candy for the boys as Whistler’s daughter and fellow vampire hunter Abigail. She tries to combine action heroine toughness with feminine vulnerability with varying degrees of success. Still she can’t be held to account when the script pulls her character in so many different directions in quick succession and she does her best with the material that is afforded her.
Ryan Reynolds makes the most of the comedy sidekick role of Hannibal King. He proves a dab hand at one-liners and shows impeccable timing. He steals pretty much every scene he’s in without resorting to chewing the scenery; which is where Parker Posey comes in as head of the Vampire Nation Danica Talos. I know she has been the darling of the indie scene for many a year, but I can’t see what all the fuss is about. I find her tremendously annoying, mainly because of the permanent sneer on her face – it makes me want to slap her. This should make her the ideal choice to play the selfish, cowardly and petulant leader of the vampires, but her consistent overacting and lack of timing make a dog’s dinner of the part. Dominic Purcell doesn’t fare much better, though in his case it is under- rather than over-exposure that is the problem. You would have thought the younger vampires would want to learn from the progenitor of their species, but Dracula (or Drake as he is known through most of the film) spends the majority of his time wandering around aimlessly and putting the wind up humans and vampires alike. He doesn’t have enough screen-time to make a real impact. And most of the time he is hidden by prosthetics or CGI, so we don’t get to know or fear him.
I get the impression that Goyer is a closet gun nut from all the close-ups of the vampire hunters’ weapons and gadgets. They look really cool, but a few close-ups could have been discarded in favour of more face shots so we could get some idea of the inner workings of the characters’ minds. The quality of the effects throughout varies (hardly surprising considering the number of effects houses involved in the production). The fights are fast and superbly choreographed as usual, though the editing is a little choppy in places and sometimes upsets the rhythm of the punch-ups, but I suspect this was to cover the fact that Wesley Snipes wasn’t doing all of his own stunts. There are lots of big explosions and these are both impressive and well shot. The computer-generated effects are a bit of a mixed bag, some (like the vampire dogs) look great, others, (like Blade’s exit from police custody) lack the necessary quality to be believable. But after three films the vampires’ demise still looks suitably flashy.
The director has resisted the temptation to go the way of the majority of superhero movies by having a rock soundtrack. Instead he has opted for a two pronged (or should that be two-fanged?) score that combines decent orchestral music from Ramin Djawodi that is heavy on the strings in times of peril and keeps up with the action. This is complimented by high-calibre dance music that drives the action (particularly the fights) forward.
This is an entertaining film that trades on big action scenes rather than good performances and great character development. It works as a stand-alone piece that doesn’t require any foreknowledge of the prequels (the backstory of Whistler’s family is filled in very succinctly). It is neither as flashy nor as scary as the previous instalments of the “Blade” franchise, but doesn’t pretend to be. It works as a no-brainer action flick and as a lighter companion piece to the first films that will be remembered more for its wisecracks than its bone-crunching fights. It has some huge plot holes (like what happens to the little girl during the grand finale? Why doesn’t another vampire-hunting cell get involved at the end? How does Drake manage to be in two places at once?), but they won’t prevent you from enjoying the film. Do be aware of the swearing – it’s occasional but strong and includes the holiest of holies (though it is used in an amusing cuss; “Cock juggling thunder c**t!”). So don’t let your little darlings watch it on DVD unless you want them to pick up some serious vocabulary. Best enjoyed with a few mates and the intention of going for a few beers afterwards.
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Nightstalkers, a clan of human vampire hunters, against the powerful villain Danica Talos.Talos has resurrected a man known as 'Drake' (he was once known as 'Dracula') from a...
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Dec 23rd, 2004
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