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Having gone to a witch to exact his revenge on his faithless ex-girlfriend, Anton stumbles upon a hidden world. He finds himself able to see a whole new level of reality, thanks to powers he never knew he had. He discovers that a war is being waged over men's souls by the forces of good (Light Others) and evil (Dark Others). Given the choice, he decides to join forces with the Light Others and five years later is chasing vampires around the streets of Moscow. But the tenuous truce between the two sides hangs in the balance when Anton discovers a vortex over the city. It is the first portent of an ancient prophecy that will reveal a boy with the power to change the face of the war and the world forever.
Russian writer-director Timur Bekmambetov certainly has an eye for a profitable franchise. He is heavily influenced by Western blockbuster cinema if the grab bag of effects he uses is anything to go by. He has grasped the Peter Jackson ethic; doing as much as he can while spending as little money as possible. However, unlike many current Hollywood filmmakers, Bekmambetov has clear budgetary constraints that mean he can't compare in terms of spectacle. But it's amazing how effective simple tricks can be in creating atmosphere. So we see plenty of forbidding skies and foreboding crows. There are multiple flashbacks that show how the world of the Night Watch works and how one decision can inform another. The aesthetic of cool is ripped-off wholesale from "The Matrix", making the most of long coats and sunglasses, but somewhat undermined by the Russian penchant for woolly pullies. Aside from the smorgasbord of styles and pilfered stylistic tics, what really marks this out as a contemporary film is the nosebleed editing. But I guess if you don't dwell
on things for too long, it means you don't notice little inconsistencies in tone, style or plotting. Even the American taste for referencing popular culture appears, courtesy of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" reruns. There are some aspects of the film that feel more original, including the assistant Anton acquires who turns from an owl into a woman. Stylistically, there are intriguing moments where flickbook animation and computer games are used for exposition. It is an ambitious project and one that coasts along on sheer enthusiasm for the subject matter, but Bekmambetov seems more concerned with style over substance. So he forgets to engender his characters with enough humanity to make us feel for them. But this won't stop me seeking out any eventual sequels.
Although the screenplay is based on a tremendously popular (in Russia at least) series of novels, it too feels like it owes a lot to western cinema. In fact the whole idea of a child oracle being able to bring resolution to conflict by changing the balance of power seems strangely familiar. This is especially true if you think about a young boy named Anakin Skywalker. Of course this may just be a universal image adopted by the novelist, but it comes too close on the heels of other franchises to feel original. Character development is virtually non-existent. One could argue that it is moot as all of the protagonists are clear ciphers for good and evil and they don't need to be anything more in the context of the film. But there are some areas that could have borne deeper investigation, like Anton's friendship with a neighbouring vampire. However, I suppose this may be dealt with in future films.
As has become fashionable, the forces of darkness are decadents that crave the limelight or just large-living chavs, while the good guys slog away in penury in an attempt to keep the world safe. Not only does the devil have all the best tunes, he has the best cars and side-careers too. There is a very brief discussion on the ethics of how the Light and Dark Others have divided the world, but when the young prophet finally makes his decision, it seems rather too easy.
The actors have a difficult job because the script doesn't afford them a great deal in terms of characterisation. The style of acting overall is naturalistic and you get the impression that the players believe in their characters and in most cases the scenarios in which they find themselves. Konstantin Khabensky is a likeable, if somewhat geeky lead as Anton Gorodetsky. He's not what you'd call a handsome man, but he has enough about him to act as an effective foil to the situations and special effects going on around him. He has nice chemistry with his co-stars and can convince as an everyman in extraordinary circumstances.
Vladimir Meshov brings a measure of gravitas to the role of Anton's boss Geser. He feels like a solid and reliable man rendered stately by his position. On the other hand Viktor Verzhbitsky has more of a sense of fun as the leader of the Dark Others Zavulon. There's something of a twinkle in his eye that makes him feel more like the Norse god of mischief Loki, than a satanic substitute. He's one of those characters you'll probably want to see more of. Galina Tyunina is good value as Anton's newly assigned partner, Olga. She's a strong female action heroine that hints at having deeper layers to explore. Dmitry Martynov gives a surprisingly mature performance as the young Yegor, proving able to hold the attention and engage the audience.
Much has been made of the effects in the film, which are at the vanguard of Russian cinema. They combine old-fashioned smoke and mirrors physical effects and simple overlays and more recent computer-generated stuff. Yes, there may be a huge battle between the forces of good and evil, but though it may superficially resemble something from LOTR, it lacks the requisite detail to be anywhere near as impressive. The computer combatants have no apparent will of their own and it's hard to convince the viewer of the scale when the people in close-up don't number more than fifty. The film picks and mixes from sources such as "The Matrix" (bullet-time), "Lord of the Rings" (a monochrome netherworld in which our hero finds himself), "The Fast and the Furious" (zooming through the innards of vehicles courtesy of CGI) and "Hellboy" (a slow-motion vehicle flipping over a main character). There's a level of ingenuity that uses old faith healer's tricks in conjunction with up-to-date technology and simple lighting effects that you wouldn't find in a bigger budget production. This is when they are at their most effective because the director seems totally at home with them whereas you get the impression he's not quite sure what he's doing when it comes to the computerised jiggery-pokery.
The soundtrack is a mixed bag of musical styles, featuring epic introductory music for the battle between good and evil, plenty of creepy strings and haunting pipes for when things get spooky and the anticipated hard rock when the modern-day action kicks in. There's even room for some cheesy Russian pop and the odd bit of plaintive piano when the scene is more emotional. However, even the soundtrack doesn't escape the derivativeness, borrowing tracks from Hans Zimmer's "Gladiator" when things aren't quite epic enough.
The film is in Russian, but the subtitling is so adept and reads so naturally that it's easy to forget it is there.
"Night Watch" is an enjoyable if somewhat derivative addition to the fantasy genre that brings it into the modern world. The story behind it is nothing new and the visuals often feel as if they have been plagiarised from other sources. It is as if Bekmambetov is trying to distract us from the minimal plot and character development with lots of flashy set-pieces and nosebleed editing. In fact he's so busy cramming in the effects at the expense of the story that the film could easily have been twenty minutes shorter and none the worse for it. However, though I was a little disappointed by the end product, I could still see Bekmambetov's potential. It works well as a calling card to Hollywood, though fails to engage the audience emotionally. Like Tarantino before him, he is a magpie-like collector of concepts, styles and effects. Hopefully, in his case this will develop into his own recognisable style and I look forward with interest to the proposed sequels.
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