This movie was based on a short story that I have not yet read. As such, I was able to go in with a blank slate and judge the movie on its own. I didn't really have high hopes for this one, but even with the low bar set, this film really didn't meet my expectations at all.
The one bright spot I was hoping to see was Miguel Ferrer, as he usually does good work. He does not do so here. He really tries too hard to be grim n' gritty and he comes off like one of those cliche rebel cops in a bad 80's movie. He's over the top enough that you don't buy it, but not so over the top that you can laugh and enjoy the scenery chewing.
Even worse, his character is kind of a schmuck; and by kind of a schmuck, I of course mean that he is a schmuck, a huge schmuck. Ferrer plays this bitter tabloid reporter named Richard Dees. He has this weird superiority/entitlement complex that really isn't justified. Now, there are a lot of arrogant characters who you still root for. You've got your Vegetas, your Drs. Cox and House, heck even a sociopathic bigot like Eric Cartman can steal the show and be fun to watch. Whatever quality it is that they have, Dees doesn't have it.
Dees gets offered this story to cover a "vampire wanna be serial killer" and decides to turn it down because "he's too good". The story gets passed on to a rookie reporter who goes at the story with gusto. He decides he wants it back and takes it, almost expecting to get it back based on his say so. When the rookie tries to take the story back for herself, he gets all pissy about it. He even tells off his editor for daring to give him a deadline and insists that the story will be done when he says its done. I mean, the guy was talking to him like he was Dees' boss or something. It's ridiculous.
Dude, get over it, you work for a King-verse equivalent of Weekly World News, I rank higher up on the journalist scale and I work from a recliner and pepper my articles with random pop culture references for my own amusement. The movie itself didn't really vex me as I was watching it, but the more I thought about it, the more it (especially Dees) annoyed me. While we don't see any of his writing, judging by the dictation he gives into his tape recorder, he's actually a pretty bad writer.
Not even his calling the cub reporter "Jimmy Olsen" and dubbing the vampire a "caped crusader" * was enough to really salvage my view of him in the long run.
The story doesn't even make a whole lot of sense either. Why is this vampire so insistent on his airplane MO? For that matter, how can a tabloid reporter afford his own plane?
There are a handful of bright spots, Derry gets mentioned and even the Examiner itself gets a name drop. I was amused by that, but this movie doesn't really offer much else. The score was OK and the bathroom scene was good for a chuckle, but as far as finding bright spots, it's slim pickings.
The special effects are also quite bad. The gore and stuff was passable, but once you see the monster, the movie loses any chance of me taking it seriously. The great reveal is really not earned and I've seen people construct better costumes for either conventions or for their own independent films.
Even worse, it's just boring. There was no real point where I was held in suspense and there was no character who you can really root for or relate to. Even the rookie is pretty bland and uninteresting.
It's not quite as bad as say, The Lawnmower Man, but really, that's not saying a whole lot. While I've still got quite a few movies to go, I'm fairly certain that this one ranks amongst the all time worst King based films.
*Oh yeah, the vampire wears a big cape, it's pretty ridiculous.
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