30 Days of Night

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The sun disappears for 30 consecutive days in Barrow, Alaska--the Northernmost town in America--and fast-moving vampires use this opportunity to feast on the people of the small town. The humans are led by a young cop (Josh Harnett) looking to reunite with his ex (Melissa George) and the community is, as you may expect, unprepared for a fierce attack by an army of vampires.

Big question: Will director David Slade's ("Hard Candy") adaptation of the graphic novel prove to be a new vision of the vampire, or just a George Romero-esque ("Land of the Dead") movie without any sun?

Skip it: Slade's intense depiction of the noisy, speedy killers at first distracts you from wondering why it doesn't take them 30 minutes, not 30 days, to knock off a tiny town. Soon, though, "30 Days of Night" turns into the same old "zombie" movie with longer fangs, providing the usual group dynamic of leaders, followers and rebels and the worst overuse of a loud screech since "Saved by the Bell: The New Class."

Catch it: If you share the optimism of one of the townspeople who exclaims, "We got walkie talkies, it'll be fine." If she had ever seen a horror movie, she'd know that anyone who thinks they're fine never is!

Bottom line: Hartnett has the same empty, mildly worried look in his eyes all the time, whether or not he's a vampire. Ben Foster and Danny Huston are far creepier as a mysterious stranger and the vampire leader, respectively, but the most memorable thing about "30 Days of Night" is still the number of heads decapitated by an axe.

Bonus: Be thankful you don't live in a place with a sign reading, "Danger: polar bears." Enough said.

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