Fright Night poster: There are two
taglines here. (From top) “There are some very good reasons to be afraid of the
dark” floats in a night sky with a glowing moon and stars. An ominous fog made
of demonic faces with big teeth erupts from a suburban house adjoined by two
trees. The title (Fright Night) is white with the ‘F’ and ‘T’ elongated
like vampire canines. Another tagline reads, “If you love being scared, it’ll
be the night of your life.”
As it’s
Spooky Month, it’s easy to discuss spooky films; the difficult part is…choosing
which film to review. Fortunately, Netflix inspired me by suggesting Fright
Night from 1985. I’d included it in my Top
10 Favourite Horror Films back, with every intention of covering it
in more detail later. Today is that day!
Expect
spoilers and a personal hot take on how Fright Night should have gone.
Charley
(William Ragsdale, Renfield) lives with his mother in a quiet suburban
street, but everything changes when Billy and Jerry (Chris Sarandon, The
Princess Bride) move in next door. Girls are going missing, and then
Charley witnesses Jerry attacking one from his bedroom window. Could his
favourite TV show featuring vampire-hunter, Peter Vincent (Andy McDowell,
Planet of the Apes), give him the answers on how to stop Jerry from killing
another girl? Like, perhaps, Charley’s girlfriend, Amy?
Written and
directed by Tom Holland (no, not that one), the first thing I noticed about Fright
Night is, for a protagonist, Charley isn’t likeable. We meet him and Amy
enjoying quality time together, until he goes too far for her comfort. Typical
teenage shenanigans. Except rather than apologise, Charley gets angry, so when
Amy takes off her top, you get the feeling she’s only doing it to placate him.
By Amy’s timid reaction, it would be easy to think this is her first serious
relationship, and yet Amy knows her limits even if he doesn’t respect them.
Good for her! Charley then gets distracted by his new neighbours, further
proving he is an inconsiderate idiot. Later, when Charley catches Jerry
seducing his next victim, he goes so far as to get out his binoculars! Yes,
he’s a teenager, but that’s creepy!
It’s why I
propose a hot take: Fright Night should have been written from Amy’s
perspective. Played by Amanda Bearse (Bros), Amy is a far more
sympathetic character who has better chemistry with “Evil” Ed (Stephen
Geoffreys, The Day of the Living Dead) than with her so-called
boyfriend. There’s a hint of friendship as Amy and Ed tease Charley about his
belief that Jerry is a vampire, so this could have been explored. Perhaps they
could be brother and sister instead, and Charley was the new kid in town, an
outcast because of his intense passion for folklore and the occult. A flashback
could have also been a good segue to how they got into the show, Fright
Night, and some of Peter Vincent’s background as an actor. While the show
was fun, it wasn’t to be taken seriously, something Ed, Amy, and Charley could
accept. The show would be a comfort watch (like millennials with Friends!
)Then, the fact that Charley asks Vincent for help fighting Jerry could suggest
how desperate he is. Charley doesn’t believe he can, but there is just no
one else who will listen.
Fright
Night wastes no
time in establishing that Jerry is a vampire; what I like most about Sarandon’s
character is that he’s not stereotypically attractive.
Side note:
One of the shortfalls of the 2011 remake was the casting of Colin Farrell. Not
because he can’t act, but because he’s too conventionally attractive.
Personally, David Tennant should have been Jerry, and Farrell could have been
Peter Vincent instead, because Tennant is consistently, shockingly good at
playing compelling villains. Truth be told, so long as Tennant kept the
eyeliner, I wouldn’t mind what role he played.
Sarandon’s
costumes (designed by Robert Fletcher) are humble, unassuming, and even stuffy,
but he still smoulders. There’s a hint of time-crossed lovers between Jerry and
Amy (perhaps to lessen the blow of the older man preying on a much younger
woman), but you’d be forgiven for missing this, as it’s only mentioned a few
times.
If the film
had described Amy’s point of view, she might battle with her instinct to be a
“good girl” against her growing desire, and the pressure of pleasing Charley
somehow. While Jerry might seem more accepting and patient at first, he’ll
still seduce Amy; that way, she becomes a more rounded and tragic character,
which would raise the stakes far more; Charley would have to prove his worth by
saving her life, and growing as a person, etc. etc. But, alas, this was the
80s, so we must make do with Jerry and Amy dancing in a nightclub to synth
music. Sigh.
With all
that said, Fright Night is memorable for its practical horror, thanks to
the film’s visual effects team. Given that it includes Richard Edlund and Steve
Johnson, of Ghostbusters and Big Trouble in Little China, it’s no
surprise that it really works. The use of contact lenses, fake fangs, and
prosthetics means the vampires look genuinely hideous in their “true” forms. I
like the fact that Amy’s teeth are pristine when she’s a newborn vampire, yet
Jerry’s appear aged and stained. It’s a nice touch. However, the most striking
uses of effects come in the demises of Jerry’s manservant (Jonathan Stark) and
Ed. Billy disintegrates into goo, which is as goofy as it sounds, but Ed’s
death is both pitiful and stomach-churning. It’s entirely worth the 18 hours it
took to capture, and Geoffreys and Andie McDowell ground the whole shocking
sequence.
As his
character was inspired by Vincent Price, McDowell had some magnificent shoes to
fill. Despite his unconvincing grey hair, McDowell provides much-needed realism
to the film. Peter Vincent is an actor who plays a vampire hunter, so it makes
sense he totally believes Charley is a deluded fan…until he meets Jerry
himself. There’s a nice nod to Bela Lugosi’s Dracula, as he discovers
through a broken mirror that Jerry doesn’t have a reflection. Again, compared
to Charley, Vincent is a lot easier to care about because he suffers from low
self-worth. We go on his journey to faith and confidence with him.
Fright
Night is worth
checking out this Halloween, not just for the questionable '80s fashion and
music, but for the visceral practical effects. From a 21st-century perspective,
the gender double-standards are a little screwed up, but at least the secondary
characters are sympathetic and easy to root for against Sarandon’s suave and
scary vampire. My hot take might make it a bit more frustrating, though. Sorry!
My Rating:
3.5 STARS OUT OF 5
My Sources:
Fright Night poster: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303723799246
Fright Night cast: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089175/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_2_tt_6_nm_0_in_0_q_fright
William Ragsdale’s filmography: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0706619/?ref_=tt_cst_t_2
Amanda Bearse’s filmography: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000294/?ref_=tt_cst_t_3
Stephen Geoffreys’ filmography: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0313267/?ref_=tt_cst_t_5
What is The Day of the Living Dead? - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2366806/?ref_=nm_flmg_job_1_accord_2_cdt_t_4
Fright Night costume designer: https://eofftv.com/fright-night-1985/
Breaking down “Evil” Ed’s transformation: https://scriptophobic.ca/2018/10/23/goodnight-evil-ed-fright-night-1985/
Richard Edlund’s career: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Edlund
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