Fright Night

Movie Name: Fright Night

Year of Release: 2011

Director: Craig Gillespie

Stars: Anton Yelchin, Colin Farrell, David Tennant, Toni Collette, Imogen Poots, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Dave Franco, Will Denton, Sandra Vergara, Chris Sarandon, Lisa Loeb, Brian Huskey

Genre: Comedy, Horror, Thriller

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7

Synopsis:

"Fright Night" was originally directed by Tom Holland and released in 1985 - this remake directed by Craig Gillespie updates the original concept and adds more thrills, more fun and great actors. The film follows the story of Charley and his mom Jane, both of whom live in Las Vegas. Their new neighbor is a handsome and attractive man named Jerry, whom Charley realizes is a vampire. Jerry is building a nest of vampires, and comes after Charley, his mom and his girlfriend Amy. It's up to Charley to defend himself and the ones he loves, all with the help of entertainer/occult savant Peter Vincent.
Craig Gillespie directed previously the quirky and enjoyable "Lars and The Real Girl" and also a few episodes of "The United States of Tara". He infuses the screenplay of "Fright Night" with a lightness and simultaneously a swift pace that is engrossing and also menacing. "Fright Night" knows how not to take itself seriously, poking fun at the whole "Twilight" generation, but also has enough thrills to truly engage the audience. It's an intelligent thriller, with a humorous side! The actors are all great, from the young Anton Yelchin and Imogen Poots, to the charismatic Colin Farrell and the always great Toni Collete.  A very entertaining film!