Here is the final installment in the three- part Halloween special I'll be doing for this blog, looking at something that'll provide scary fun and yet also some valid lessons on what it means to walk with Jesus.
In this case, I'll be looking at the movie 'Fright Night,' the 1985 original and especially the 2011 remake.
(Credit for this goes to the user XD1 on the Fright Night Wiki).
Disclaimer! Both versions of this movie have a noticeable amount of objectionable content, they are rated R. They are also very scary at times. So, use discretion before personally watching either of them or letting young ones watch them.
Generally, horror remakes are regarded as garbage, at times rightfully so (Anyone remember the 'Nightmare on Elm Street' remake they tried to do?). However, I consider the 'Fright Night' remake quite possibly the single best horror remake I can ever recall seeing.
In fact, I consider it one of the few horror remakes that actually NEEDED to be made. While the original is still great, it has not aged very well. Its 80's setting is VERY heavily apparent throughout it, so it doesn't translate quite as well for modern audiences. The remake manages to modernize it without giving off too dated of a feel.
In both the original version of 'Fright Night' and the remake, the basic story is similar: A teenage boy named Charley Brewster comes to strongly suspect that his new neighbor Jerry Dandridge is in fact a vampire (I know it sounds similar to the 'Are You Afraid of the Dark' episode "The Tale of the Nightly Neighbors," which I looked at on this blog a couple years ago, but the similarities end there), who is responsible for a rash of disappearances and deaths in the area. He seeks out an apparent vampire expert named Peter Vincent for help in dealing with this, but Peter refuses to help and admits to being a fraud and a coward. Still, Charley pushes on in order to protect his mother and his girlfriend Amy from becoming Jerry's next victims, and even inspires Peter to find his courage and become the hero everyone believes him to be, and the two of them prepare for a final showdown with Jerry.
However, the remake differs from the original in a number of ways, all of which I think work well. Rather than being set in a suburban Anytown USA as the original was, the remake takes place in Las Vegas, specifically in one of the residential communities on the outskirts of the city. This actually makes a LOT of sense, and I can indeed imagine a vampire living in one of those communities; Most of the people there sleep during the day and work jobs on the Strip at night, so a vampire could easily blend in among them, and those communities tend to have a lot of abandoned houses that would make perfect nesting areas for a vampire.
Another major change is in the way the character Peter Vincent is portrayed; In the original version, Peter (Played by the late Roddy Mcdowell) is a has- been movie star who in his prime played a Van Helsing- esque horror film hero called "Peter Vincent, the Great Vampire Killer" but who's now reduced to hosting a monster- movie- marathon TV show, and gives off a rather pompous, thespian- esque personality. In the remake, in contrast, Peter (Now played by David Tennant) is a Las Vegas stage magician whose act uses a lot of occultic/ vampire- esque imagery and theming, and his personality comes across as more like a British rock star. While both portrayals are awesome in their own ways, I can see why they changed it for the remake; As cool as those old monster- movie- marathon- type shows were, they are sadly a thing of the past now. David Tennant's portrayal of Peter is so much fun to watch, he'd make an excellent spinoff movie! He delivers loads of humor, and also proves to be a surprisingly well- developed character, as we learn more of his backstory.
Another major departure that I approved of is in terms of the portrayals of a supporting character in the film, Charlie's sort- of friend "Evil" Ed. In the original, "Evil" Ed is hyper and loud, alternately supporting Charlie and making fun of him. Many fans of the original film really liked him, but I personally viewed him a lot like how most 'Star Wars' fans viewed JarJar Binks: A character meant to be comedic, but who is often much more annoying than funny. His shrieking laugh is like nails on a chalkboard to me. In the remake, in contrast, "Evil" Ed is much more subtle and quiet. In it, we see that he was once Charlie's best friend and the two engaged in all kinds of "Nerd- friendly" fun, but that when Charlie became part of the "Popular" crowd at school as he began dating Amy, he abandoned all aspects of his geeky former life, including his friendship with Ed. As you can guess, Ed is noticeably bitter towards Charlie over this, which factors a ton into their interactions with each other in the movie. This version of Ed has a lot of funny moments, but also some genuinely heartfelt moments as you really feel bad for him between Charley having kicked him to the curb for the sake of popularity and all kinds of other hardships befalling him.
A final change the remake made that I definitely feel is an improvement is that Charley (Played in the original by William Ragsdale, and in the remake by the late Anton Yelchin) is MUCH more intelligent and tactful than he was in the original. An example is when Charley makes the decision to try and get the police involved. In the original, Charley personally brings a police officer to Jerry's house, and ends up loudly proclaiming that Jerry's a vampire, causing the cop to see him as either a liar or a moron. In the remake, in contrast, Charley makes the much wiser decision to instead try and notify the police through an anonymous phone call; While it still doesn't work well (The cops go to Jerry's house, but Jerry provides a convincing explanation and even sort of befriends the officers), at least it didn't leave Charley looking like an idiot the way the original did.
The action sequences in 'Fright Night' are pretty solid, including an escape from a burning house that leads to a car chase, and numerous battles between the various protagonists and the vampires.
While I somewhat miss the practical effects used in the original 'Fright Night,' the CGI used in the remake is pretty good, especially the ways it shows vampires disintegrating into ash when slain.
So, the 2011 'Fright Night' remake is all in all a surprisingly good film that I definitely recommend to fans of the original and anyone else in the mood for a little scary fun.
I can think of at least a couple theological lessons that can be taken from 'Fright Night.'
In the original and to a lesser extent the remake, we see an interesting new aspect of vampire lore: While vampires can be harmed and driven back by crosses, it only works if the person holding the cross has faith, otherwise it doesn't do a thing. A couple times in those movies, a character will try and drive back a vampire using a cross, yet it has no effect because the person wielding it didn't have the faith for it. What truly repelled the vampires was, in a sense, not actually the cross itself, but rather, the person's faith channeled through the cross. This very much ties into a Biblical theme on the difference between knowing about Jesus, and truly knowing Him and trusting in Him. It calls to mind a story from Acts 19:11-17, when a group of Jewish exorcists find out that the apostle Paul was able to cast out demons by calling on the name of Jesus. Thinking they could turn this knowledge into a lucrative business venture, they find a different person possessed by a demon, and say, "We cast you out in the name of the Jesus that Paul preaches." The demon in the man responds, "Jesus we know, and Paul we know, but who are you?" The demon in the man then beats up the would- be exorcists and sends them out naked and wounded. Those guys thought they could use the name and power of Jesus, even though they didn't even truly believe in Him themselves. That clearly didn't have any effect on the demon. Similarly, just knowing about Jesus without having actual faith in Him is pretty worthless. We need to actually believe and trust that Jesus is who He said He is.
Another important theological lesson that I think can be derived from the 'Fright Night' remake is on the importance of showing wisdom in how we act. As I said earlier, I found the remake's version of Charley much smarter and more tactful than he was in the original. As a matter of fact, considering that the horror film genre tends to be filled with characters who aren't exactly the sharpest knives in the drawer, Charley in the 'Fright Night' remake comes across as easily one of the smartest protagonists in all of horror, right up there with Sidney Prescott from the 'Scream' series and most portrayals of Dracula's nemesis Van Helsing. In addition to the example I listed earlier of how tactful he was when he tried to get the police involved, there are lots of other examples of him proving to be incredibly clever and resourceful. He first meets with Peter Vincent by posing as a journalist with the aid of a phony press pass he made on the fly. When he has to leave his injured mother in a hospital room, he first leaves the room decked out in crosses to ensure that Jerry will not be able to go after her. When he sets out for the final showdown with Jerry, he first goes to an outdoor- supply store and buys all the weapons and supplies that he legally can, he goes to Jerry's house during the morning when Jerry will be either asleep or weak, and as soon as he enters the house he immediately breaks all of the black- tainted windows in sight to get as much sunlight pouring into the house as possible. In short, Charley's one smart cookie in this, and that's why he prevails. Scripture is littered with commands to act with wisdom and planning, in much the way that Charley does throughout the film. An example is Proverbs 14:8, which states that "The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception." It's showing that wisdom comes from thinking things through and proceeding in what we come to then believe is the best way of proceeding through a situation. When confronted with life's problems and threats, we are to trust in God's deliverance, but also to be wise and careful in how we proceed.
Through keeping a strong and earnest faith in Jesus, and also thinking things through and exercising wisdom and discernment in how we act and what we do, we can triumph over evil like how Charley did in 'Fright Night' and live victoriously knowing we follow the King of Kings.
That's it for this edition of the Nightcrawler Experience. I have a few ideas for entries to bring out in the next couple months, so keep an eye out for them. Until then, happy Halloween, and may God bless you all!
I will be looking forward for your next blog. I know a preacher that does the same thing with movies and has taught me to look at things in a different prospective. Thank you for your insights that keeps me thinking. Until next time!!
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