Midnight Son (2011)
Steve Barton
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Reviewed by Uncle Creepy
Starring Zak Kilberg, Maya Parish, Jo D. Jonz, Arlen Escarpeta, Larry Cedar, Tracey Walter
Directed by Scott Leberecht
Vampire movies, man. Every time I think that I’m totally sick of them, a filmmaker will come around with a new flick that proves why those blood-sucking creatures of the night have so much bite. For years now we’ve been exposed mainly to two kinds of vamps – the sparkly brooding emo fashion victims and the far preferred ugly vicious killing machines. What a lot of people forget, though, is that there is a third kind introduced by the legendary George A. Romero in 1977’s toothy little tale Martin. The good news? Director Scott Leberecht hasn’t forgotten, and as a result his latest film, Midnight Son, comes as a truly fresh breath of air.
Jacob (Kilberg) is a young man who suffers from a rare skin disorder that prevents him from (you guessed it) being exposed to direct sunlight. As a result he finds himself living a pretty lonely life because the rest of the wIorld is fast asleep while he goes about his business. He adapts well to this condition getting a job as a night time security guard and generally keeping to himself. Thankfully there are a few late night bars around his neighborhood so he can at the very least have some kind of fun. It’s at one of these establishments that he meets and falls in love with Mary (Parish) a bartender at one of the local hot-spots. Things start off well enough, but then Jacob’s condition starts to worsen and his mannerisms start changing for the scary.
To tell you any more about the plot would be an injustice because Midnight Son does an amazing job of going in directions that you would never expect it to. Director Leberecht has crafted a dark tale deftly handled with the type of attention to the realism of our characters’ situations that you just do not usually see in this type of fare. The twists and turns in the plot are very deliberate and well thought out instead of blindsiding you out of nowhere and leaving you with a comical voice balloon over your head with a giant question mark in it.
Couple all of this with solid performances turned in from every actor, a great score that keeps you appropriately on edge, and enough horror elements to keep even the most jaded of fans entertained, and you get one hell of a rock solid experience.
Midnight Son is not for tweeners. It’s for those of us who enjoy a healthy serving of meat on their horror bones. Leberecht and company have delivered to us a smart, intense, and unpredictable film that is tons of ghoulish fun from beginning to end.
4 out of 5
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