The V Word 4

The "Masters of Horror" selections that I've seen so far are something of a mixed bag-- they're not great, but, at their best, they do evince some imagination and originality. This entry adds some twists to the sadly all-too hoary vampire theme, with mixed results. A little too gory for my tastes, it does generate some grim atmosphere and grisly chills, and large credit for that goes to the great character actor Michael Ironside, star of David Cronenberg's "Scanners" and a host of other films and TV shows, as a creepily repellent vampire (the movie probably gets an extra star from me because of his presence in it). Arjay Smith and Branden Nadon play the 2 youths who enter the vampire-inhabited mortuary on a dare, and I guess they do well enough with the roles as they've been written, although they do seem a trifle bit old for such adolescent behavior (then again, I've never been a member of a fraternity, so maybe I'm wrong there). This isn't great cinema, and I've reached a point in life where oceans of gore and blood on the screen have me rolling my eyes in exasperation rather than whatever the effect I presume the film-makers were hoping to inspire. Still, there's none of the tiresome long-haired Goth vampire schtick that has become standard fare in any vampire movie of the past 20 years or so, and director Ernest Dickerson and writer Mick Garris do manage to breathe some new life into a cinematic genre that has become way too predictable and moribund in recent years. Not enough new life, obviously, but some. If you're into this kind of thing (as I am), there are worse ways to pass an hour or 2.