Hundred
of years ago, the forces of light and
darkness faced each other in a very
violent battle on a bridge. In order to
avoid the total slaughter, their leaders
agree to have an armistice.
Along the centuries, the two balanced
sides are divided and the forces of light
watch and control the vampires, a.k.a. as
the forces of night. Among the humans
lives "The Others", i.e.,
persons with supernatural powers
including witches, sorcerers and vampires
and with the free will to choose which
side to join.
The legend says that the two forces will
be unbalanced by "The Great
Other", and the side this powerful
being selects will win the battle.
In 1992, in Moscow, Anton Gorodetsky
(Konstantin Khabenskiy) joins the forces
of the light while hiring a witch for a
black magic. In the present days, he
faces the consequences of his act.
I had a hard time
understanding the story but enjoyed it
regardless with all the neat and
suspenseful effects used in the film in
which you see someone speeding away when
a tower of a power plant is about to
crash watching the city go dead along
with an airplane about to tear apart in
the air or crashing on land in houses
making the New York terrorist attack look
minor.
There's a nice history involving some of
the vampires life during the viking days
along with good sorcery and fantasy
blended all in one too.
If you enjoy video games, fantasy and
horror mixed in one this film is really
worth checking out since there's some fun
touches in alot of the scene's portrayed
here along with making you wonder who's a
vampire and who's not.
The acting is hard
to judge as they are from Moscow and
their language is overdubbed with USA
actors but let's try to take a look and
see what can be done about thier talents
regardless.
Konstantin
Khabenskiy looked like he'd be a
good character actor as at first he looks
like a clean cut dweeby type in one of
his first scene's and then later on had a
good rough look to him in which you might
think it's a different person and played
a good guy vampire quite well.
Vladimir Menshov showed good serious
to his part as a nice middle aged man
which a good aggressive attitude too. He
seemed another natural character actor.
Galina Tyunina
had the nice beautiful looks as a
sorceress and not elderly looking either
which is another plus for her proving
younger people can play these roles too.
Young actor Dmitriy
Martynov looked good and had the
right charm as an innocent type in the
film which is a good drawing card for a
vampire film that is if you've seen
others like The Lost Boys.
Anna Dubrovskaya played a nice
vampiress showing good paranoid
expressions as well as looking depressed
too when necessary. She was another good
drawing card to the show.
Galina Tyunina
exposes her butt while covered in
feather getting ready to take a bath and
her breasts are briefly exposed too.
During a viking war many
heads are chopped off and bloodily
stabbed.
There's some bitings and other bloody
stabbings here and there.
A vampire warrior takes a sword out of
the back of his neck at first looking
like a spinal cord.
Timur Bekmambetov
shows great action paced sequences in
most of the battling scene's making his
cast have plenty of enegery especially
during the beginning of this film with
the prologue on the viking slaughterings.
We have a nice side shot on Konstantin
Khabenskiy approaching an apartment
suite and knocking on a door along with a
good dialogue with Rimma Markova as
a witch talking pleasantly to him and
then doing a voodoo like performance with
shots on spiders and ohter creepy things
roaming around along with a good
flashback shot on Mariya Mironova sufficating
half to death on a boat while this is
occuriing and later on strange and
intense moments happening with Mironova
and crazy effects too.
We have a good shot on a subway speeding
through a tunnel along with Khabenskiy
in the subway walking towards young
actor Dmitriy Martynov with a
good expression on Khabenskiy's
face acting hungry for blood and nearly
about to grab him with many moments that
distracts him on the subway and a good
shot on Mironova with her wavy
hair near another subway door too.
There's a nice shot on Anna
Dubrovskaya grabbing Martynov and
putting her mouth close to his neck ready
to bite him with Khabenskiy rushing
in as fast as he can to save the day and
doing great battling performances.
There's many good monologues between Khabenskiy
and Vladimir Menshov with
nice close up shots on them talking along
with a good moment on Menshov doing
surgery and Khabenskiy acting
weak and in pain.
A good shot on Dubrovskaya walking
in a tunnel with traffic looking weal and
a car driving by her with supporting
actress Zhanna Friske taunting
her with a container of blood and then
smashing it on the road having a bitchy
attitude towards her looking like a good
mobster style of direction.
We have many terrific shots on Khabenskiy
in his suite talking to an owl with
perfect close up shots on the owl's eyes
and then great fast shots on some
monstrous shots later on of the owl with Galina
Tyunina bending down on the ground
in feathers.
A good effects shot on a screw falling
from a plane and then rolling down a vent
where cockroaches are and then landing in
a coffee cup that Mironova is
holding.
We have a nice shot on Poroshina looking
down from a fire escape looking evil with
a good camera shooting up at her while Martynov
is struggling up the ladders to get
to her which looked extremely
suspenseful.
There's a great scene with Dubrovskaya
showing her fangs and grabbing onto Martynov
up on the building roof with
Khabenskiy walking towards them and
she gets frusterated with him telling him
she wants to be a normal person again as
the direction on this looks quite
impressive.
There's a good moment with Khabenskiy
constantly punching supporting actor
Yuriy Kutsenko in the face
getting his frusterations out.
The music was greatly
composed by Yuriy Poteenko
as he has some high pitched trumpet
playing here and there sounding
incredibly suspenseful as well as the
nice smooth violing playing and some
piano music too.
Yegor:
Mom? Mom! Are vampires real?
Irina, Yegor's mother: Yes, Yegor.
They are little boys who have been known
to suck all the life out of their
parents.
Yegor: I'm serious. They're real.
I saw some.
Vampiress
Larisa, initiate: I want to live.
Anton Gorodetsky: So live. Live.
Who's stopping you?
Vampiress Larisa, initiate: I want
to be human again.
Anton Gorodetsky: You want to be
human? Then act like a human.
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