Cool cars, blood, and not a sparkle in sight.
Artwork by Anna Becker
Daybreakers was cast well, with Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man 3) and Ethan Hawke (What Doesn’t Kill You) starring in this futuristic tale of vampires.
In the year 2019, vampirism has spread like a disease, from a bat to a human and subsequently from humans to other humans. There isn’t much that explains how almost everyone became infected. The classic rules of vampires stand strong; they can’t be seen in mirrors, die when exposed to sunlight, drink blood, heal quickly, and the stake-to-heart move also kills them. Inexplicably, they still feel pain and can be knocked out. Instead of changing vampires to accommodate for today’s world, the world around them has changed to accommodate vampires. This is one of the reasons why I personally enjoyed the film.
Daybreakers follows Edward Dalton (Ethan Hawke), who works in the lab of the company Bromley Marks. Humans are now an endangered species, and those who are captured are used to generate blood for the vampire population. Blood is sold by ‘Bromley Marks,’ where Edward is the head hematologist and spends his nights trying to create a blood substitute. Vampires who go without blood become more violent and bat-like. Somehow this vampire crisis was foreseen; otherwise, how could anyone develop a huge company dedicated to keeping vampires around? With the real blood supply dwindling, the cities are becoming filled with chaotic vampires deprived of blood, and the pressure is on to find a substitute. However, Edward is more concerned with finding a cure for this vampire disease than finding a blood substitute, and the massive corporation he works for isn’t interested in a cure, but simply a substitute. What good is a blood company without anyone to buy the blood?
Edward’s brother, Frank, (Michael Dorman, Prime Mover) is a very interesting character. He is cold and believes wholeheartedly that vampires are stronger than humans, and that vampires shouldn’t let the remaining humans survive. He fights for the vampires in their army and attacks renegade humans. The military forces in this new age of vampires are surprisingly similar to the armed forces of the United States. Military Hummers and camouflaged gear outfitted with vampire compatible equipment is used to capture humans and bring them to the ‘blood farm’ that is Bromley Marks. Frank is very patriotic (towards the vampires), almost eerily so. He comes back into Edward’s life for some vague reason. The two get along like hippies and riot police. The conflict between these brothers is intense. They fight for opposite morals. Frank believes humans don’t deserve a place in the new world of vampires, whereas Edward believes that humans need to survive, not be captured. Frank is brutal and obeys commands without questioning his actions and Edward seems to be the only vampire with any compassion. At one point, Edward hides a band of renegade humans from vampire police after he crashes into one of their cars.
The fight between the last remaining humans and the vampires is intense. With an abundance of power and force, the vampires make effective hunters. We meet a man named Lionel Cormac, casually called ‘Elvis,’ and Audrey, a crossbow-wielding shepherd of a band of humans. Audrey (Claudia Karven, Star Wars Episode III) is more of an organizer, trying to save the humans she meets. She works in very desolate places in order to prevent vampires from walking in the shade. The film does a great job of establishing that the humans don’t have much to live on and are forced to hide. Willem Dafoe was well cast for the role of Elvis, supporting Edward and whipping out the ‘tough guy’ one-liners.
The cars in Daybreakers were the icing on the cake. Elvis had his custom late 60’s Mustang, a ‘57 Chevy Nomad, and ’78 Pontiac Trans Am.; The Phoenix on the hood and “From the ashes, we are reborn,” was symbolism that was an excellent addition to Daybreakers. The Chrysler 300 driven by Edward symbolized the current car of the average vampire, complete with options to block out all sunlight for day driving. However, in 2019 most cars that vampires drive are, for some reason, current generation Toyota Priuses, Smart Cars, and more Chrysler 300s. It’s the small details that take me out of the world that the Spierig Brothers created.
The deaths were gory, with fountains of blood, removal of limbs, and vampires exploding. The vampires are heartless creatures despite their walk and talk, which makes watching them be destroyed almost a pleasure. Eventually the vampires go mad with blood lust, and start attacking people they once knew.
The Spierig Brothers directed this film. Their last movie, Undead, debuted in 2003 and didn’t gain many followers. Daybreakers was the product of six years of professional work. The plot can be predictable at times and the not so futuristic cars took me out of the setting that the film had presented. The flaws are minor and the story is strong. Avatar, the latest box-office hit, may be too light on the violence and more political, but Daybreakers shows that it can send shivers down your spine. With action, humanity, and some sweet rides, Daybreakers will leave you craving a sequel.
★★★★☆
