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From the jail cell, the Stranger taunts Eben, Stella, Eben's teenage brother, Jake ([[Mark Rendall]]) and grandmother, telling them that death is coming for them. Just then, [[vampire]]s attack the local telecommunications center and power supply, rendering the town dark and cut off from the outside world. Eben goes to the telecommunications center and finds a trail of blood leading to a pole on which the operator's head has been impaled. He and Stella then go through town, warning all the residents to lock themselves indoors and load all weapons.
From the jail cell, the Stranger taunts Eben, Stella, Eben's teenage brother, Jake ([[Mark Rendall]]) and grandmother, telling them that death is coming for them. Just then, [[vampire]]s attack the local telecommunications center and power supply, rendering the town dark and cut off from the outside world. Eben goes to the telecommunications center and finds a trail of blood leading to a pole on which the operator's head has been impaled. He and Stella then go through town, warning all the residents to lock themselves indoors and load all weapons.


Meanwhile, the vampires, led by [[Marlowe (30 Days of Night)|Marlowe]] ([[Danny Huston]]), attack the town. The vampires speak in an ancient, [[Guttural consonant|guttural]] language, clarified by subtitles. Unless they are shot in the head, bullets are useless against them. Also, some vampires possess additional powers, such as teleportation and telepathy. They slaughter most of the town, including Eben's grandmother, while the remaining survivors congregate in the diner. The vampires attack Eben and Stella but Beau Brower ([[Mark Boone Junior]]), the local snowplow driver, rescues them. Everyone decides to go to the boarded up house of someone who had left town earlier that day. The house has a hidden attic where they are able to hide. Marlowe finds the Stranger in the jail and assures him that they will take care of him. Then, rather than turning him into a vampire as the Stranger wished, Marlowe kills him. Marlowe orders the vampires not to transform anyone into a vampire; they will slaughter the town and then disappear in order to preserve modern humanity's belief that vampires are "only bad dreams" and nothing more.
Meanwhile, the vampires, led by [[Marlowe (30 Days of Night)|Marlowe]] ([[Danny Huston]]), attack the town. The vampires speak in an ancient, [[Guttural consonant|guttural]] language, clarified by subtitles. Unless they are shot in the head, bullets are useless against them. They slaughter most of the town, including Eben's grandmother, while the remaining survivors congregate in the diner. The vampires attack Eben and Stella but Beau Brower ([[Mark Boone Junior]]), the local snowplow driver, rescues them. Everyone decides to go to the boarded up house of someone who had left town earlier that day. The house has a hidden attic where they are able to hide. Marlowe finds the Stranger in the jail and assures him that they will take care of him. Then, rather than turning him into a vampire as the Stranger wished, Marlowe kills him. Marlowe orders the vampires not to transform anyone into a vampire; they will slaughter the town and then disappear in order to preserve modern humanity's belief that vampires are "only bad dreams" and nothing more.


Over the next week, Eben, Stella, Jake and seven others stick it out in the attic. During this time, a stray survivor walks by crying for help, being used as bait by the vampires. Eben ventures out to help her, finding John Riis in the crawlspace under a building. As the girl, having been unsuccessful in luring any survivors to her, is attacked and killed by the vampires, Eben attempts to help John. However, he discovers that John had become a vampire, and ends up killing him. It is because of this that he learns that beheading the vampires will kill them. He wanders back to the house, suffering a serious asthma attack, and passes out, just after telling Stella and Beau the information he has learned. Shortly after, Wilson and his senile father, Isaac, are lost when they leave the house in which they had been hiding.
Over the next week, Eben, Stella, Jake and seven others stick it out in the attic. During this time, a stray survivor walks by crying for help, being used as bait by the vampires. Eben ventures out to help her, finding John Riis in the crawlspace under a building. As the girl, having been unsuccessful in luring any survivors to her, is attacked and killed by the vampires, Eben attempts to help John. However, he discovers that John had become a vampire, and ends up killing him. It is because of this that he learns that beheading the vampires will kill them. He wanders back to the house, suffering a serious asthma attack, and passes out, just after telling Stella and Beau the information he has learned. Shortly after, Wilson and his senile father, Isaac, are lost when they leave the house in which they had been hiding.

Revision as of 00:28, 19 October 2009

30 Days of Night
Teaser poster
Directed byDavid Slade
Written bySteve Niles
Stuart Beattie
Produced bySam Raimi
Ted Adams
Rob Tapert
StarringJosh Hartnett
Melissa George
Danny Huston
Ben Foster
Mark Boone Junior
Mark Rendall
Amber Sainsbury
Craig Hall
Nathaniel Lees
Jared Turner
Kelson Henderson
Pua Magasiva
Joel Tobeck
CinematographyJo Willems
Edited byArt Jones
Music byBrian Reitzell
Distributed byColumbia Pictures
Release date
October 19, 2007
Running time
113 min.
CountryTemplate:FilmUS
LanguageEnglish
Budget$30 million
Box office$75,304,357

30 Days of Night is a 2007 horror film based on the comic book miniseries of the same name. The film is directed by David Slade and stars Josh Hartnett, Melissa George and Danny Huston. The film was released in the United States on October 19, 2007. The story focuses on the Alaskan town of Barrow, beset by vampires as it enters into a thirty day long period without sunshine. The film follows a group of people who struggle to survive until sunlight returns.

Plot

The town of Barrow, Alaska is preparing for its annual "30 Days of Night", a period during the winter in which the sun will not be seen for a month: some inhabitants leave for Fairbanks or other parts south. As the town gets ready, the Stranger (Ben Foster) rows ashore from a large ship. Once in Barrow, he sets about sabotaging the town (stealing and burning cell phones, killing all the sled dogs) in the belief that the vampires will make him one of them if he helps them with their plans.

Barrow's sheriff, Eben Oleson (Josh Hartnett) investigates these crimes. As he does so, he learns that his estranged wife, Stella Oleson (Melissa George), missed the last plane out of town and will have to spend the 30 day period in Barrow. Although they try to avoid one another, when Eben confronts the Stranger in the town diner, Stella helps subdue him and take him to the station house.

From the jail cell, the Stranger taunts Eben, Stella, Eben's teenage brother, Jake (Mark Rendall) and grandmother, telling them that death is coming for them. Just then, vampires attack the local telecommunications center and power supply, rendering the town dark and cut off from the outside world. Eben goes to the telecommunications center and finds a trail of blood leading to a pole on which the operator's head has been impaled. He and Stella then go through town, warning all the residents to lock themselves indoors and load all weapons.

Meanwhile, the vampires, led by Marlowe (Danny Huston), attack the town. The vampires speak in an ancient, guttural language, clarified by subtitles. Unless they are shot in the head, bullets are useless against them. They slaughter most of the town, including Eben's grandmother, while the remaining survivors congregate in the diner. The vampires attack Eben and Stella but Beau Brower (Mark Boone Junior), the local snowplow driver, rescues them. Everyone decides to go to the boarded up house of someone who had left town earlier that day. The house has a hidden attic where they are able to hide. Marlowe finds the Stranger in the jail and assures him that they will take care of him. Then, rather than turning him into a vampire as the Stranger wished, Marlowe kills him. Marlowe orders the vampires not to transform anyone into a vampire; they will slaughter the town and then disappear in order to preserve modern humanity's belief that vampires are "only bad dreams" and nothing more.

Over the next week, Eben, Stella, Jake and seven others stick it out in the attic. During this time, a stray survivor walks by crying for help, being used as bait by the vampires. Eben ventures out to help her, finding John Riis in the crawlspace under a building. As the girl, having been unsuccessful in luring any survivors to her, is attacked and killed by the vampires, Eben attempts to help John. However, he discovers that John had become a vampire, and ends up killing him. It is because of this that he learns that beheading the vampires will kill them. He wanders back to the house, suffering a serious asthma attack, and passes out, just after telling Stella and Beau the information he has learned. Shortly after, Wilson and his senile father, Isaac, are lost when they leave the house in which they had been hiding.

When a blizzard hits, Eben and the others use the whiteout conditions to make it to the general store. There, a young girl vampire attacks and wounds one of them. The whiteout conditions end, preventing them from making it back to the abandoned house under cover. Eben decides everyone should go to the police station. He provides a diversion by running to his grandmother's house to retrieve an ultraviolet lighting system. Eben makes it to the house, jump starts the generator, and turns the light on the vampires who have followed him. It hideously burns a female vampire named Iris, forcing Marlowe to kill her. Eben escapes the house followed by the vampires. Beau comes to the rescue, killing many of the vampires with his backhoe. He crashes into a hotel and then ignites a box of dynamite using road flares, trying to kill himself. His ploy is unsuccessful though as Beau lives through the blast and Marlow crushes his skull, but it gives Eben the time to make it to the police station. There, the wounded member, Carter Davies (Nathaniel Lees) turns into a vampire. He tells the group of the death of his wife and children. He longs to be with them and is horrified of the prospect of living forever, never to see them in the afterlife. With some shred of his humanity left, he asks Eben to end it. Eben complies, and beheads him.

Two more weeks pass. Stella and Eben find his deputy, Billy Kitka (Manu Bennett), signaling them with a flashlight from across the street. Eben and Stella make it to Billy's house. When the vampires had attacked, Billy killed his wife and daughters but his gun jammed when he tried to commit suicide. Stella and Eben take him back to the station house. There they learn that the others have made it to the utilidor, a power station that controls the oil pipeline which is only structure that still has power. Eben, Stella, and Billy begin to sneak towards the utilidor. Soon the members spot a figure moving towards them. They soon realize it's a young human girl. Stella stops to rescue the young girl, Gail Robbins, who is being stalked by the vampire Zurial (John Rawls). Eben and Billy try to distract him while Stella gets the girl to safety. Instead, Billy and Eben are separated. They both eventually make it to the utilidor, but another vampire follows Billy inside.

Eben is happy to see the rest of the survivors have made it alive. The vampire attacks Billy, ripping into his neck and dazing him. When the vampire turns to attack Eben, Billy gets up and knocks it into the gears of the utilidor's pump, shredding the creature. Billy's arm gets caught in the gears as well and his entire forearm is completely gone. Billy screams in pain as Eben tries to calm him down. Eben then realizes that Billy's screams become vampiric shrieks. Eben is then forced to kill Billy with an axe, beheading him.

The sun is due to rise in a few hours. The vampires decide to burn the town to cover their tracks to preserve the thought that they don't exist. Stella radios to Eben that she and the young girl are hiding under an abandoned truck across the street from the utilidor, the flames rapidly approaching them. Realizing he cannot beat the vampires as a human, Eben injects himself with Billy's infected blood so he can fight them as a vampire. He and Marlow fight a vicious battle. As the battle comes to a close, Marlow charges Eben as Eben throws a punch. The punch, empowered by Eben's vampiric super-strength, runs through Marlow's mouth and out the back of his head, killing him. Leaderless, with the sun about to rise, the other vampires disappear.

Eben and Stella watch the sunrise together. While Stella rests on Eben's shoulder, they share one last kiss. Stella holds Eben tightly in her arms as the light of sun brightens. His body begins to burn and he lets out a bloodcurdling scream. Seconds later he dies, his body turned to ash. The end of the film is marked as Stella stares into the distance with a newly awakened sense of hatred, cradling Eben's ashen corpse.

Production

Following the publication of the 30 Days of Night comic book miniseries in 2002, studios, including DreamWorks, MGM and Senator International, bid in the $1 million range for rights to a potential vampire film based on the story. Director and producer Sam Raimi expressed interest in adapting the miniseries and was negotiating a production deal with his producing partner Robert Tapert to establish a label with Senator Entertainment, of which Senator International is the sales division.[1] In July 2002, Senator International acquired the rights for 30 Days of Night in a seven figure deal with Raimi and Tapert attached as producers. 30 Days of Night author Steve Niles originally conceived of the story in the form of a film but after meeting a lack of interest in initial pitches to studios, Niles was able to produce it as a comic with Ben Templesmith deciding to collaborate on the project and provide artwork. When Niles and his agent, Jon Levin, shopped the comic around as a potential film adaptation, Niles found that the idea "went shockingly well," with Sam Raimi and Senator International picking up the property rights based on the original concept and Templesmith's unique mood and concepts for the vampires.[2] According to Raimi, the potential project was "unlike the horror films of recent years".[3]

By October 2002, Niles was working on adapting 30 Days of Night for the big screen, keeping the film true to the miniseries, though fleshing out the characters more significantly in the adaptation process.[4] In February 2003, Columbia Pictures partnered with Senator International to work on 30 Days of Night, which was developing under Senator internationals newly-established production company, Ghost House Pictures. Mike Richardson, the Dark Horse Comics publisher who supported the adaptation project from the beginning, after having turned down an offer to initially publish the project, was attached as executive producer.[5] The following March, Richardson revealed that Steve Niles had turned in the initial draft for the 30 Days of Night screenplay.[6] In March 2004, however, Columbia Pictures requested that Niles's initial screenplay to be rewritten in preparation for production.[7] Sue Binder, the business manager of Ghost House Pictures, indicated that filming for 30 Days of Night was still at least a year away, as Ghost House planned to produce three films before the vampire thriller.[7] The following May, Stuart Beattie, one of the writers for Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, was rewriting Niles's 30 Days of Night draft for production.[8] Niles was pleased with Beattie's faithfully rewritten script, which was submitted to the studio in October 2004.[9]

In September 2005, it was announced that director David Slade had signed on to 30 Days of Night, which would be distributed by Columbia Pictures mainly in North America and Mandate Pictures in international territories.[10] In March 2006, Slade revealed that screenwriter Brian Nelson, who wrote the screenplay for Slade's previous film Hard Candy, was writing a new draft of the 30 Days of Night script, replacing Beattie's draft.[11] The director said that filming would begin in summer 2006 in Alaska and New Zealand.[11]

In June 2006, it was announced that Josh Hartnett was cast as the husband of the married couple that serves as the town's sheriff team.[12] Melissa George joined the 30 Days of Night cast as the wife of Hartnett's character.[13] Danny Huston joined the cast as the leader of the vampires.[14] Filming did not begin immediately, but in a September 2006 interview, executive producer Mike Richardson said that 30 Days of Night would be shot on 35 mm film, though there had been discussion to shoot the film on Genesis.[15] In an interview prior to filming, Slade explained that the illustrations of the graphic novel's illustrator, Ben Templesmith, would be reflected in production design. Slade also considered Nelson's draft to be the most faithful to the graphic novel. He also stated his intention to make a "scary vampire film", of which he didn't think there were many. "The rest of them, they fall into all kinds of traps. We're going to try to do our best... and one of the ways we have to do it is be more naturalistic than the graphic novel, because it's very over-the-top," said Slade.[16] There was also concern expressed that while the vampires needed to communicate, talking might lessen the effect. To counter this, a fictional vampire language was constructed with the help of a Linguistics Professor and the nearby University of Auckland. Slade explained "we designed this really simple language that didn't sound like any particular accent that you would be aware of, that was based around really simple actions, eating, hunting, yes, no, really basic, because that's what vampires do."[17]

By February 2007, the production phase was completed, and a rough cut of the film was prepared.[18] In April, composer Brian Reitzell was hired to score the film.[19]

Reception

Box Office Release

30 Days of Night was released in 2,855 theaters in the United States and Canada on October 19, 2007. In its opening weekend, the film grossed $15,951,902,[20] placing first in the box office.[21] As of November 18, 2007, 30 Days of Night has grossed $39,141,000 in the United States and Canada and $10,986,792 overseas. It has grossed $70,806,224 worldwide.[20]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, 50% of the 143 film critics gave the film positive reviews.[22] On Metacritic, the film received a metascore of 53 out of 100 from 29 reviews, considered to be mixed or average reviews.

Home Release

30 Days of Night was released February 26, 2008 on DVD, Blu-Ray, and UMD for PlayStation Portable in the United States. DVD sales brought in $26,632,925 in revenue, from 1,394,939 sold DVD units. This does not include Blu-ray sales.[23] The DVD is a single disc and includes 8 featurettes, one of which is a full episode of the hit anime Blood+. The UK Region 2 release is a two disc special edition, released in April 2008. Despite being exactly the same as the theatrical release, the BBFC re-rated the film from a 15 to an 18. Even though it still only has the eight featurettes on the second disc, it includes a bonus 30 Days of Night graphic novel.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Raimi Mulls 30 Days". Sci Fi Wire. 2002-07-15. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ SCI FI Wire (2007-07-30). "30 Days grabbed Raimi's Eye". SCI FI Wire. Retrieved 2007-07-30. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ Jonah Weiland (2002-07-22). "Niles Looks Forward to At Least '30 Days' of Screen Time". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ Ace MacDonald (2002-10-14). "Horror is October Month". Comicon.com. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ "Columbia Acquires 30 Days of Night". Ghost House Pictures. 2003-02-27. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ Jonah Weiland (2003-03-31). "Dark Horse's Mike Richardson Talks Comic Book Movies". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ a b Kyle Hopkins (2004-03-03). "Bloodthirsty in Barrow". Anchorage Press. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ "Steve Niles Talks Movies". Comic Continuum. 2004-05-04. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ "30 Days Moves Forward". Sci Fi Wire. 2004-10-13. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ Tatiana Siegel (2005-09-07). "Slade has eyes for Col's 'Night'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  11. ^ a b Edward Douglas (2006-03-24). "David Slade on 30 Days of Night". SuperHeroHype.com. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ "Hartnett in Flight with Sony 'Night'". 2006-06-15. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ "30 Days of Night, Melissa George and Josh Hartnett". MelissaGeorge.co.uk. 2006-07-31. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ Borys Kit (2006-09-11). "'Night' dawns for Huston in Col horror pic". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ Robert Sanchez (2006-09-28). "Exclusive Interview: Part II With Dark Horse's Mike Richardson". IESB.net. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ Daniel Fienberg (2006-04-13). "'Candy' Director Prepares for '30 Days of Night'". Zap2it.com. Retrieved 2006-10-13. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  17. ^ Cindy White (2007-10-15). "'Director David Slade shines a light on Josh Hartnett and Melissa George to bring a new vision of vampires to the screen in 30 Days of Night'". SciFi Weekly. Retrieved 2009-02-05. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. ^ Andy Khouri (2007-02-24). "NYCC, DAY 2: MYSPACE MYSTERY PANELISTS REVEALED!". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2007-04-06. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ "Brian Reitzell: 30 Days of Night" (PDF). Film Music Weekly. 2007-04-03. Retrieved 2007-04-10. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ a b "30 Days of Night (2007)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2007-10-25.
  21. ^ Pamela McClintock (2007-10-21). "Audiences sink teeth into 'Night'". Variety. Retrieved 2007-10-21. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  22. ^ "30 Days of Night (2007)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2007-10-25.
  23. ^ http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2007/30DAY-DVD.php

Further reading

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