Rated
R (Violence Throughout and Brief Sexuality)
Running
Time: 1 Hour & 45 Minutes
Cast-
Benjamin
Walker-Abraham Lincoln
Mary
Elizabeth Winstead-Mary Todd Lincoln
Anthony
Mackie-Will Johnson
Dominic
Cooper-Henry Sturgess
Jimmi
Simpson-Joshua Speed
Rufus
Sewell-Adam
Marton
Csokas-Jack Barts
Erin
Wasson-Vadoma
Robin
McLeavy-Nancy Lincoln
Joseph
Mawle-Thomas Lincoln
Jaqueline
Fleming-Harriet Tubman
John
Rothman-Jefferson Davis
Cameron
M. Brown-William Wallace Lincoln
Alan
Tudyk-Stephen A. Douglas
Directed
by Timur Bekmambetov
 |
| He freed the slaves and reunited a fractured nation but what you didn't know is that Abraham Lincoln (Benjamin Walker) is a vampire hunter! |
'Four score and seven years ago our fathers
brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and
dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged
in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived
and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that
war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place
for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is
altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But, in a larger sense,
we cannot dedicate—we cannot consecrate—we cannot hallow—this ground. The brave
men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our
poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember
what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the
living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who
fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here
dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we
take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure
of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in
vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that
government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from
the earth.' Amazing how a speech consisting of only ten sentences has withstood the test of time, which is ironic
since the speaker notes that 'the world will little note, nor long remember
what we say here.' Those who paid attention in history class should know that
the above speech is the famous Gettysburg Address, made by sixteenth President
of the United States Abraham Lincoln on November 19, 1863, four and a half
months after the decisive Battle of Gettysburg where Union armies defeated
those of the Confederacy after three days of fierce fighting. Here comes the
real shock: many of the Confederate soldiers were actually vampires! Looks like historians left out that little detail in our
textbooks. Of course, that last part isn't really true but Hollywood—in
addition to the endless barrage of sequels, prequels, and remakes—has currently
taken to re-imagining historical figures as amateur detectives or axe-wielding
superheroes in their infinite chase for the almighty dollar. The first of these
was April's "The Raven" and now we have "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire
Hunter," based upon Seth Grahame-Smith's novel of the same name published
in 2010. Smith is also the author of 2009's "Pride and Prejudice and
Zombies," whose film adaptation is languishing in development hell. From
director Timur Bekmambetov, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" treats
its silly premise with a straight face but much of its potential ends up being
wasted or underutilized, leaving a dull action film with little to offer to
audiences.
Young Abraham Lincoln lives in Pigeon Creek, Indiana with his
parents Nancy (Robin McLeavy) and Thomas (Joseph Mawle), who works at a
plantation owned by the ruthless Jack Barts (Marton Csokas) in 1818. One day,
Lincoln sees his best friend, William Johnson, being brutally whipped by a
slaver and leaps to his rescue but his father ends up being fired by Barts when
he is forced to intervene. Barts demands that Thomas pays the debt he owes in
full immediately but is rebuffed, prompting him to threaten that 'there’s more
than one way to collect a debt.' That night, Lincoln hears someone breaking in
and sees Barts about to attack his mother. Nancy falls ill the next morning and
dies shortly afterward. His father passes away nine years later, leaving an
adult Abraham Lincoln (Benjamin Walker) free to pursue his vengeance against
Barts. He finds him at the docks and shoots him in the eye at point-blank range
but Barts, his mouth full of fangs, quickly recovers and is about to kill
Lincoln when a strange man attacks him from behind. Lincoln wakes up in the
home of Henry Sturgess (Dominic Cooper), who reveals that Barts is actually a vampire and that he hunts them. Eager to
get revenge on Barts and avenge his mother's death, Lincoln asks Henry to train
him to become a vampire hunter like him and agrees to do whatever is needed.
Henry agrees and teaches Lincoln how to skillfully wield an axe and exploit a
vampire's various weaknesses. His training complete, Lincoln moves to
Springfield, Illinois in 1837 to pursue a career in law. He works as a
shopkeeper's assistant by day with Joshua Speed (Jimmi Simpson) but spends his
nights hunting vampires. Lincoln also meets a beautiful woman named Mary Todd
(Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and falls in love with her. After reuniting with his
friend William (Anthony Mackie), Lincoln is inspired to enter into politics and
speaks out against slavery but Henry reveals that vampires are kept in check by
using slaves as a food source. Tired of his meddling, a vampire lord named Adam
(Rufus Sewell) vows to kill Lincoln, even if it plunges the United States into
a civil war.
Despite its absurd premise, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire
Hunter" is a surprisingly generic affair. Seth Grahame-Smith adapted his
own novel to film but while there's some fun to be had with its mash-up of
history and supernatural fantasy, the story is a thinly plotted, nonsensical
mess. Lincoln's entire life is reduced to a series of CG action scenes loosely
connected by scenes of exposition, leaving the characters with absolutely no
development besides the simplest of motivations. In fact, the pacing feels
rushed, glossing over many of the major events in Lincoln's life. There are also
numerous inconsistencies that detract from the film as they pile up, such as
how vampires can seemingly walk around in broad daylight without catching fire
(no, sunscreen can't be that
powerful) to Lincoln's sudden superhuman abilities that allows him to knock a
tree down with one hit simply because he confronted his own fears and doubts. Smith's
attempts to combine historical events with its more fantastical elements often
come off as forced or awkward, especially when it tries to explain that the
American Civil War was waged all because of vampires. In contrast to his
gleefully violent "Wanted" from 2008, Bekmambetov keeps the tone
serious—too serious—making for a
rather dull viewing experience. The only time that the film really comes alive
is a preposterous sequence where Lincoln battles Barts during a horse stampede.
The two leap from horse to horse and defy all manner of physics but sadly, the
rest of the action suffers from an overabundance of obvious CG, giving it a
cartoonish quality. Sure, all the set-pieces are slickly edited, well-choreographed,
and appropriately bloody but it’s very by-the-numbers and looks like it came
out of a video game. Ultimately, the title is the only unique feature about the
film as the execution leaves much to be desired, with little that
differentiates from all the other B-movie schlock that Hollywood often
releases. The only way you're going to enjoy "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire
Hunter" is if you have no knowledge of our sixteenth president's life and
the American Civil War. Instead of filming in 3D, Bekmambetov opted to do a
post-conversation and while the image compensates for the dimming effect from
the glasses by upping the brightness, there's no sense of depth. The 3D is
little more than a gimmick and is only noticeable when objects, such as
bullets, are flying toward the screen. However, there's a nice effect applied to
the vampire's eyes, giving them an eerie quality. This is a competent
post-conversation but you're better off seeing it in 2D as Bekmambetov does not
take advantage of the 3D despite his over-the-top directorial style.
One of the
few highpoints of the film is the earnest performances. Looking like a young
Liam Neeson, Benjamin Walker makes for a credible action hero and really sells
the premise that Abraham Lincoln might actually be an axe-wielding vampire
hunter. The old-age make-up in the latter half is quite impressive and was done
by Greg Cannom, who won an Academy Award for his work in "The Curious Case
of Benjamin Button" in 2009. Anthony Mackie, Jimmi Simpson, and Dominic
Cooper play one-note characters but they make the most with what they're given.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead looks nothing like the real Mary Todd but that's
actually a good thing. Finally, there's Marton Csokas and Rufus Sewell, hamming
it up as the villains.
Released on June 22, 2012, "Abraham Lincoln:
Vampire Hunter" has received largely negative reviews with 35% on Rotten
Tomatoes. Critics praised the visual style but found 'its overly serious tone
doesn't jibe with its decidedly silly central premise, leaving filmgoers with
an unfulfilling blend of clashing ingredients.' The film opened against Pixar's
"Brave" and comedy-drama "Seeking a Friend for the End of the
World" and while it was predicted to be a flop, it managed a solid, if
unremarkable, $16.3 million debut but it'll likely struggle to make back its
$69 million production budget given the rough competition in July. I ended up
paying out my own pocket to see the film and there were only five to six people
during the morning matinee at the theater. There's some mild enjoyment to be
had with "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" but the film ends up being
a mediocre affair, which is a damn shame given the promise afforded by its
premise.
Final
Rating: 2.5 out of 5
"History
prefers legends to men, nobility to brutality, soaring speeches to quiet deeds.
History remembers the battles, but forgets the blood. If history remembers me
at all, it will only be a fraction of the truth."
+Poster.jpg)
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