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Genre: Horror
Horror movies have come back in a big way recently with Freddy vs. Jason, Jeepers Creepers 2 and Scary Movie 3 hitting theaters and making huge profits. These movies are cheap to make and fun for viewers, but for the most part, they all lack a story that helped horror movies of old become classics of today. That may be about to change with the hit Indie flick Sleepless Nights.
Sleepless Nights is about a covert government agency that kills vampires. When one vampire hunter, Christian Grey, is turned into a creature of the night by his wife he sets out for revenge against the most powerful vampire, Lord Malgaard, who is determined to rule the world via the power of an ancient an amulet that will allow him to walk in daylight. If Grey succeeds in his mission, he will free his wife from Malgaard's hold, but the agency that hunts the vampires no longer sees Grey as a friend and is watching his every move, curious about the vampire who doesn't kill and only drinks enough blood to survive. Grey receives help from a woman within the agency who has been diagnosed with a terminal illness and asks Grey to make her immortal in exchange for the useful information she can provide. The quest leads to an ultimate climax that even opens the door for an equally exciting sequel.
Sleepless Nights combines all the great elements of horror with a good story. After seeing for themselves, Blockbuster and Hollywood Video ordered 9,000 copies each to rent out in their stores and Best Buy ordered 7,500 copies to sell on its website (You can add YBFREE.com to the list of those who are supporting the film). Sleepless Nights has a great plot. You can tell that a lot of thought went into the writing and I really enjoyed everything about the story. The lead actor and actress were well cast and while some of the other actors seemed to look stiff on stage at times, they did a decent job as well in pushing the story along. I liked that there were a number of actors whose roles can be further explored in feature films.
"This project is the work of which I am most proud," said Howard Nash, co-producer of the film with Frank Cilla. "I have produced four films, but this movie is the best example of my efforts. We really put our noses to the grindstone and the writer, Bill Hopkins, put together a really entertaining movie with a good story that doesn't need dazzling special effects to attract viewers."
That enthusiasm helped bring Bill Murray, associate producer, into the project. "It looked like a good deal," he said. "I saw that they were very serious about it and so I took a gamble. I invested in the film and luckily, it looks like my investment will pay off."
Murray first began working in films when an old friend of his Victor Colicchio, co-wrote Summer of Sam, the Spike Lee-directed movie that was filmed in the Bronx. After helping out on the set, Murray was bit by the movie bug and started getting involved in the business, appearing on shows such as Law and Order, Oz, Uptight Citizen's Brigade and a few small roles in movies.
"My latest role in Sleepless Nights had me raising money for funding, including selling items on Ebay," he said. "I helped them come up with ways to reduce costs, such as purchasing our own editing equipment, using computers to come up with many of the special effects people will see, all without having to pay someone else to do all the work."
I certainly liked what I saw and despite some cheesy death scenes, yet the film certainly left me excited about the possibilities of future films with a larger budget. Also, check out the cool behind the scenes looks that discuss the process of the film and how some of the tricks were shot with less money to work with.
Next summer, the director and writer of Sleepless Nights, Bill Hopkins, is looking to create a zombie movie. With so many classic zombie movies created by George Romero on a shoestring budget, it will be interesting to see how this group of hardworking filmmakers will fare. If Sleepless Nights is an example of what is to come and the idea that everything improves through practice, I think they all have a bright future and fans will be able to enjoy horror films once more.
Send your comments and or questions about this article to JMinners@ybfree.com.