Day 3
movie: Dead Cert
starring: Janet Montgomery, Steven Berkoff
genre: Crime, Action
year: 2010
format: TV Edit
plot: A club owner makes a bet with a drug lord named The Wolf, and loses his club. Before long, a vampire hunter arrives and informs him that the drug lord is really one of the most powerful vampires in the world.
I've seen more vampire movies than most, and have to say this was decent enough. The baseline is good, a small time underground fighter turned businessman gets conned by a mobster into giving up his property, only to find out these mobsters are centuries old vampires. It's very much in the same vein as From Dusk Till Dawn. The idea of using a strip club as a vampire front is even older than Dusk was,(Vamp, To Sleep with a Vampire) but it's a plot device that works. It makes sense and fits the metaphor of it being a feeding ground for all sorts of desires.
There's a few things going on here, from the idea of an old fashioned turf war, to what's the braking point for loyalty. I liked the fact there is a strong Renfield element going on for both sides of the story with the one club employee who betrays everyone,(sells out to Wolf) and the one who stands firm till the end. (stays with Cert)
There's this semi-inside joke with the naming of the strip club going from "Paradise" when Cert first opens it to "Inferno" after Wolf takes control. In fact, they emphasis this with a short scene where the heroes try to collect their broken sign after the club has been taken. I saw that as being a nod to the fact everything can shift so quickly from good to bad or bad to good. The place itself is neutral grounds, holy to both men for very different reasons. It comes down to the main idea that each of them - The Wolf and Cert- are doing their best to protect their "homes and family" at all costs.
I'm going to bury this one here, under this tombstone and I'll be back tomorrow with some more treats for your Hallowe'en displeasure.
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