More Blood, More Gore... Asian style

Gore. Everywhere. With heads rolling. And then some more. It’s much to be expected in a straight laced horror film with a dash of kung fu thrown in there for a good measure.

Some movies work. Some don’t.

This one did.

Released over the summer without much fanfare, the film “Blood: The Last Vampire” charts its way through seas of red in theaters without bursting a bubble of popularity. There are no real known actors/actresses in it. And not even the director is even known in these parts of this country.

No wonder no one’s heard of it.

It could even be argued that most people are sick and tired of vampires. It doesn’t help that most people are lovesick from the pretty boy actors in the film “Twilight” that gives a new face to the meaningful life of the nocturnal bloodsuckers. However, it can be pointed out that this film is based on an anime source that came out years before “Twilight” did.

There’s a South Korean actress Jun Ji-hyn in the lead role. There’s also a director Ronny Yu who is from the eastern world. So is the writer Chris Chow. So it’s no surprise that there isn’t much interest in the film. It was released as an American film with an oriental co-production, first being exposed in countries like Japan and other Asian markets before hitting the western shores with its high spirited story of vampires.

I like this movie.

I suppose I am being subjective. But much of the film really holds it together due to the central actress Jun Ji-hyun (she changes her name in for this movie) who gives a very sympathetic portrayal of a 400 year old vampire Saya. She lives a life of misery without a father. Her life grows long and persistent as it is filled with regret… then she grows more fueled with overpowering hatred for her own kind. And so she hunts her own in a way of bringing vengeance to her father’s death.

She often gets rid of the extra baggage of undesirables she often refers to as “bottom feeders.” In a way, she does the dirty work for the Council while the higher ups simply washes their hands clean of the mess. They makes the mess. And they clean it up for her. It’s a sort of working relationship.

She’s only half vampire. The rest are full blooded. She feeds on the night and lives in solitude. Only seeking the one that brought grief to her, the Onigen who is the most powerful of vampires.
Her performance is sincere. And she has no trouble speaking in English when needed. Though she talks in her native Korean language as easily, her voice, the glaring eyes, creates a very momentous figure of beauty. She is a feisty, spiraling hurricane of lusty revenge. Some critics say that her fighting skills are not convincing in martial arts. I disagree wholeheartedly. The drive of her performance remains the focus point of the film, and we can see the energy she brings in many of the fighting scenes.

The story shifts to the American military base where there is a rising tide of vampires creating a shroud of blackness around the city. There are many of them taking form as human. And it’s always up to Saya to pick the humans from the imposters. (Much like the anime version).

The added character of Alice who stumbles into the middle of the conflict is a nice reference to the Alice in Wonderland motif… how a young woman from school discovers the lurking of creatures in the background and learns of a war that’s been waging for more than four hundred years. And she learns of The Council who may have an agenda of their own. Some critics complain that the plot is too convoluted. Again, I disagree with them. I found the plot to be easy to follow and enjoyed the many threads of the storyline that comes together into a strong lattice of content.

Yes, there is gore.

Plenty of it.

But at least the story is well written one. And I would add that not even a hundred Saw movies or Hostel could even compare to this film which is done with a creative stride and a boastful effects that takes the story to an otherworldly appearance.

The story is set in 1970. And the film does show respect to the original source by maintaining the setting and date. So that the cars, clothing and people all fit into the 1970s atmosphere which is very nicely done. And I’m glad that someone went through the trouble of going through history books to get the appearance of the movie looking like a chapter from the past.

Despite being a loner, always fighting the war on her own, Saya forms an uneasy alliance with Alice who becomes friends through life and death as they travel further into the underpinning world that rots to the core. There are some nice flashbacks regarding the Saya character and learn as to why she is a very unhappy girl.

While the Alice character is initially annoying, she does grow into her own person and becomes a force for good as she supports her friend in the great fight.

Some very nice fight scenes are placed at crucial points of the film makes it move along at a very hefty ninety minutes, a nice change for the three hour movie thugs that often fill the theaters space. Some very nice throwaway lines suggesting the council and the elder paints a bigger background for this movie. This is an entertaining ride that shows that the use of vampire isn’t entirely run dry and there’s still more story to follow. I like the Asian characters in the film a lot and will support the talents behind it.

For those who didn’t get a chance to see this film during the summer’s release, there’s still a way to get a hold of a copy to rent. You may want to try Blockbuster video as they seem to carry it on the shelf.

It’s a nice Halloween treat that has a different taste and style. While it does have buckets of blood, reinforcing the film's title, it does provide a very thoughtful portrayal of loneliness, a life of emptiness that can only be filled by anger, violence. But one must only be reminded of being human to encourage life itself. And there are always friends even though one believes herself to be a loner wading through a personal war.