Film Review- "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter" 2012

“Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter”

Directed by- Timur Bekmambetov

Running Time- 105 min.

Rated- R

If I was judging movies based just on their title, this movie would receive high marks. Before I saw it I thought this movie was going to be a sure thing. I thought they couldn't miss with a title as grabbing as this one. But this “mash-up” movie that combines the drama of historical fiction with the action of a vampire movie, turned out not to be the slam dunk I thought it would be. It supposes, “What if, during his life, President Abraham Lincoln was secretly a vampire hunter?”

The story follows Lincoln from his childhood when he first stands up against a slave owner, Jack Barts, played by Marton Csokas, to protect his friend William. The action loses Lincoln's father Thomas, played by Joseph Mawle, his job and to collect the debt Barts says Thomas still owes, Bart breaks into the Lincoln's home and kills Abe's mother Nancy by poisoning her. Abe vows to avenge his mother's death and spends the next nine years plotting to kill Barts. When Abe, now a grown-up, played by Benjamin Walker tries to kill Barts, it is revealed he is a vampire and he overpowers Abe. But Abe is saved by Henry Sturgess, played by Dominic Cooper. Henry explains that vampires do exist and he recruits Abe to be a vampire hunter.

Over the next ten years Abe learns to be a vampire hunter- learning how to wield an ax, his weapon of choice because he doesn't like guns, like a ninja warrior. When Lincoln finally gets to kill Barts it is revealed that Henry is also a vampire and the reason he recruits vampire hunters is because vampires can't kill other vampires and he wants Lincoln to kill his maker Adam. Adam, played by Rufus Sewell, is a rich plantation owner who along with his sister Vadoma, played by Erin Wasson, is in charge of the vampires.

With Barts defeated, Lincoln retires from vampire hunting, putting his ax away in a special case and pursues his political career with his new wife Mary Todd, played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Lincoln reunites with his childhood friend William Johnson, played by Anthony Mackie and Lincoln decides to try to end slavery as President of the United States. Henry warns Lincoln that slaves are who are fed to vampires and that ending slavery would anger them. When Adam learns of Lincoln's vampire killings, he sends Vadoma, posing as a White House maid, to bite Lincoln's son William.

When William falls ill Lincoln is forced to confess the truth about vampires to Mary Todd and they are forced to make the heart-breaking decision to let their son die rather than become a vampire. The historical fiction matches since Lincoln did have a son while President who died at a young age from a sudden illness. When Mary finds out the truth and with the country at risk, Lincoln takes his ax out of its special case to resume his life as a secret vampire hunter.

With the Civil War underway, Adam conspires with Confederate President Jefferson Davis, played by John Rothman, to send all the vampires to the front lines. So now the movie supposes, Jefferson Davis knew there were vampires too and he tried using them to win the Civil War. Lincoln counters the move by ordering all the silverware be made into ammunition and weapons since vampires are vulnerable to silver. In the movie's climax, Adam and the vampires try to thwart the Union's efforts by trying to stop the train the silver is supposed to be transported on, only to find the train holds only rocks and the whole thing was a ruse, a trap set so Lincoln could kill Adam. Lincoln's plan is a success and the rest of history goes the way we already know it does.

I'm sure Hollywood is not done with vampire movies yet, but I hope this movie will serve as notice that they are running out of ideas for the genre. This movie is based on a novel of the same name written by Seth Grahame-Smith. I kept envisioning Seth, sitting in a publisher's office, pitching a story about how Lincoln decided to fight slavery and become President of the United States and win the Civil War, essentially saving the country. Seth looks over at the executive who is totally not interested. In desperation Seth says, “Well, what if Lincoln fought vampires?” To which the executive, seeing dollar signs at the possibility of exploiting our recent fascination with vampires said, “Now that is interesting.”

The tired genre aside, “Vampire Hunter” is bogged down by a tone that is too serious, and the script plays fast and loose with historical accuracy. In the movie Mary Todd is, at first, engaged to Lincoln's political rival Stephen Douglas. Not only is it historically inaccurate, it is so cliché to have the hero woo a girl away from his personal rival. And Lincoln's friend William hangs out with Lincoln in the White House as if the two are best friends when he is President. As if to say, “Look how anti-slavery Lincoln is, he has a black friend hanging out with him in the White House.”

Benjamin Walker does look enough like a young Abe Lincoln for us to buy him as the President and he does a good enough job as an action star to add the “bad ass” dimension to our Lincoln consciousness. Another plus is that the movie moves at the sleek pace of a Tim Burton movie (Burton is a co-producer) and the scenery does appear authentic. The scene when Lincoln delivers The Gettysburg Address does have an iconic feel to it. If only it wasn't surrounded by a heavy handed hokey vampire movie.

This is essentially an action movie so it has to be judged as an action movie. And action movies are successful when they are not only exciting but fun, which this movie is not. Combining the historical fiction with the action could have been inspired but it is instead contrived. That makes this movie the most disappointing of the year since its title gave me such high hopes.

Review Grade- C