Fright Night
Fright Night (1985) is an American horror film that was written and directed by Tom Holland.
It has certain parodic/humorous elements, and some homoerotic subtext, but it is quite sexist. The main female character is, by turns, a virginal love interest, the damsel in distress, and a hyper-sexualised monster.
Fright Night seems to have been largely inspired by the story Dracula, updated to a 1980s, suburban, American setting, and follows rules about vampires that would later be echoed and expanded upon by Buffy the Vampire Slayer. (Examples: High school students as the central characters; an older, ineffectual mentor figure; the hero living in the suburbs with his mother; vampires requiring invitations to enter people's homes, etc.) It was part of a reinterpretation of vampire films including The Lost Boys and Near Dark.
Cast
- Chris Sarandon as Jerry Dandrige
- William Ragsdale as Charley Brewster
- Amanda Bearse as Amy Peterson
- Roddy McDowall as Peter Vincent
- Stephen Geoffreys as 'Evil' Ed Thompson
- Jonathan Stark as Billy Cole
- Dorothy Fielding as Judy Brewster
- Art Evans as Detective Lennox
Storyline
Charley Brewster, a teenage horror fan, finds out that his new neighbour, Jerry Dandridge, is a vampire who is killing women in the house next door. When his attempts to convince the authorities to investigate fail, and the vampire attacks him, Charley decides to kill him. His girlfriend Amy and his friend "Evil" Ed try to dissuade him of it, by bringing in washed-up TV personality Peter Vincent (the host of "Fright Night", and star of several vampire films), "the great vampire killer", to prove that Jerry is not a vampire. They pay him to stage a fake test, to which Jerry agrees: he will drink "holy water" in front of Charley, but the vial from which he drinks actually contains ordinary tap water. It has no effect.
Unfortunately, Jerry is a vampire, and after the teens leave he follows them, cornering Ed alone in an alley and turning him into a vampire, then chasing Charley and Amy into a nightclub where they have taken refuge. Jerry mesmerises Amy, and kidnaps her, telling Charley to return alone with Peter Vincent, unless he wants Amy to die.
"Evil" Ed, now a vampire, attacks Peter Vincent, who fights him off with a cross. When Charley turns up, he convinces Peter to help him save Amy's life.
Meanwhile, Jerry has brought Amy into his home, changed her street clothes for a sexy white dress, lit a fire, and laid her out on a fur rug, where he proceeds to bite her in an erotically-charged scene.
Charley and Peter return to Jerry's house and try to fight him, but Billy and Jerry overcome them. Peter runs off to Charley's home (from which Judy Brewster is absent, because she's working nights), and is attacked by Ed, in the shape of a wolf. Peter stakes Ed, then, regaining confidence, goes back to face Jerry.
There is a lengthty, special-effects heavy showdown: Charley and Peter against Billy (who is not quite a vampire, but not human, either) and Jerry, and also Amy, who is in the process of transforming into a vampire.
As the sun rises, Peter finally kills Jerry, which returns Amy to human form.
In the end, Peter Vincent gets his job as a TV host back, and Charley has sex with Amy, and "Evil" Ed may still be alive.
Subtext
- Jerry Dandridge moves in with his roommate/live-in carpenter, Billy Cole; this leads Charley's mother, Judy, to wonder if they're gay.
- Jerry's incursion into Charley's bedroom and his dialogue during the attack.
- The scene in the alley where Jerry Dandridge follows "Evil" Ed reads like a seduction.
Trivia
Followed by Fright Night Part 2 (1988).
The name "Peter Vincent" is a reference to horror movie stars Peter Cushing and Vincent Price.