The vampire movie could have been great, but horror fans will love it anyway

At this point, it is difficult to disconnect the new one Salem’s place of its nearly two-year release delay, during which many feared that the film would never see the light of day. This is an unfortunate situation. On the one hand, it clearly did not deserve to sit on the shelf for so long, caught up in the leadership change at Warner Bros. On the other hand, it does not quite live up to the expectations that inevitably built as Stephen King pressured the studio to release it.

I hope, in time, it can exist on its own terms. But my viewing experience was shaped by the context, which seemed to make the movie’s virtues and failures equally glaring. I can’t speak to how well it adapts its source material; I have never read King’s original book, and I have not seen either of the two miniseries versions. I can only say I found the script inconsistently effective, balanced by an often strong feel for horror image-making That should leave fans of Vampire Tales feeling satisfied when the credits roll.

An attempt at ensemble narrative weakens Salem’s plot

The script of the horror movie is not a strength

Although he is anchored around the author Ben Mears (Louis Pullman), who returns to his childhood home of Jerusalem Lot for inspiration, Salem site Wants to be an ensemble film. The early section takes time to introduce us to some characters who will play important roles, because the town is set by the newly arrived Kurt Barlow (Alexander Ward), a vampire shipped to the old world by his affable acquaintance Richard. Striker (Pilou Asbæk). I can imagine a version of this ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ Midnight mass. Instead, it dilutes its focus.

Writer-director Gary Dauberman thinks so Torn between the desire to make a compelling drama and a cool, scary movie. Far too often, the backstory and revealing moments we’re treated to don’t end up mattering all that much. Once someone finds themselves in a vampire-horror setpiece, it all goes out the window. The one real exception is Mark (Jordan Preston Carter), a young, genre-obsessed boy defined by his bottomless courage. Who he is always determines what he does, and he is the most consistently engrossing character because of it.

If anyone else succeeds in getting us to actually care about them, credit goes to the performer. The dialogue in Salem’s place is often awkwardBut when Bill Kemp’s school teacher, Matt Burke, speaks, even once he starts spewing folklore, he always sounds like a real person. His scenes (I can think of two in particular, one in a bar and the other in his home) are the best version of what Dauberman’s film could have been, with style fueled by dramatic investment. Even so, that style goes a long way.

Salem’s site brings back vampire horror with truly striking imagery

And a throwback sensibility I appreciated

like a vampire movie, Salem’s place is refreshingly old-school. Recent entries in the subgenre typically draw tension from revealing which traditional vampire tropes are “real,” but this one not only embraces all the classics, it works to make them visually interesting. Once the conditions for a meeting are met, you can feel the movie transition into horror mode. The filming really comes alive in these moments.

The film is built on light and shadow and uses them to striking effect. Salem’s placeS vampires are defined by predatory eyes that glow, peering at us through fog or from the dark corner of a room. Crosses shine brightly in a vampire’s presence, and to hold one defiantly before you not only makes for a great taboo but provokes a mighty, repulsive force. We have come a long way since 1931 DraculaWhen Bela Lugosi only trembled and twisted his coat at the sight of one.

After a long cycle of them being deployed in other ways, I enjoyed seeing vampires as terrifying. I expect other horror aficionados will feel the same way; The cool and scary portions of the movie really connect. I wish Dauberman was really committed to this instinct. The film moves too fast, perhaps to increase the story, when it should let us sit in the creeping fear. I often felt that the daytime scenes pulled me away from what I was most captivated by, not sinking me deeper into.

As much as the best scenes demonstrate how much is added when we really care about the person under threat, you don’t really need the constructs of character to achieve that. It is enough that we see the humanity of anyone we are supposed to identify with and the inhumanity of the monster that chases them. How they respond to such a situation will teach us everything we need to know about them. Salem’s placeFrustratingly, it seems to understand this only some of the time, and ends up being a solid film when it could have been a great one.

After premiering at Beyond Fest on September 25, Salem’s place will be available to stream on Max on Thursday, October 3. The film is 113 minutes long and is rated R for bloody violence and language.