Blade (1998)


 

Before the Marvel-craze really kicked off, many considered comic book adaptations for the big screen rather laughable. Well, if most of the renditions have been pisspoor, that is only normal. But then came  a little film called 'Blade' and even though it only garnered a following through the years since its release, this is a gritty take on the source material and it did prove that it was possible to make decent comic book films. Heck, this one is severely underrated even.

For those not in the know: Blade is a half human/half vampire, which gives him many of the vampires' strengths, yet he is able to walk around in daylight and he can even stomach garlic. Downside is that he has the bloodthirst and he uses a serum to try and keep it at bay. Together with his mentor Whistler Blade hunts vampires and kills as many as he can. He is particularly fond of a vampire called Deacon Frost. 

Frost is a young upstart, not a born vampire, but he wants to shake things up and do away with the living in the shadows that the old council propagates through the years. He just wants to take over, and in order to do that, he is studying the old scrolls in search of something called La Magra, or an ancient bloodgod. He also kills off several of the ancients. Little twist: Frost is the one that bit Blade's mother when she was pregnant, thus in fact being a sort of father to Blade.

Yes, it is a little bizarre, considering Wesley Snipes looks older than Stephen Dorff, but vampires, so hey. 

It all boils down to a one on one showdown in an ancient temple, which funnily enough is located in a modern city. Huh. Who knew? 

This film has a lot going for it. The aesthetics are spot on. It all looks and feels dark and grimy, because we are in fact often in the underbelly of society, where vampires keep low in order to survive. Some of the locations are so memorable. Heck, the very first scene is a vampire rave in a slaughterhouse with the iconic bloodbath and it also leads up to probably the most kickass introduction of a lead character in any film. I'm not even kidding or using hyperbole. 

Well, maybe not that much hyperbole. 

Wesley Snipes is brilliant as Blade. He is very stoic and silent, but the way Snipes moves just gives it all that extra credibility. Kris Kristofferson as Whistler is a nice counterbalance, being gruff and sarcastic, but it works. Stephen Dorff is also a lot of fun as Deacon Frost, as he walks that balance between hamming it up and being genuinely menacing. It just all blends really well and the action scenes are - most of the time - very well shot and choreographed. 

If there is one downside, it's that the CG effects haven't aged well, alas. Especially the infamous 'cut in half'-shot is iffy, to say the least, but with a kick ass soundtrack and a fun ride for everything else, these minor frets shouldn't dissuade one from checking this one out. 

'Blade' is a bloody good time, and hopefully more and more people will continue to recognize this. Because as comic book films go, this is one of the better. 

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