DAYBREAKERS

DAYBREAKERS IS IMMORTAL
By Reymundo Salao

The year is 2019 and the world is not like it was before. The outbreak of vampirism has led to the a change in global civilization, for everybody who lives on Earth is now a vampire, civilization is now run and inhabited by vampires. And in order to sustain their lives, blood for public consumption is produced by corporations who control factories where they farm blood from human specimens. There is a problem, though, because the blood supply is running low, and the corporations are trying hard to find an alternative to help them sustain their lives. Because if they do not feed on human blood, they will biologically deteriorate into mindless mutants. One of the scientists, chief hematologist Edward Dalton stumbles upon the last remaining humans who fight for survival, and discovers that one of them used to be a vampire...

DAYBREAKERS is directed by Michael & Peter Spierig (the Spierig Brothers), who also directed the Australian zombie movie Undead. And they did a magnificent job on this movie. They paint a world where vampires inhabit the earth. That means that everybody stays indoors all day, there are cars that have special functions that will shield its passengers from the sun, and there are public warning curfews that warn everybody how much time is left before the sunrise. Experiencing the vampire world alone is enough to make you enjoy its surreal reality.

On the visual impact, one may also notice the shifts in the color tone of the movie. The lifestyle of the vampires are always seen in an almost monochromatic appearance with mere shades of blue and black, the humans on the other hand are defined by lush vibrant colors. When one vampire character finally transforms into being human, he no longer wears his office suit in a formal fashion, his hair, his overall appearance loosens up.

As expected, Ethan Hawke had a very impressive performance, which is consistent with the rest of his previous works; one may notice that he chooses his projects well. Hawke effortlessly plays a character of repressed angst, one that is silently in turmoil with himself. Up until he meets the character played by Claudia Karvan and Willem Dafoe, who is a vampire-turned-human who is one of outlaws hiding from the current society, he is well defined by the quote from the movie where he announces "We're the folks with the crossbows" Sam Neill, on the other hand, plays the corporate lord who controls the production of blood for mass consumption.

DAYBREAKERS is like no other vampire movie you have ever seen. And if you do consider yourself to be a vampire fanatic, this is one movie you should watch. It breaks the typical vampire storyline; this one is most unique and most original, so much so that it is so unpredictable where the movie will end up. Although there are scare moments in the movie, it is better defined as an intelligent sci-fi movie. It is smartly written and has numerous layers about it. Of course we have the main storyline that concludes that even though vampirism has helped people escape death, in the end, humans are the far superior species. And then we also have the metaphors of consumerism, corporate greed, class struggle, poverty, hunger, and drug addiction represented by the relationship between the blood corporations and those who cannot afford to purchase blood, who end up deteriorated by hunger or rather thirst. Another focus of the film lies on the relationship between Edward Dalton and his brother. Even there is a love story with the leading lady which appears on the outset as one that is given focus, ultimately it takes a back seat at the drama of Ethan's character and his brother.

I am reminded about how District 9 was that one movie last year which I am confident will become a timeless classic. This time, this is the movie which I think will ferment over time and will remain a timeless classic. At the very least, it would be like Blade Runner (which did not have a flashy success when it was released, yet it became an undying classic in the libraries of sci-fi). One heck of a brilliant film that blends a vampire movie, s futuristic sci-fi, and a kickass action movie. DAYBREAKERS is a movie that YOU MUST watch. My thumbs up high for this one.