If you like your history twisted up with gruesome fantasy then Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter is the DVD for you. Like the US presidential equivalent of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, it pits a familiar story-line against a shadowy force, in this case blood sucking kick-ass vicious vampires.
Re-imagining Abraham Lincoln’s life in its near entirety, the film starts off with honest Abe’s childhood, in which his mother is murdered by a nefarious plantation owner (the sh*t). When as an adult he tries to get his revenge, it turns out that his enemy is actually a vampire, making him much more difficult to kill, and so Abraham is thrown into a world of blood sucking night hunters.
Based on the 2010 horror history novel by Seth Grahame-Smith, the movie embroils the young Lincoln (played by Benjamin Walker) into the darkness of a plot to keep the vampires on top to suckle on the bloody masses. Rufus Sewell does a pretty good job as the head vampire, Adam, helped along by some great special effects and cinematography.
In fact, all of the characters play their roles well, with Walker pulling off one of the world’s most recognisable historical heads of state from a young man all the way through to the culmination of the American Civil War. Dominic Cooper plays Lincoln’s vampire hunting trainer, Henry Sturges, who gives Abe the axe wielding lessons he needs to bring down the multi-skilled fangsters that have flooded America thanks to Adam.
It’s hard to say if you’re likely to watch the Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter DVD over and over again, but it’s lively, gruesome and fun, so definitely worth a watch. Especially on Halloween with its jumpy sequences and dark style inspired by co-directors Tim Burton (9) and Timur Bekmambetov (Night Watch). Check out the trailer below.
Special features on the DVD include the making of the film, the transition from the book to the film and commentary from the writer of the the book, Seth Grahame-Smith.
Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter DVD review: 3.7/5
