An Irish vampire film playing off of the fact Bram stoker was Irish, and a community more than happy to exploit the localized legend for personal gain. The filmmakers engage in a little retcon of the history behind at all to present a somewhat different take on vampire mythology. I will admit, I love the Irish sensibilities, humor and effortless banter, and there are some creative moments of writing and banter throughout the series that strengthen the weaker moments of the story. It’s initially pretty fun, with a lot of very tongue in cheek nods and winks to prior vampire stories, and at least attempting something new with exhausted genre conventions. However, the series goes into more serious emotional fare, never quite abandoning the tongue-in-cheek, but never quite delivering on the tonal shift. While the dark humor of this series is legitimately its greatest asset, there are some genuinely good moments of horror and tension that end up shortchanged by the effort to inject levity. At the end of the day, despite some unique elements and some fun humor, this movie doesn’t quite deliver on either front and never elevates itself beyond promise and potential.
Boys from County Hell (2021)