ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER

         

         I wanted Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter to work. Really, I did. The trailers made it look like non-stop goofy fun. While it did deliver some incredible sequences, the mix of real history and vampires felt a little off kilter and rushed as the movie progressed.
          A synopsis really isn't needed for this film, as the title sells it all. Abraham didn't have a great child hood as he lost his mother at a young age. It turns out milk sickness didn't really have anything to do with it as it was actually a vampire infecting his mother. Fast forward a few years and we get a vengeance seeking Abraham getting shit faced at a pub when he meets a stranger by the name of Henry Sturges (Dominic Cooper). After exchanging a few words, Abraham stumbles out of the bar ready to kill the man responsible for murdering his mother. Things don't go as planned of course and luckily for Abraham, Henry Sturges shows up just in time to save him. And yes, Henry Sturges is a vampire killer.
          Abraham's training begins at this point in the movie and while it didn't need to dwell on it I felt more time should have been given to his training. Maybe I am just too big of a fan of 80's training montages, but it really wouldn't have felt out of place. In no time at all Honest Abe can swing an axe as if he were on a high school color guard team. From there we are thrown into the action as Abraham heads to Springfield to begin his new career. Timur Bekmambetov is no stranger to wild action (Wanted anyone). CG enhanced bloodletting ensues at a rapid pace and the film never lets up. It is in section of film that AL:VH is strongest.  The two largest action set pieces are really a site to behold as dazzling doesn't even begin to describe them. Of course, if you are in the anti-CGI crowd you'll be disgusted at the sheer abundance of the 'enhancements.'
          AL:VH is certainly a one of a kind film, or at least story. With a little more emphasis on the vampires and a little less on the historical fact, it could have been a classic. As it stands it's a fun film the gets more right than wrong. It moves at a breakneck pace and should be viewed for the two big action sequences if for nothing else.