Stake Land (Film Review) – 2011 Post-Apocalyptic Vampire Horror

Nov 20, 2011
Hari Navarro

Stake Land (2011) – Dir. Jim Mickle - © Vendetta Films NZ

Vendetta Films (New Zealand) sets for its December 7th release of Jim Mickle's feral vampire saga, Stake Land.

A film refreshingly stripped clean of most any trace of the pesky humor that now sneaks in to infuse the various genres and sub-genres of the horror cannon, Stake Land instead drips in haunting shades of bleak.

Dystopia, that of the post-apocalyptic variety, is again revisited here as lush premise by the film’s director Jim Mickle (some may recall his rat-faced epidemic horror Mulberry Street (2006)). His is a tactile and relentlessly naturalistic visual approach that thankfully, although the films ultra-thin budget may have added some weight to the decision, spares its audience the expected lashings of CGI fueled clutter.

On The Road Again

Comparisons to John Hillcoat’s 2009 “The Road” (itself drawn from Cormac McCarthy’s brilliant novel of the same name) have already been made, and they are well founded. Both Hillcoat’s film and Mickles’ test their viewers, as they slow down the expected tempo and instead pause to drink in the acid detail of a civilization in self-inflicted decline.

Stake Land dwells in an America that has been viciously cast backward, it is a place of huddled fear where beasts stalk the night and self-preservation reigns supreme. A “The Walking Dead” vibe also accompanies as zombies are here switched for that other staple, horrors now much domesticated vampire. But here, feral and uncompromisingly ferocious, these fanged pretenders to humanity’s throne are again pumped up and streamline with a heavy dose of menace.

Ironically, in light of the fact that Stake Lands vamps have their pointy teeth pulled out as marketable trophies, this is a film that can, in many ways, draw credit for actually giving these icons of horror lore back much of their bite. Make no mistake these creatures are still far removed from the classic images of the bloodsucker ‘bound to the night’, but at least now when a splintered stake is driven into their armored chests we again give a damn.

Stake Land: Cast

The humans of the piece comprise a dynamic that is admittedly well worn. We have Martin (Connor Paolo), a teenager who, following a vampire attack that lays waste to his entire family, falls in with crusty traveling vampire wrangler “Mister” (Nick Damici). There follows the standard echoes of Karate Kid inspired training sequences and the introduction of a rag-tag grab-bag of eclectic additional characters.

There’s the faith challenged nun (Tom Cruise’s Top Girl Kelly McGillis), a heavily pregnant bar maid (genre poster girl Danielle Harris), a contemplative ex-Marine (Sean Nelson, Law & Order) and an over the top religious zealot (Micahel Cerveris, he of FOX’s Fringe).

Stake Land does well to dig deep into itself as it plays with accepted convention and expected charter arcs. Though it is a jittery and uneven style of cinema that can frustrate as it follows some of its multitude plot threads, only to leave others half explored and dangling in the chill mountain breeze.

A film that will surely not please all, but one that should impress as it skilfully reshuffles the vampire pack. With not a commercial bone in its body “Stake Land” ultimately proves a slice of decidedly grown up and thought provoking horror. It does take some work but stick it with it but keep an eye out for its airborne bombardment of ’ vampire bombs’, now there’s something you don’t see every day.