Fantastic Fest 2010 Review: ‘STAKE LAND’

Director Jim Mickle returns with co-screenwriter/actor Nick Damici in the vampire road film Stake Land. Recently, it won the Audience Award for TIFF’s Midnight Madness program.  So, I obviously went in expecting a lot from the film – especially since I was in love with Mulberry Street.  Could this be one of the best horror movies of the year?  Read beyond the break to find out.

Stake Land takes place in an America plagued by animalistic vampires – not those pesky Twilight-esque vampires.  Mister (Damici) and Martin (Gossip Girl’s Connor Paolo),a father-esque figure and a teenager, search for sanctuary in a place called New Eden (suggested to be in Canada). 

The plot is simple but it is the way that Mickle executes the desperation of civilization and hope of salvation that rises Stake Land above just another horror movie dealing with vampires.  Stake Land  is the “fuck you” to Twilight and vampires with feelings.  The only feeling these vamps have is to eat you, just like an animal would do in the wild.  Mickle creates a very vacant America with the small budget he was on and it really is commendable on a creative standpoint.  Stake Land isn’t the loud horror film that Hollywood make, it is the quiet but effective horror movie that fans want Hollywood to make.

Damici pulls out a great performance – if you liked him Mulberry Street, you will love him more in Stake Land.  He plays a cowboy type role – which is funny because he compared his character of Mister to Wayne’s character from John Ford’s The Searchers (more on that in a video interview to be released soon) – that really nurtures Connor Paolo’s Martin.  You get the feeling that he genuinely wants Martin to live because Martin is, essentially, the future.  Also joining the team of our badass vamp killers is Kelly McGillis as a nun who Mister rescues from a band of deviants.  McGillis pulls in a subtle but strong performance and, honestly, it is great to see her on the big screen again.  Also, scream queen Danielle Harris makes an appearance that I think might be one of her best performances in her career.

I really hope tons of people go check out this film if comes out in a wide release or in select cities because I think it might be a staple of American Horror Cinema in the past decade. While there are some slow parts and maybe some scenes that are a little clunky, the majority of this film is aces. Highly Recommended and it stands as the only film I saw twice, by choice, at Fantastic Fest.