Abigail really shouldn't have revealed it's big twist in the trailer however, this is still bloody good fun that finds a slightly fresh angle for vampire movies. It's got a great cast of characters, plenty more surprises beyond the big reveal and really good humour that makes up for the drawn out conclusion.
The main reason it should've kept the twist a secret is because Alisha Weir's performance is just so convincing. It's a performance of two halves as she initially appears to be innocent and then does a complete 180. She's thoroughly believable when pretending to be scared and even better when she's revelling in all the bloodshed.
The rest of the characters may be willing to kidnap a child for money but the cast does a really good job keeping you invested despite that fact. Melissa Barrera adds another terrific final girl to her résumé, Kevin Durand is an endearing gentle giant, Kathryn Newton brings the right amount of self-awareness and Dan Stevens is amazing as an irredeemably corrupt (former) cop.
Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have real confidence with their direction here, offering further proof of how good they are at maintaining tension to an unbearable length. There's a lot of fun to be had in the way they play with vampire lore, cherry picking which things to keep. Making a 12 year old ballerina vampire feel like a threat isn't easy and yet they pull it off flawlessly.
The main reason it should've kept the twist a secret is because Alisha Weir's performance is just so convincing. It's a performance of two halves as she initially appears to be innocent and then does a complete 180. She's thoroughly believable when pretending to be scared and even better when she's revelling in all the bloodshed.
The rest of the characters may be willing to kidnap a child for money but the cast does a really good job keeping you invested despite that fact. Melissa Barrera adds another terrific final girl to her résumé, Kevin Durand is an endearing gentle giant, Kathryn Newton brings the right amount of self-awareness and Dan Stevens is amazing as an irredeemably corrupt (former) cop.
Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have real confidence with their direction here, offering further proof of how good they are at maintaining tension to an unbearable length. There's a lot of fun to be had in the way they play with vampire lore, cherry picking which things to keep. Making a 12 year old ballerina vampire feel like a threat isn't easy and yet they pull it off flawlessly.