X
- 2010
- R
- Lionsgate Films
- 1 h 38 m
- 2010
- R
- Lionsgate Films
- 1 h 38 m
Summary Two-time Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke plays Edward Dalton, a researcher in the year 2019, in which an unknown plague has transformed the world's population into vampires. As the human population nears extinction, vampires must capture and farm every remaining human, or find a blood substitute before time runs out. However, a covert ...
Directed By: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig
Written By: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig
- 2010
- R
- Lionsgate Films
- 1 h 38 m
- 2010
- R
- Lionsgate Films
- 1 h 38 m
Daybreakers
57
6.8
Where to Watch
Summary Two-time Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke plays Edward Dalton, a researcher in the year 2019, in which an unknown plague has transformed the world's population into vampires. As the human population nears extinction, vampires must capture and farm every remaining human, or find a blood substitute before time runs out. However, a covert ...
Directed By: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig
Written By: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 31 Critic Reviews
57
52% Positive
16 Reviews
16 Reviews
39% Mixed
12 Reviews
12 Reviews
10% Negative
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 31 Critic Reviews
57
52% Positive
16 Reviews
16 Reviews
39% Mixed
12 Reviews
12 Reviews
10% Negative
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
Peter and Michael Spierig's earlier, campier horror outing, the zombie picture known as "Undead," was even bloodier than this one. The movie-makers are after bigger game here, and a subtler mixture of speculative nightmare and action film.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 178 User Ratings
6.8
53% Positive
94 Ratings
94 Ratings
41% Mixed
73 Ratings
73 Ratings
6% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 178 User Ratings
6.8
53% Positive
94 Ratings
94 Ratings
41% Mixed
73 Ratings
73 Ratings
6% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
Interesting take on Vampires being the dominant society and how the humans try to survive in it. I seem to keep coming back to this movie over the years. So the replay value surely bumps up the score.
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It’s a little bit silly – as is Dafoe’s Kentucky-fried cowboy mechanic named Elvis – but silly is fun. In fact, one wishes it were sillier still.
This intriguing premise, alas, ends as so many movies do these days, with fierce fights and bloodshed.
After a while, Daybreakers settles into the lulling rhythms of too many horror movies, as the characters ponder what to do in darkened rooms instead of doing much of anything.
Hawke is half-assed throughout, showing passion only when he's screaming like a little girl when something scary happens. The visuals have a dingy, unfocused quality, especially in the muddy visual-effects-enhanced backdrops. And some of the plot turns are awful. The vampire "cure" is so stupid, you'll want to walk out of the theater, even if you normally like this kind of movie.
Any higher intentions are brought crashing down by predictability, wooden characters, giggle-inducing attempts at scares (shrieking bats, anyone?) and cinematography so gloomy it should be checked for serotonin deficiency.
A total surprise! I have consistently been dumbfounded by the vampire craze in movies and television as of late, but then a small film like Daybreakers came along in a month like January, and I found myself wanting to take back all my preconceptions. Daybreakers is so much fun! It's amazing concept that executed with style.
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Daybreakers has an interesting sci-fi/fantasy premise - as the result of a virus, vampires become the dominant species on the planet, and struggle to survive once the remaining human population, and their life-giving blood supply begins to dwindle. The film has satisfying and effectively moody visuals and good direction from the Australian Spierig Brothers. In the lead role as a vampire scientist searching for a human blood substitute to feed the starving vampire population, Ethan Hawke us just how consistent his performances are, and Sam Neill keeps your attention, with a quiet menace about his character, who's basically a vampiric bureaucrat. And of course, it goes without saying that Willem Dafoe looks cool with a goatee on his face and a crossbow slung over his shoulder. The film, as a new take on the vampire myth with a satirical edge that comments on world energy crises is, for the most part, far better than it has to be. It does have a disappointing finale, issues with pacing, particularly when we spend any amount of time away from the cool vampire world and with the dull, depressing humans, and there's the odd bit of clunky dialogue. The explanation of one of the key plot points is also incredibly unsatisfying. For what it is though, Daybreakers is a decent example - it doesn't bring many new ideas to the table, sure, but just about everything is done well, and I enjoyed it far more than another recent modern take on a vampire film - 30 Days of Night. There's potential for expansion of this intriguing world in a sequel too, but whether this will manifest at all, or as anything beyond a direct-to-DVD feature remains to be seen.
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In this movie vampires have taken over and the human race is almost extinct leading to a blood shortage, if a blood substitute or a cure isn't found soon the vampires will turn into even more horrible bat like creatures, yeah it's as goofy as it sounds, and it ends up being an ok movie that most vampire maniacs will enjoy but for everyone else, it's an ok movie from beginning to end.
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Absolutely ridiculous. This plot is heavy on symbolism, but it's still a dumb movie. Just think about it for 1 minute and you'll start wondering why they bothered to make this at all.
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Production Company
Lionsgate Films,
Australian Film Finance Corporation (AFFC),
Pictures in Paradise,
Pacific Film and Television Commission,
Furst Films,
Mandate Pictures International
Release Date Jan 8, 2010
Duration 1 h 38 m
Rating R
Tagline In 2019, the most precious natural resource... is us.
Awards
Australian Screen Sound Guild
• 1 Win & 4 Nominations
Australian Film Institute
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
Fangoria Chainsaw Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
