Review: Daybreakers

Directed by: The Spierig Brothers

Written by: The Spierig Brothers

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, Claudia Karvan, Michael Dorman, Sam Neill

Rating: [2/5]

Unlimited resources simply do not exist, especially those meant to sustain life whether we speak of oil to heat homes or freshwater for all of its vital uses. Navigating and shepherding proper use of these resources for an entire populace therefore becomes quite important for governing bodies because the last thing anyone wants is for that resource to run out. Daybreakers looks at this resource depletion in an intriguing way where humans are the resource rather than the users in a world dominated by vampires. 

With the grim reality of the human race going extinct, vampire hematologist Edward (Ethan Hawke) and his crew tirelessly search for a synthetic alternative that could serve as a substitute. If they do not, the vampires will have troubles sustaining themselves, but when Edward meets a group of humans, he learns of the possibility of a cure that will return vampires to their human state. 

Films like Daybreakers will always gain some appreciation from me in their world building even with the bevy of issues it has that will be discussed shortly. In this modern vampire world, this feature displays what it would look like for these vampires to live just like humans do by having their 9-5 job and going home to your suburban sprawl. As normal as things can get but there are some distinct differences, which includes warnings about the sun coming up and to get indoors, to the fact their cars can go into daylight mode where their windshield blocks out the sun and the vampires drive by seeing through a screen. It’s the little things like this that show the creatives behind this really took the effort in building out this world. 

Additionally, the overall scope of the feature plays into a genuine fear many have about resources not lasting forever and what the world will turn into when this impending lack of blood impacts the whole populace. It makes individuals like Edward vital to the survival of their species given that farming and breeding humans will not produce what they need and an alternative needs to be found. However, the option of reverting to humans through a cure presents itself when Edward learns of what a band of humans have worked on allowing for a whole new path forward in Edward’s eyes but not all vampires agree. 

While the setup and initial establishment of what Daybreakers has to offer does bring some intrigue, the way it goes about unfolding this whole dilemma gets silly to borderline infuriatingly dumb in moments. Moments where character decisions do not match what they’ve done the scene before. One particular scene involving vampire SWAT members attacking each other really just puts the cherry on top in the way this feature just falls apart. The outline of how this film operates and its eventual conclusion makes sense from the standpoint of a beginning, middle, and end but everything in between feels wildly misguided and lackluster. We have insightful moments where we can see the difference between the haves and the have-nots in this vampire world but it never gets utilized to its full potential. 

Even with its issues, the films still had a fun cast of characters brought together to bring this world to life. Ethan Hawke steps in as the main protagonist in a fairly bland role but Sam Neill gets the opportunity to play the slimy owner of the largest blood provider, Charles Bromley. Not the best written character but Neill chews up the obvious evil of this man and makes him a captivating character. Unfortunately, the other actors like Claudia Karvan and Willem Dafoe get underbaked roles and are just there, which further deters the success of this film. 

Yet another case of great premise, but bad execution in the world of filmmaking but Daybreakers succeeds in creating the outline of a strong story but, when filling in the details, the film falls apart to the silliest degree. A real shame, but this feature does allow for an indulgence of looking into a modern world where vampires would rule and where humans go from rulers of the planet but rather the resource that farmed for the sustenance of the dominant species. A bit of a shrug overall.