RELEASED TO VIDEO IN 2010 and directed by Scott Patrick, "Blood Red Moon" concerns two outcast students (Sarah Lavrisa & Michael Rogers) at a high school in Ottawa who develop a romantic relationship. The drama takes an interesting turn when Victor (Rogers) turns out to be a vampire who reveals the realities and myths about the undead to Megan (Lavrisa). Meanwhile a series of slayings start occurring, which are blamed on Victor. Mark Courneyea plays a sheriff and Shelley-Jean Harrison a teacher.
The opening credits are great because they feature mysterious forest photography (that looks like the coastal Redwoods of northern California) and a superb moving instrumental. The sylvan cinematography is briefly inserted throughout the rest of the flick. Unfortunately, the actual movie is spare change-budget filmmaking with the typical basic shots (e.g. the outside of the high school), dubious acting and all-around subpar filmmaking. The principle actors inexplicably appear in the SAME clothes throughout the runtime even though it's clear that the events take place over the course of several days, like a week or two, and perhaps even longer.
That said, this is superior to the similar "The Last Vampire on Earth" (2010) due to the decent acting of the principle cast members. In "The Last Vampire on Earth" the wooden 'actors' came across as if they were reading their lines from a teleprompter. The story here is also more interesting due to the mounting deaths and the whodunit factor, as well as the interesting data on vampirism that Victor unveils. Haley Beauchamp with her full head of red hair stands out as the haughty cheerleader.
THE FILM RUNS 70 minutes and was shot in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. WRITER: Kevin J. Lindenmuth.
GRADE: D+
