Nick Knight

I enjoyed this movie very much when it came out and I would love to see it again. Rick Springfield was my idol when I was a teen, and I have liked most of what I've seen him in. I also liked the TV series based off this movie. Like I said, it was for the time a very original take on the old standby Vampire legend

The majority of people who have seen the made-for-TV movie Nick Knight are probably devoted fans of the short-lived horror series "Forever Knight." While this movie is a pilot for the series, it has the added curiosity of throwing Rick Springfield into the starring role as the cop/vampire who is trying to make the world a better place. As made-for-TV movies go, this one is about as good as can be expected. Which is to say, it's average. It doesn't hold a candle to "Forever Knight," but for fans of the show it is an interesting diversion. Sadly, like the show this unpolished gem hasn't made it to video or DVD. Maybe you'll get lucky and catch it on television sometime. It's worth setting the VCR for it.

"Nick Knight" (Rick Springfield) is a detective who has recently been assigned a case involving a serial killer who not only murders people but also drains them of their blood. Needless to say, the media is having a field day with this strange development and have half-jokingly begun to refer that the serial killer is a vampire. What the media-or anybody else-knows is that Detective Knight just happens to be a real vampire and has taken a special interest in this case. Now rather than reveal any more of this movie I will just say to say that this was one of the better Vampire movies produced in the late-80's and early-90's mainly because it doesn't follow the normal pattern of almost all of the other Vampire films prior to this time. The fact that this was also a made-for-television movie makes it even more unique as quite often these films lack imagination and originality. That being said however, I must admit that the special effects were rather basic and could have used some significant improvement. Be that as it may, I enjoyed the movie for the most part and have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

The movie was fine, with good casting and the scenes were excellent. However, I guess I became spoiled by the television series, because I liked Gerient Wyn Davies as Nick much better and Nigel Bennett was made to play Delacroix. It would be great if they could take that series and do a major film from it. This film, the original television pilot for the series does hold up well. Rick Springfield is an excellent Nick. I was somewhat disappointed with the climax of the story (I don't want to spoil it for those who have not seen it) but hey, you cant always have everything in life that you want. For all you classic car fans, check out Nick's vintage 1959 Caddilac. It could have been billed as a star of the show itself.

"Forever Knight" was a cheesy show, but the TV movie it was taken from -- "Nick Knight" -- with Rick Springfield was brilliant. It had much better production values than "Forever Knight" and it was both hipper and grittier. And it was better than the episode of "Moonlight" -- a suspiciously similar series -- I saw.

Rick drove a big-ass vintage pink Cadillac, because if he was caught when the sun came up it had the largest trunk available for him to dive into and hibernate until night. He was working with a sympathetic coroner to try and wean himself from blood (which in any case he never took from people -- he had blood lab bottles in his refrigerator).

The coroner guy was a cross between a friend, an AA sponsor, and a medical researcher. Rick was often strung out from their regimen, just like a recovering addict. Not only did he have withdrawal symptoms if he didn't get enough plasma, but real food -- which he was trying to break into eating -- tended to make him sick. His relationship with this guy was the central ongoing one in the story. He lived in an apartment carved out of a Grauman-type movie palace (it was the upper lobby or something) so it had all this over the top decor that was both vampire and Old L.A. in feeling.

Springfield gave Nick a troubled rock star feel, hot and somewhat elegantly wasted. He was struggling with his life, and he just happened to have the hottest car, the coolest apartment, and the best jacket. He was such a good detective that the L.A.P.D. indulged his eccentric insistence on working only at night.

They should have simply greenlighted the show just the way it was, with Springfield in it, but instead it ended up an underbudgeted Canadian series with no realistic underpinnings, a lot of costume flashbacks, and Geraint Wynn-Davies's somewhat actorish performance. What's more, the minute Wynn-Davies got the part he started putting on weight and kept putting it on. I hated, hated, hated that show.