Vampire Dog

This movie has very little to do with Vampires, or blood, or any real evil. The dog talks and has to avoid sunlight. Oh, and instead of drinking blood, he's into red Jello, but since this was made in Cananda, they call it "jelly". Sure the acting is awful but it's meant to be. The whole movie is slap stick and campy.

There's a sad boy who lost his Dad to illness, starting over in a new school. There's a neighborhood love interest who's nerdy but trying to keep in good graces with the "cool girls" that have allowed her to hang with them. Both kids are challenged to stand up to the mean kids, learn to be true to themselves, and do what they are good at.

The most raucous slapstick is reserved for the school's unscrupulous principal, and the (out of left field) goons that try to catch the dog throughout the movie and are foiled by the dog. They always get what's coming to them. It's just a fun little movie to watch with your kid. We enjoyed it.

Well, I sat down with my 11 year old son to watch the 2012 movie "Vampire Dog". And I must admit that I wasn't really expecting too much from the movie, given its title and synopsis.

But it turned out to be a movie that was actually better than I had anticipated. Sure, I am not saying that this is a stellar movie, but it definitely was watchable and proved entertaining for a family movie. And my son seemed to enjoy it well enough.

The storyline was good and had some elements that were suitable for all ages, so there is something for the entire family here. And it wasn't actually too bad of a storyline that writer Tracy McMenemy had managed to put together. However, the movie did drop down a notch in worth when the dog started talking. That, for me, was just a bit too far out there.

It should be said that the actors and actresses in the movie were definitely carrying the movie well with their individual performances. I wasn't familiar with anyone aside from Norm MacDonald, whom voiced Fang - the vampire dog.

If you are a family that watch movies together, "Vampire Dog" is actually a fun enough movie. One that might actually be suitable for a Halloween movie marathon.

However, director Geoff Anderson's 2012 movie was ultimately one that you will watch once and then probably never again, unless you are a younger member of the family. As such, then "Vampire Dog" just provided me with mediocre entertainment. This means that the movie's rating lands on a five out of ten stars.

If it was possible I would give the cinematic masterpiece vampire dog 11 stars (or Jellies if you have seen this life changing movie). Vampire Dog brings us to a mysterious place called Lagousi County, located somewhere in North America. I would presume it is in the true America based on the abundance of American Flags.

The basic premise may seem childish to those who do not possess a fine eye for cinema. Albeit cliché this charming coming of age story about a young man's mission to stop the closure of the sole public school in the county teaches us about life and the meaning of growing up and death.

The acting was marvelous, especially the recorder solo located at the climax of the film. The villains obviously were symbolic of the federal government trying to close public schools in favor of corporate greed.

Alas my space has run out, and instead I must end with my thoughts. I believe Vampire Dog is a once in a vampire dog's life film. I give this two fangs up!

Norm MacDonald's voice acting in this movie is honestly one of the best parts of it. His nonchalant attitude adds a level of comedy to seemingly high-stakes conflict. However, this removes any sort of intensity or sense of importance throughout the movie even during the climax. The underdeveloped plot line of him not being able to go into the sun is underutilized and sort of solved in the background.

Honestly this movie was a favorite growing up. It's a silly dog doing fun things and thwarting a comically evil duo of bourgeois woman and absolute doofus man. But that's all this movie is. It's a great family movie but expecting anything more will leave you disappointed.