Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

The realms of human imagination have never ceased to surprise people over the years. if one were to put their mind to it, there is no telling what your next big idea could turn out to be right? And so what if the next big idea was a totally out of this world, whacked out, unbelievable, audacious, ridiculous conspiracy theory that drives you to make a movie out of it no matter how absurb the idea were to sound.

The idea could be as weird as suggesting that the United States of America came really really really close to become the United States of Vampires – possible I guess. And that The States really owe a lot to Abraham Lincoln for their existence and I am not for once suggesting that it was because of his star studded political career. At least that’s not what Timur Bekambetov (director of superb action flicks such as that Angelina Jolie starrer called Wanted) wanted to say.

Timur wanted to let us know that President Lincoln came through to his pinnacle of success not just with great leadership but also with his lesser and to date hidden skills of Vampire Hunting. A skill that he was driven to pick up when one of “those” kind killed his mother in her sleep and he watched her die. A desire to seek revenge drove him to try and kill Jack Barts (Marton Csokas) with a simple bullet – a task that he almost messes up but manages eventually. Only to be saved a few seconds later by Henry Sturges (Dominic Cooper). Because Vampires don’t die if you put a bullet through their eye.

Sturges goes on to help young Abe Lincoln (Benjamin Walker) learn the finer nuances of not just seeking out vampires but also killing a variety of them who would otherwise have been quite sticky to handle – in the literal sense of the word. Especially when they having a variety of skills other than brute strength and immortality. Strengths such as the capability to disappear in a split second and reappear behind you. And the fact that their only known weakness is towards silver (I always thought that was a werewolf characteristic – but then its fiction and anything is possible).

If your tolerance levels to fantasy and vivid imagination is really high, you could find Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter to be an enjoyable flick and a good use of your time. I on the other hand enjoy fantasia but not such far-fetched fantasia with not so great effects. Bekambetov is usually known for some fantastic stunts and action sequences. The ones here seemed to be a bit not so well done unfortunately. What could have been a movie as slick as Wanted turns out into one that’s average at best. I give this 5 on 10 because other than some action sequences and a fascinating conspiracy theory, there is really nothing much to look forward to.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2367398425/