Director: Osmany Rodriguez (as Oz Rodriguez)
Writers: Osmany Rodriguez, Blaise Hemingway
Stars: Jaden Michael, Gerald Jones III, Gregory Diaz IV
Vampires are taking over the Bronx through gentrification, and three friends from the bodega will have to stop the bloodsuckers from taking over the town and running out local families and small businesses in this horror-comedy produced by Lorne Michaels and written and directed by Osmany Rodriguez. ‘Vampires vs. The Bronx’ has a lot to enjoy but falls short of being a Halloween staple.
The authenticity of the story shines through Osmany’s directing and storytelling. He is able to use his personal experiences of gentrification in New York burrows and infuse the horror of a vampire story that feels both familiar and unique to itself. The three leads have strong chemistry with each other and help the film tremendously with it’s slower pacing and more traditional horror tropes. I think the effects work on the vampires for the most part worked for me, they skew a little more on the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” than a “The Lost Boys” or “Twilight” appearance.
Where I started to drop off in the film is once the second act kicked into gear and there really hadn’t been too much momentum in the plot. There’s a lot of potential in the story to showcase more comedy, more horror, but for some reason Osmany insists on keeping the film stuck in 3rd gear. The comedy feels watered down, to me the film would be served better with a more adult rating than what we ended up receiving, but that isn’t to say there is humor in the film. Also the visual effects could’ve used a little more care and attention to detail, especially when the Vampires are in full force.
Overall, I think ‘Vampires Vs. The Bronx’ is a fairly entertaining movie worth watching with your kids. It works on an adult level as well as a kid level, with a strong voice from the director and impressive acting from it’s lead performances.
I’m giving Vampires vs. The Bronx a 6.5/10