by Kristin Ciliberto, Contributing Writer
From the director of Level Up, iBoy, and I See You comes the latest vampire film, Night Teeth. Is director Adam Randall’s film worthy enough to sink your teeth or time into? It centers around Benny (Jorge Lendeborg Jr.), a college student who fills in for his brother as a chauffeur. His clients for this particular night are two pretty and mysterious women, Blaire (Debby Ryan) and Zoe (Lucy Fry), who go party-hopping all across Los Angeles. Benny must make it through the night alive once he realizes Blaire and Zoe’s alarming, dangerous, and bloody plans for the evening.
This could have been a juicy and bloodthirsty tale about vampires, but it comes out as a weak film that lacks the depth to capture audiences. Written by Brent Dillon, this film tries to come off as inspiring, but it actually comes off as a boring vampire story. As it opens, it gives audiences details about how there is an ongoing battle between humans and vampires.
The characters feel uninspiring as the film’s main protagonist Lendeborg tries to make himself charming, but nothing makes him stand out. Just like Benny, the film struggles, as it features one-dimensional characters. As for the film’s other stars, Ryan is a former Disney Channel star and has gained more attention after starring in the Netflix series Insatiable.
I believed this was going to be a simple watch. However, it was not. There isn’t enough substance or energy to keep watching as the film plays it safe with how predictable the story is. Lendeborg and Ryan need to rely on each other more once the third act of the film hits. It’s a shame they didn’t have that passionate chemistry. Her character does have some form of chemistry with Fry, but that’s the only thing audiences will see as the friends hit the town partying it up. Fry does a good job bringing the chaos together to tell the story.
As for the film’s antagonist, Alfie Allen as Victor seems to have fun portraying the villainous vampire, but the character isn’t as strong when it comes to his intentions and his whole purpose as the character. Megastars like Megan Fox and Sydney Sweeney pop up in the film as cameos, but their roles do not add much to the film; their talent is completely wasted. For fans of Karyn Kusama’s Jennifer’s Body, seeing Fox return as a similar character of the blood-sucking creature could have been more exciting. At times, Randall’s film could have taken some inspiration from Kusama’s film. I don’t believe Night Teeth will be as campy or come off as a future cult classic like Jennifer’s Body.
Night Teeth comes off as silly enough that it could be ripped off the pages of a cheesy teen romance novel. It is clichéd and generic in every way possible, but it does have a stylish neon look. Yet, no matter how stylized or slick Randall tries to be, Night Teeth is not worth the time to see.
Grade: D+