Okay, one would have to stretch pretty far to call Deadpool a "superhero film" and they'd likewise have some difficulty calling this a superhero film. Blade (Wesley Snipes), born Eric Brooks, is a unique fixture in the Marvel universe. He is a half-vampire, due to his mother being bitten by a vampire while he was in the womb. He has all the strengths of the vampire - strength, speed, and endurance - and none of their weaknesses...save for the thirst for human blood. Teaming up with vampire hunter Abraham Whistler (Kris Kristofferson), he now hunts the abominations that took his mother's life, trying to protect humanity from the curse of the vampire.
And that's pretty much the entire plot recapped right there. Yes, there is a subplot involving the audience surrogate/love interest Dr. Karen Jenson (N'Bushe Wright) having been bitten by a vampire and trying to develop a serum to cure herself and potentially others. Also, Deacon Frost (Stephen Dorff) is trying to summon up the powers of the vampire god La Magra, which will spell the doom of all mankind unless Blade stops him. Unfortunately, Frost is also the vampire who bit Blade's mother, so he's iceskating uphill already before he even begins.
The film is very much a product of the late 90s. Doing the whole Matrix vinyl look for Blade a full year before the Matrix came out, the cinematography in speeding up the footage and the like. That being said, the fight scenes are pretty damn enjoyable and it has one of the best villain deaths in a film I've ever seen. The acting is pretty good, and it's clear that Snipes and Kristofferson have a lot of onscreen chemistry that really shows a good student-mentor bond.
And yes, you might say I'm cheating with this one, but it is horror! Blade is constantly trying to fight his vampiric nature, not giving into his thirst and become the monster that he fights (or worse, given that he holds none of the vampire's traditional weaknesses). What's more tragic than the story of a man whose trying his hardest to not become a terrible creature of the night?
...okay, a lot of things. But don't be so pedantic.
Blade is now available from Marvel and New Line Cinemas.
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