Darrell Hammond is really, really good in this as a smooth talker, and much of it is KIND OF funny/quirky. It had a lot of potential, but this movie commits 3 cardinal sins. 1. They directly contradicted everything commonly known about vampires and they did it with impunity, in this smartassed matter-of-fact kind of way from a really annoying voice. It is possible to do this to an extent at the beginning to set the "rules" for the world. But continually sarcastically making fun of and contradicting the very fundamentals of vampire folklore is NOT ON. If common vampire rules are so "wrong" then maybe they should quit thinking of themselves as "vampires" to begin with, it's not what they call themselves. 2. What the hell is with this using Alexander Graham Bell? My perception of Bell will forever be tainted by this nonsense. Bell did not agree to his name and image being used like this, I think it's so unfair to do this to a deceased person. I rarely even like watching fictional depictions of real people like for instance Darwin, because I cannot trust the depiction of it, but this is just ridiculous. 3. They should have done all the narration and backstory at the start, not continually narrated throughout the whole thing and continually butchering your perception of vampires by pretending these were anything like vampires.

This fun satire gives us a look behind the closed doors of Berm-Tech Industries, a phone manufacturing corporation based in Arizona. What we find is an office of eclectic characters who are all "netherfolk", which should not be confused with "vampires". These netherfolk just want to live in peace, even though they admit they are dead and do need to eat human flesh and drink blood. No worries though because they have connections so they are always well- stocked.The story revolves around the manager, Turner Claymore, played wonderfully deadpan by SNL alum Darrell Hammond, who comes down with a form of netherfolk Alzheimers, known as the Retardations. This tragic disease causes him to forget that he and his fellow workers are all netherfolk. The movie starts with him staking co-worker Mike, when he "discovered" he was a vampire. Later he brings in a corporate productivity analyst, played by Judd Nelson, and also hires a human named Pearl, played by Phoenix-native hottie Amy Davidson, to take over Mike's position.The movie is told from the point of view of Otto Granberry, played by Steve Burns -- yes Steve of Blues Clues fame. I laughed when I caught a glimpse of the signature blue paw- print on his desk in one scene. I may have to watch it again to see if these were anywhere else. He and Pearl start a small office romance, which was full of awkward innocent goofiness.The plot, like the blood, thickens when other employees go missing as does the source of their unnatural power, the Netherstone. I won't try to explain this one. Not that it might spoil the plot, and not that it reeks of a Deus Ex Machina. It is a creative plot device and I'll just sound like I have the Retardations if I try to explain it. Speaking of exposition, there is a lot of it in the movie since the netherfolk are not really vampires. I thought it was fun and familiar, like the interjections of Douglas Adams' Hitch-hiker's Guide to The Galaxy, or like a typical corporate Powerpoint presentation.This clever comedy never stoops to camp nor shock to get laughs. There are some heavy- handed one-liners scattered throughout the film. Oh, and scrotum-engineering jokes. There's very little gore, and what is there is cartoonish in its subtlety. If I have any complaints it is that Dave Foley is underutilized as Henry, and Jason Mewes (snoogans!) is relegated almost to a cameo role as "Waxy" Dan Paraffin. The real cameo by Robert Wagner as President James Garfield is cute and ties everything up in a nice little bow.All in all this is a refreshing look at the vampires of corporate America. It makes me even more proud to know the producers, Dean and Brian Ronalds, are local brothers who filmed the whole movie in and around Phoenix. At the Q&A that followed the showing, they announced that the DVD will be released Dec. 9, 2008, and I will definitely pick this one up.

I had this movie described to me as a vampire comedy, so I figured I'd like it. It isn't, and I didn't.The thing is, these creatures aren't vampires - they're a new type of creature that I hadn't heard of yet. Which is great, 'cause we need some original ideas in a world of remakes and sequels. Unfortunately, though, since these are new creatures the filmmakers spend most of the movie explaining to us who they are, their history, their likes and dislikes, how they live, how they die, etc. This goes on . . . and on . . . and on. It constantly interrupts the movie. The filmmakers try to make these scenes of exposition visually interesting but it all comes across like a Powerpoint presentation.Exposition aside, the story itself is pretty good but I would have liked to have had things explained in a more sophisticated way.The comedy is there in spurts but it is too uneven throughout the film. The opening scene and the film's climax are the two funniest things in the film. Throughout the rest, though, it felt like a big inside joke that I wasn't in on. Some scenes fall completely flat, some resort to toilet humor, and some make no sense.As far as actors go, Darrel Hammond is funny doing what is essentially his Bill Clinton routine from SNL. His opening scene is hilarious, but unfortunately he takes a backseat quickly. David Foley is completely wasted in a flat role. I couldn't believe that they bothered to cast one of the funniest men alive and have him do nothing interesting. Jason Mewes pops up for a pointless buddy role halfway through the film. Judd Nelson definitely steals the show as the movie progresses and is at his best in the film's climax.My other gripe is that the chemistry between the lead actor and the main girl felt very forced. I didn't buy their relationship for some reason.Overall, it provides a few laughs but feels like a missed opportunity. I would suggest it on DVD only to fans of independent cinema who can get over things like horrible lighting and camerwork. This is one of those movies that will probably get a cult audience but everyone else will hate.

I caught this at the AFI Film Fest here in Dallas this past Friday. It was one of the funniest damn films I've seen. I thought it was going to have a little more horror since it's about vampires. It's not scary at all but there's a lot of laughs.A lot of the cast and crew were there because it was the World Premiere. Jason Mewes was there. He wasn't in the movie as much as I hoped he would be. The host of Blue's Clues (Steve Burns) was the main character, and he's a really good actor. But its Darrel Hammond who steals the show as the boss who gets "vampire Alzheimer's" and throws the company (made up entirely of vampires) into chaos.There are so many funny lines and scenes in it that I'd love to spoil for everyone, but you owe it to yourselves to see them first hand. Most of the funniest material was in very questionable taste. There's a vintage recruiting poster on the wall that says "Love Those Cripples" accompanied by a one-legged employee with a robotic arm. And watch for the scene where an engineer explains why the scrotum is impractical. Priceless.I'm a big fan of all kinds of comedies, and this is one of the smartest, most entertaining indie comedies I've seen.