ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER

Abraham Lincoln was not well-educated and had suffered numerous tragedies in his life, including the death of his mother at the age of nine. Yet Lincoln had a good heart and commanding physical presence, going on the become the sixteenth President of the United States and his country’s saviour - a man prime for a superhero story.

Walker and Grahame-Smith have embarked on a worldwide publicity tour, primarily to defend the film’s title - which didn’t stop the masses form purchasing the novel (and this reviewer believes it to be quite possibly one the greatest film titles in cinema history next to ‘Lesbian Vampire Strippers’).

During the media preview star Ben Walker was quoted as saying, “The joke ends at the title,” which from what we were privileged to see, couldn’t be truer. Based on historical accuracies, ‘Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter’ is in fact an epic historical period film - with one minor adjustment... there are vampires looking to take control of a nation, a battle royale between the north and south disguised as a civil war over slavery. Brilliant!

The scenes we were privy to featured a naïve Abe seeking vengeance over the death of his mother at the hands of the great vampire Adam (Rufus Sewell), when he meets vampire hunter Henry Sturgess (Dominic Cooper) who provides him with the necessary tools and training to fight what Abe despises most in this world. His weapon of choice? A silver-plated axe which Abe/Ben Walker wields with fluidity and impressive skills yet to be matched. The second sequence was the film's climactic ending featuring... well, you’ll have to wait until the 2nd of August to find that one out - but let me assure you, it's not to be missed.

Director Russian Timur Bekmambetov (better known for the 2008 bullet-bending action extravaganza ‘Wanted’) flourishes his effortless action-directing prowess into each and every frame. Tweaked and slightly straying for the novel to give the film a more boisterous Hollywood story, Bekmambetov, Grahame-Smith and Burton have created one bold, daring and captivating tale - silly title and all.