Like vampire movies? This is a vampire movie you'll love. The concept is so deceptively simple, it's a wonder it has never been done before. A town in northern Alaska, about to go through thirty days of night is invaded by vampires. No sun for a month and no convenient way to kill these undead... makes for a hell of a film.

It's a little bit John Carpenter's The Thing with the obligatory homage to Bram Stoker in Ben Foster's Renfield-esque character, The Stranger. And much of it is like any horror film, where townsfolk have to survive a certain amount of time before rescue arrives. But 30 Days of Night delivers with such style, that it's easy to see past the rips and homages and enjoy this as the best vampire film in a long time. Since at least From Dusk til Dawn - well the vampire movie part of that film, not so much the first half.

Josh Hartnett is a case-by-case actor for me. He delivers exactly what this film needs - competent but not superheroic small town sheriff with a troubled marriage. Melissa George will always be an Australian soap actress, even though she's already been directed by Steven Soderbergh and David Lynch since she went to Hollywood, she's still mostly in schlocky horrors. She's okay here.

I haven't seen director David Slade's first film Hard Candy but kudos to him for being in control of this material. The opening sequences on the last day of sunlight a superbly shot and keep us interested, simply by watching people going about their business. There is no imperative here to set up characters we must feel for, but somehow he shoots the people and the town in a way that grounds them and us in their isolation.

It's a vampire movie, don't get me wrong. It is nothing more than that. But sometimes a film doesn't need to be more than what the poster says it is - especially when it is executed this well. It's frightening, above all else. And disturbing. And damn scary. What more do you want?