Abigail follows a group of hired kidnappers as they wait for a ransom to be paid for the child they kidnapped (the titular character). However, said child also happens to be a vampire, and things go very wrong for our group.
So, a bit of criticism to start with: This movie very clearly revealed the vampire-child aspect in the marketing. At no point during the trailers is it even attempted to keep that a secret. Which makes the first 45ish minutes of this movie odd because that is how long it takes for the characters to realize they are trapped with a vampire child. The movie is fun, and that first 45 minutes if perfectly fine - we get some great character building for our thieves - it's just a weird quirk of the film that the marketing basically had to reveal that plot point because not doing so would cripple it.
Other than that quibble - this is a great popcorn horror movie. It's brutal and bloody and hilarious; everyone clearly had fun filming this movie, and it bleeds into every frame, both figuratively and literally.
Directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin (2 members of the group Radio Silence) have many of their trademarks present throughout. There are explosions of blood (that will remind people of Ready of Not, another Radio Silence movie), wry humor, and a bunch of character actors given room to improvise all over the place.
The improvisation works wonders. I'd say only one character is given the short stick (and he still gets a clearly defined character) but all the other characters get just the right amount of screentime - the annoying one dies first but not too early, the unlikely friend pair meet their ends close to one another, our hero(es) team up at just the perfect moment. It's amazing just how well-timed everything in this movie is, down to character details and deaths.
The movie uses Swan Lake heavily - maybe a bit too much? - and both extended ballet sequences are incredible well used: one as an intro to Abigail and the other as a darkly comic moment where one of our thieves is a thrall.
Really, the entire conceit of a vampire ballerina is used well. Both Abigail's hunting and fighting use a style heavily influenced by this background, and it never feels gimmicky or out of place - a danger many a movie has not avoided (Gymkata anyone?). Credit to Alisha Weir - who plays Abigail - who did many of her own stunts and spent 8 weeks learning ballet for the performance. Truly top tier work.
Amongst our group of villains it is hard to pick a best in show - everyone does a great job. The group includes Dan Stevens, Melissa Barrera, Kathryn Newton, Kevin Durand, Will Catlett, and the departed Angus Cloud. Every single one does a great job, with Melissa Barrera shouldering lead performance duties with Weir's Abigail.
This is an easy recommend: it's not reinventing anything, and certainly isn't scary, but it is a fun way to spend an evening.
7.5 out of 10
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