Vacillating Vampires

Gather close, my children, and let us discuss the difference in what a film could be, and what a film is. It is the reason why watching Daybreakers (as we finally did this evening) left me vaguely irritated, yet I am pretty sure that I will come out of Legion (when I get around to it) perfectly fine.

Now, this is not because I expect Legion to be a totally superior movie to Daybreakers- I don't. Dear Lord, I really, really don't. But the thing is, the premise behind Daybreakers was solid. It was- dare I say it? It was good. Yes, it was a good concept for a vampire movie- addressing the problem of "What happens when everyone has been infected? Who is left to feed on?" So there was potential there, potential to tell a really good freaking story, with lots of good questions and answers and characters and dilemmas and even some nifty vampire science (since, unlike other movies, there is no drive to Avoid Detection By People Who Will Put You In a Lab). So. Much. Potential!

But no. No, no, and no. Instead we end up with some glaring internal logic flaws, some deeply stupid protagonists, and few (if any) relate-able and/or likable characters. And by the way, is anyone else getting sick of whiny vegetarian woe-is-me vampires? (And I say this as someone who genuinely enjoys Twilight...) I tell you what, in my vampire story (which actually started as a giant in-joke between Nathan and myself and sort of inadvertently became more of an Actual Thing) the protagonist does not make due with animal blood... but I digress.

So yes- I enjoyed the movie, but a large part of that enjoyment springs from my ability to bitch about its flaws. Flaws like squandering its potential. ::sigh:: I never actually expected it to be a good movie, but because the premise was so strong I couldn't help but have a little hope.

Not so with Legion.

Nope, I fully expect a thoroughly bad movie with Legion. I mean, come on- end of the world, holed up in a diner, fallen angel Michael defending the soon-to-be-mother-of-the-next-messiah from other, non-fallen angels (sent by a pissed-off God, no less) with a sword and automatic guns. Eff. Yeah. Everything about that movie sounds terrible (well, minus Paul Bettany, whom I sort of adore a lot) but that's part of the appeal for me- there's no pretending to be anything more than what it is- a movie about kicking ass. In a diner. Against freaky-deaky angels who remind us that they're just demons who haven't fallen yet. Brilliant. Social commentary on our squandering of natural resources? Um, no. Decapitation? Probably yes.

And therein lies the rub. Two awful movies, one of which annoyed me and one of which will probably delight me. And why? Hope. Filthy, dirty hope, which has ruined many a good movie for me. Really I need to learn to just go in expecting every movie to be terrible- I'd probably be a much happier movie-patron...

...but then I wouldn't have the fun of bitching about them.