The Night Flier Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: A tabloid reporter becomes obsessed with a story about a serial killer pretending to be a vampire.

Review: This film receives a lot of undeserved hate, but is it really that bad? Sure, it suffered from a debacle of a release worsened by the fact that it came out during the era of "Scream" ripoffs. Despite that, it has great atmosphere and was original in a lot of ways. The ball is certainly dropped toward the end, however, it does work poetically if you don't overthink it. After all, this movie was based on a story by Stephen King and remains relatively faithful. What were people really expecting?

The story follows the slimy and sleazy tabloid reporter, Dees, played perfectly by Miguel Ferrer; Mr. Ferrer excels in the role and you love to hate the character. Tabloids aren't what they used to be, which is good, but they were an amusing phenomenon for decades. This film tries to display the worst aspects of it and how the bizarre stories can get under the skin of the people in the industry. Complementing Dees is the naive and inexperienced Katherine, played by Phoebe Cates' twin sister, Julie Entwisle. I'm joking about the twin sister aspect, but, seriously, who was this woman and what happened to her? Ms. Entwisle did two movies the same year (1997) and disappeared off the face of the planet. Did Phoebe Cates kill her? Was Phoebe Cates inventing an alter ego? Does anyone know anything?! Anyway, Dees refers to Katherine as "Jimmy" which is supposed to be a play on Jimmy Olsen. Amusing. The two spend much of the movie clashing over who will headline a story about a serial killer posing as a vampire--the Night Flier as he's called.

The moody nature of the mystery is presented well enough as Dees goes from each murder location in the pursuit of finding the killer. The story shows us how this case is getting to Dees and making him a bit obsessed. Unfortunately, it's too obvious from the onset that the killer is a real vampire rather than saving that reveal for the end or keeping things ambiguous. Considering we are shown glimpses of the killer and various flashbacks, they could have hidden the truth if they wanted to. Eventually Dees, momentarily working with Katherine, discovers where the Night Flier is during a killing spree. Idiotically confronting the killer, Dees does learn he is a real vampire, but the vampire somewhat likes Dees due to his sleazy nature. However, the vampire doesn't want any stories about himself published. Unable to leave well enough alone, Dees demands for the vampire to show him what he actually looks like; the vampire goes a step forward and gives Dees some of his blood to drink. This apparently drives Dees crazy as he hallucinates various dead people from the film, and in the area, as coming after him. Grabbing an ax, Dees starts hacking away at his imaginary attackers when the cops show up. They blow Dees away and Katherine spins the story so as that Dees is credited to be the Night Flier--he made the front page after all.

When it comes to the ending I can understand why it would be considered stupid. I mean, come on, the evidence would obviously clear Dees' name fairly easily. His whereabouts alone are accounted for during a few of the Night Flier's kills. Speaking of which, wouldn't the Night Flier kill more people? Or is this over? I don't know, the ending never bothered me since it had an ironic humor to it especially when Katherine is referred to as Jimmy even on the tabloid cover. What I liked was the originality of meshing a tabloid coming to life with classic vampire lore. I don't understand why the vampire needs a plane or why he's doing his killings now, but he looks Dracula-esque, sleeps in dirt, can hypnotize people, and has an intriguing backstory that is hinted at. Plus, Dees is just a fun character to watch run around talking shit and having virtually no shame whatsoever. Something about the way the story elements are pulled together works.

Is this movie for everyone? Probably not. It is somewhat forgettable, but I've always enjoyed it. It's one of those movies I remember watching a hundred times over the summer both alone and with friends. Setting that aspect aside, however, the film does succeed with its atmosphere, originality, and engaging mystery. On top of that, the music is pretty cool and Mr. Ferrer kills it with his portrayal of Dees. On the other hand, the vampire can come off as inconsistent and the ending is a hit or miss--possibly ruining the movie for some viewers. For whatever strange reason, this has become a rare DVD so I'm not sure what would be the easiest way to track it down. I'm sure it's on youtube or something.

Notable Moment: It's not a single moment but all the instances that refer back to Stephen King's other works and lore. Many are kind of subtle which makes it all the more fun to pick up on them.

Final Rating: 6/10

Is Julie Entwisle really Phoebe Cates or is Phoebe Cates actually Julie Entwisle? Dun dun dun!