Does contain spoilers for the book and the movie.
So I saw Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter tonight.
Mainly because then I can't complain about anyone else screwing it up. At least on that end. Though, I do think he needs a stern talking-to.
I did enjoy it in a lot of ways.
-I think Benjamin Walker and Dominic Cooper were well cast as Abraham and Henry, respectively. I was amused by Jimmi Simpson being cast as Joshua Speed, mainly because I still see him as "the weird guy from 'Breakout Kings'."
-Henry teaching Abraham.
-The axe.
-Most of the action sequences / fight scenes. As well as a lot of visuals. They definitely took advantage of the fact that their main character is over six feet tall, lean, wears a stove-pipe hat and a long coat, and carries/uses an axe.
-The fight scene on the train.
But there were some things that I wasn't as fond of.
-The horse stampede when Abraham went after Jack Barts was just stupid. Really, really stupid. In my opinion, definitely a moment of "just because you can, doesn't mean you should".
-I get that time is a factor, but by taking away some of Abe's fighting years and some of his fighting companions, as well as taking away the Confederate vampires and the Union, I think it lessened the scope of the story and urgency of what Henry's fighting against/for and what Abraham got pulled into. Otherwise, we're basically left with the "not all vampires are bad" cliche.
-They wasted Stephen Douglas. (And I'm not just saying that because he was played by Alan Tudyk.) Granted, Douglas wasn't a big part in the book either, but considering he was loyal to the Southern vampires, dealing more with the Lincoln-Douglas debates and having him as more of a political adversary for Abraham instead of just "Mary Todd's boring fiance" could have added more depth to the story.
-The end. In the book, Booth was a vampire. Also, the end of the book ended during Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have a Dream" speech, with both Henry and Abraham in attendance.
So I'm not really sure how to recommend it. If I do my best to disregard the differences from the book, it was a good movie.
Mainly because then I can't complain about anyone else screwing it up. At least on that end. Though, I do think he needs a stern talking-to.
I did enjoy it in a lot of ways.
-I think Benjamin Walker and Dominic Cooper were well cast as Abraham and Henry, respectively. I was amused by Jimmi Simpson being cast as Joshua Speed, mainly because I still see him as "the weird guy from 'Breakout Kings'."
-Henry teaching Abraham.
-The axe.
-Most of the action sequences / fight scenes. As well as a lot of visuals. They definitely took advantage of the fact that their main character is over six feet tall, lean, wears a stove-pipe hat and a long coat, and carries/uses an axe.
-The fight scene on the train.
But there were some things that I wasn't as fond of.
-The horse stampede when Abraham went after Jack Barts was just stupid. Really, really stupid. In my opinion, definitely a moment of "just because you can, doesn't mean you should".
-I get that time is a factor, but by taking away some of Abe's fighting years and some of his fighting companions, as well as taking away the Confederate vampires and the Union, I think it lessened the scope of the story and urgency of what Henry's fighting against/for and what Abraham got pulled into. Otherwise, we're basically left with the "not all vampires are bad" cliche.
-They wasted Stephen Douglas. (And I'm not just saying that because he was played by Alan Tudyk.) Granted, Douglas wasn't a big part in the book either, but considering he was loyal to the Southern vampires, dealing more with the Lincoln-Douglas debates and having him as more of a political adversary for Abraham instead of just "Mary Todd's boring fiance" could have added more depth to the story.
-The end. In the book, Booth was a vampire. Also, the end of the book ended during Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have a Dream" speech, with both Henry and Abraham in attendance.
So I'm not really sure how to recommend it. If I do my best to disregard the differences from the book, it was a good movie.