Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009)

Memorable, crazy movie

Did you people see the same film I saw?

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

I was so excited to finally be able to watch the movie after reading all the cirque books. I have to say it did disappoint me not because it wasn't a good movie, but because i felt the book was so different. The movie felt rushed. I feel if you want to make a movie based of the books (like Harry Potter) take the time and not rush it. Its one of the best series of books I've read in a long time.last, John C.Reily was a great Crepsley.

I found this movie pretty much by accident when flicking through the Netflix catalogue. I thought what the heck and started to watch it. My hopes were really not that high. Actually I am not sure I had any hopes at all since I just stumbled on the movie and started to watch it on a whim. What I found was a rather okay and fun movie actually.The movie is apparently based on popular book series Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan. Unfortunately, in their usual arrogant manner, the Hollywood moguls decided to rip the books apart and mash together book one and two in this movie. It appears the general consensus is, not surprisingly, that the books are better than the movie. Nevertheless, the movie was good enough that I most probably will have a go at reading at least one of the books in the series.The movie itself then? Actually I liked it more than I expected. It took a little while before it got started but once it got going it was a good teenage magical fantasy adventure. I am actually a bit saddened that it appears there was never any sequels using the other books in the series.The name Cirque du Freak is well chosen. This is not the usual bunch of people with magical abilities or fangs or some of the other attributes you usually see in magic or supernatural movies. The members of the Cirque are freaks in every sense of the word. I do not think I have seen such a bunch of weird and bizarre creatures before. Heck, the vampire that takes Darrel as his assistant is probably the most normal of the bunch.The story is quite okay and the acting acceptable. The vampire, Creepsly, felt a bit underwhelming at first but he grew on me. So did Mr. Tiny who I definitely didn't like at first but found doing quite a good job of playing the evil mastermind towards the end. His sleaziness was downright creepy.I am sure a lot of the story and character development from the books were left out because there is so much more that could have been done with the story. Darrel befriending the snake man, the brewing romance, Darrels relation with Creapsley and all the other interactions and characters that took place. If the producer had wanted to do a good job he could easily have added another 40 minutes to the movie. A shame he did not.Bottom line, watching this movie was a pleasant experience. It is perhaps not a blockbuster but a nice little adventure, magic, supernatural and fantasy gem.

I loved the books so much and was very disappointed that they didn't make it a series to finish out all of the book! I am emotionally invested in these characters and want to see Darren win! The books kept me completely engaged. And yes, books are usually a lot more involved than movies but I really enjoyed the story line being told out loud and that it followed the book as accurately as it did. I enjoyed meeting all of the characters and seeing their many talents. I also loved the the little goblins. It's never too late to complete the series in movie form you guys! I love the comedic relief and timing. It kept the movie from becoming too frightening for my son to watch. He hasn't read the books yet but we both loved the movie.

The film 'Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant' is directed by Paul Weitz. The film takes place in America, shown through common American features. This film is a vampire teen thriller which was quite exciting and contains lots of action. The acting was good especially from Darren and Mr Crepsley as they show emotion clearly. For me, the best moment has to be when Mr. Crepsley and the Vampanese leader had a fight as it was up in tempo and thrilling. I really enjoyed the film because it was very different from most vampire films. This makes it unique. If I had to change anything, I'd make it more realistic and believable. I would recommend this film if you like cheesy action films.