VAMPIRES A VEHICLE FOR SOCIAL COMMENTARY?

I don’t understand the obsession with vampires. There are books written about them, movies made about them and countless television shows centralized on the vampire obsession. This vampire mania is exhausting. And now there’s another movie coming out called Daybreakers. Click here to check out the trailer. While this could very well be a phenomenal movie like District 9, which uses science fiction as a vehicle to provide a social commentary on racism and segregation, it’s also likely that it could just be a bad movie. I watched the trailer and besides the typified, conflicted protagonist, Daybreakers might meet the standards set by District 9.

There’s a chance this movie won’t be wrapped up in vampire cliches 0r an overrated story line, and that it’ll give an eye-opening portrayal of an abusive consumer culture. Essentially, the story is that the human race is on the brink of extinction because the majority of the population, being vampire, has recklessly consumed the resources available to them. Sound like anyone we know?

I’m hoping this movie will give an alternative perspective on the effects of consumerism and neglecting to plan ahead. In the trailer it shows the vampires looking for an alternate food source and in doing so creates the central conflict. If the movie meets the expectations set by the trailer by providing a fresh way to look at problems fueled by industrialized societies, it might just attract some of the attention District 9 did. It seems the only way in which to reach audiences and have them respond to significant problems in their own societies is to integrate the conflicts within Hollywood cinema.

Although it’s very unlikely Daybreakers will spur solutions to global conflicts such as over consumption, it will at least attract attention among fans of the film. Half the battle is getting the word out and spreading awareness. For all that Hollywood is lacking and for all the unethical philosophies it supports, the rise of high-budget films with social agendas is one of the best changes the industry has made in the recent past. Hopefully Daybreakers won’t disappoint, but cause a stir about a serious problem that us in the non-fictional world can understand. Let’s use the overdone vampire story line for something useful and interesting, not for cheap entertainment.

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