Timur Bekmambetov’s debut feature has so far earned a staggering US $15 million in his home country. A highly original take on the Lord of the Rings style fantasy/action genre, Night Watch has shown that domination of world wide box office is no longer solely the domain of Hollywood.
Boasting lavish special effects and superlative techinique which belie its measly (by Hollyood standards) $4 million budget, it rivals if not outstrips the best that LA has to offer. This is one directorial debut which has industry heads turning in every direction.
Adapted by Bekmambetov and author Sergei Lukyanenko from his novel, this is smart, myth-based storytelling in a film that takes its references all the way from Frankenstein to Jean-Paul Jeunet to David Fincher. The plot revolves around the idea that the forces of good and evil exist in an uneasy balance of power. The Night Watch patrol the activities of the darkness while The Day Watch patrol the light. Anton Gordesky is sucked into this supernatural realm when he seeks out revenge on his departed wife but soon finds himself fending off vampires and visions while the race is on to find The Great One who will change the balance of power forever.
Quentin Tarantino tells filmgoers everywhere that ‘if you only see one film this year this one has to be it’. SB
