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| Nochnoi Dozor (Night Watch) | | Date Created: Sep 27, 2005, 06:41 AM |
After a series of what can only be described as dull Fall action fare, relief comes not from some multi-million dollar Hollywood studio but from a most unlikely source. Nochnoi Dozor (Night Watch) is a Russian production based on the first part of a Russian sci-fi trilogy. The basic story line is not unique ---- there are "Others" who walk amongst us, locked in a centuries-long battle between good and evil. An uneasy truce has been maintained by soldiers from both sides but events now threaten to disturb the fragile balance.
Although most of the attention has centred on the MTV-style Lord of the Rings meets Matrix cinematography (it is so effective that it makes Moscow look cool), what sets Night Watch apart for me is the tight story-line. NightWatch resists the temptation to cast the two sides in entirely black-and-white hues. Instead, the two sides are seen helping one another --- one vampire offers blood to a Light Other who has needs it to catch other vampires shows that underneath the canvas of eternal battle, the "Others" have grown to live with one another in an uneasy balance. The Light Others are not entirely above board either --- they regularly use innocent humans as bait to lure the Dark Others.
I highly recommend Night Watch. As for myself, I can't wait till the second part of the trilogy. One tip --- stay through the credits to catch a fleeting sequence from the sequel.
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