Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant

Based on the popular tween novels of the Saga of Darren Shan, director/writer Paul Weitz attempts to tap into the current vampire craze re-working the story of Darren (Chris Massoglia) and his best friend Steve (Josh Hutcherson). The two have been life long friends, but as adolescence kicks in a rift begins to grow. As tension builds, the mysterious and sinister Mr. Tiny (Michael Cerveris) begins to take interest in the boys. Before long the boys become two different breeds of vampire which sets the stage for a showdown between the Vampire and the Vampanese, but perhaps this battle can be avoided? vampires-assistant-cirque-du-freak A busy script with almost too many moving parts makes the film a little cluttered, but decent production value keeps the shine on this imaginative work. An all star cast also adds to the fun including John C. Reilly, Salma Hayek, and Willem Dafoe. Overall the film fits nicely into the groove of a lighthearted Gothic flick that’s more fun than scary or suspenseful. Sadly this may in fact be the film’s undoing, unable to reach adult audiences and perhaps a shade to young for the teens in love with the Twilight series. Fun for a matinee, Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant is rated PG-13.