Ultraviolet

I recant, I repent, I withdraw my previous reserved review. At the time when I first reviewed Ultraviolet (which was some time after I'd actually watched it), Buffy and Angel were at their peak, and slick, quippy vampires were all the rage. But that's been taken as far as it can be. Tiring of the superficiality of the Buffyverse, I decided to give Ultraviolet another try.

Oh my. Oh MY. It's far better than I remember. Yes, the characters are miserable, but it's clearly laid out why this is so, and it all adds to the sense that this is *serious*, and that there are no quick fixes. There are nuances to the character development that I'd missed last time (I recall being distracted and only seeing half of the episodes when I first watched it), and I really, truly felt for them as people (it doesn't hurt that Susannah Harker looks like a melancholy angel, of course). It's underplayed perfectly, with only the occasionally shoddy piece of score to cheapen the tone.

And most of all, I felt for the vampires. These aren't the disposable charicatures of the Buffyverse, and they surpass even the fleshed out characters of Near Dark. They are real, rational people, with real emotions and familiar and touching desires and goals. They just happen to be immortal and drink blood. After you've seen vampires done this way, it makes you question why it should ever be otherwise. Ultraviolet tackles the question "If I was me, but a vampire, what would I do, what would I *actually* be like?" without flinching, trivialising, or slipping up.

There are no tomes of ancient wisdom, no easy answers, and most of all, no black and white morality. Ultraviolet poses the question: if you're always offered the choice to become a vampire, and if you don't have to kill to feed, then where is the crime? Why is it *wrong* to be a vampire? Just because the Church says so?

Ultraviolet leaves the viewer to make up his or her own mind about who the bad guys actually are, and whether there are any good guys in this scenario. It's an interesting and respectful take on the genre.

You might go into ULTRAVIOLET expecting something like THE X-FILES. Well, it's not exactly like that. UV has more in common with the best British cop shows. Some of the darker elements of shows like FROST, REBUS, or WIRE IN THE BLOOD are evident throughout this mini-series.

This is a smart, bleak story about two warring factions: Humans vs. Leeches. It's a battle for species supremacy. Filled with social commentary, UV twists the vampire legend into a tale of survival and desperation.

The characters are intelligent and strong, the pacing is perfect, and the plot never falters. Jack Davenport is Det. Sgt. Michael Colefield, the latest recruit in the war. Suzannah Harker is Dr. Angela March. Idris Elba is Vaughan Rice.

The leeches (aka: Code V's) remain mostly unseen, adding to the mystery and growing tension.

Since this isn't a big Hollywood production, there are only a few explosions, absolutely no karate vampire fights, and not one person in a black leather outfit. This mini-series is smarter than that, requiring a bit more than just a heartbeat from its audience.

The only complaint is that it only had six episodes, and that no more were ever made...

I think Hollywood has forgotten how to do vampires. I grew up watching gothic, quasi-religious Hammer Horror films from good olde England. But, sadly, period pieces are no longer popular...neither are positive depictions of religion, for that matter. The days of Dracula stalking through Victorian London and being repelled by crosses are over. Nowadays, we get scantily clad teenage girls or George Clooney kicking vampire butt with kung fu and shotguns. It's been a long, long downward spiral for the lords of the Undead.

And yet, every once in a while, I ferret out a little vampire gem. The "Ultraviolet" DVD set was gathering dust on my brother's shelf when I decided to give it a whirl late one night. I didn't get hooked right away; the direction in episode one is a bit disjointed, and the first modern day vampire looks cheesy. But, ten minutes in, I found myself starting to care about the characters. They got me.

This, my friends, is how to do vampires today. Religion is acknowledged, but is not an overwhelming force. Modern technology is used to combat the vampires more effectively, but they're still formidable foes - so you won't see them overcome with holy water-filled Super Soakers. In fact, "Ultraviolet" consistently plays to the vampires' strengths. They're subtle, stealthy, and seductive...like vampires should be. In too many recent films, they've been depicted as zombie-like "shock" troops; here, they're back in best scheming form. After all, if you live forever, you have lots of time to make elaborate plans...

Not much by way of special effects here, but they're not really needed. There are some truly great suspense segments (particularly in episode five), and the acting is solid all around. I don't really think Jack Davenport ("Coupling") is miscast, as one other commentator suggested; he makes a good everyman.

The closest American counterpart to "Ultraviolet" is "The X-Files," but the investigations in that show just didn't seem realistic to me. The police and medical procedures in "Ultraviolet" are, on the surface, more authentic. They're probably still bogus, but at least they're not *as* bogus.

Sadly, the Brits only made one six-episode season, and creator Joe Ahearne says he pretty much got his message across in that short time. So, if you have six free hours to watch the best vampire entertainment in years, go to it!

This is one of the series I can watch again and again. I love it more and more every time I watch it. It's dark, moody atmosphere pulls you in from the very beginning, and keeps you glued to your seat for the full series.

All six episodes are integral to six hour story line in which Mike Colefield (Jack Davenport) struggles to come to terms with what happened to his friend Jack Beresford (Stephen Moyer), and to choose sides in Humanity's war against Vampires which is nearing it's climax. It will keep you guessing as to who's good, and who's bad until the very end.

I have to say that the series is a bit subtle for a mini-series. There are countless small details that can be overlooked during the first (Or even second in my case ;) Some of the plot elements aren't explained very well either. While this gives the series a "smart" feel to it, it makes it harder to understand.

As I said before I thoroughly enjoyed this series, and I'll pounce on a second season if there ever is one.

vampire series or movie that I have ever seen. In fact, I'm hard pressed to think of any science fiction series or film that does it better. It takes one absurd premise (that vampires are real, and that, while still apparently composed of atoms and reflecting light, they nevertheless cannot be seen in mirrors, filmed, recorded, or detected by any indirect process) and then follows it with rigorous logic. The vampires (or leeches, as they are referred to) do not age or die, and they have had centuries to form a shadowy international conspiracy. Their goals and plans are murky, although their general motive is simple--ensure their food supply. Our heroes (or perhaps 'heroes') are a beleaguered team of humans trying to uncover the truth and break the undead cabal. In this respect, Ultraviolet resembles the X-Files, with some happy improvements. The vampire conspiracy is not essentially infallible. It is not so all-encompassing that our heroes survive only at the whim of their adversaries. And, the conspiracy doesn't enjoy that great advantage of most screen villains: the writer makes sure that they get away when the plot calls for it.

A really good show. Get it on DVD and watch it.