Rise: Blood Hunter

Despite its unwieldy, off-putting title, Rise: Blood Hunter (aka simply Rise) isn't as terribly cheesy and disgusting as I imagined it would be. A reporter (Lucy Liu) wakes up in a morgue's body drawer and discovers she's been changed into a blood-seeking, human-chomping immortal, or something, and rather than gleefully embrace her new self she decides to track down the evil bastards who put her in that condition, making her a sort of avenging angel for all those who have been similarly wronged.

Sadie Blake (Liu) is a sexy, classy young lady who's just written a front-page story about teen goth clubs. One of her coworkers, the nerdy computer stereotype, tracks down a phone number that one of the teens handed to Sadie - turns out it's not a phone number but the first in a series of clues that leads to a website devoted to some weird bloodsucking cult. Sadie, of course, thinks the story's over and goes on a quickie vacation to Mexico with her sister, but when she returns, you guessed it, her coworker's dead. Sadie follows clues like a good little Nancy Drew and winds up getting kidnapped (several times) and killed (several times), all to figure out who or what's behind everything.

The story jumps around a lot, flouting the conventions of time as we know them; things simply don't happen in the exact order we'd expect them to, which clouds Sadie's motives and intentions quite a bit. Is she good? Is she even human? After all, once she's been attacked by the vampire people, she's not exactly the picture of health, and she's gotta eat to survive. Is her ultimate goal of revenge enough to offset the unpleasant facts? It helps that there's a typically hissable bad guy, Bishop (James D'Arcy). He's eternal, of course, and he kills and mutilates and rapes for the sheer joy of it. There are no moral or ethical quandaries with this guy. Plus he has an effete, brandy-swilling British accent, making all the more unctuous and slimy. (Well, he's slimy also because he's often covered in someone's blood.) Now, granted, this isn't a pleasant, sedate movie to watch. It's full of gore and guts, although not so much as, say, a movie like Saw or Hostel. It's still not for the weak of stomach. You might remember how, in Kill Bill, The Bride traveled all over to wipe out those who'd wronged her - but the film didn't show us this in the order in which each avenging occurred, did it? So you'd see Uma Thurman wander over to Viveca Fox's house not knowing if she'd already visited Lucy Liu. Well, you would know, of course, if you picked up on the subtle hints, and that's exactly how it is here. At one point, Sadie runs into alcoholic, world-weary cop-with-a-conscience-and-a-cause Clyde Rawlins (a fantastic Michael Chiklis) and mutters something about having seen him before. And if you watch the movie closely, you see exactly where. It's as if there are no coincidences in the movie, and I think that works in its favor.

Still, it IS just a revenge flick, albeit one with vampires and a kick-ass crossbow. Liu is very, very good - she's not the screaming, hands-in-the-air type of heroine, but she's also not the balls-out gut-stomping Lara Croft type, either. Remember, Lucy Liu is petite; she doesn't automatically have this intimidating screen presence, so she uses what she has and makes the most of it. In her case, I'd have to say it's her eyes, flashing terror or courage in.... well, in the blink of an eye.

So despite some predictability, the movie does work, thanks to Liu and the novelty of the disjointed sequencing. There are quite a few chills, and the plot doesn't stray too far from its main revenge thread, thus simplifying matters.

It was a vampire flick with a lot of different views on vampires... Lucy Lui was obviously gorgeous in it. The acting was good. But what disappointed me so was the lack of story. Yeah there is a "back story" and a "revenge story" but no... "STORY". You know? They don't explain Sadie Blakes (Lucy Lui's character) job, they don't explain their new definition of vampire, the flash backs are randomly in and out so you don't know which side is up. Its a nice kick back film, but nothing to get excited about. I'm hoping there's a part two to explain all of that stuff... oh and the dude from the Shield, he did a very good job in his role. But again... no plot OR character development.

I would not call this your normal fantasy vampire story. It doesn't depict the normal horrors of the vampire world as we normally see or hear about from vampire movies or stories. It's a bit slow and tame for a vampire movie but has a lot of big named movie stars like Lucy Lu and Marilyn Manson that add some interesting character elements to the film. Lucy gives her character a very sexy feel, though her character's mind is set on revenge she still gives in to the softness of human feelings of loss and regret. Manson's part I thought was very different, I like it because we know him as a very different person and this role was nothing like anything we know. I credit him for playing something totally refreshing. Though the part might just seem like he's playing a kick back guy running a bar, it was not expected. That's what you want from actors, someone who can play several different roles and be convincing. The film over-all has it lulls; I don't think it would have done well in the theater. It has a potential to do well, if a few unnecessary scenes were removed from the film I think it would be really good and would come together better. As it stands I found it just a tad bit slow.

Lucy Liu stars as Sadie Blake, an intrepid reporter who comes a cropper when she pokes her nose too far into the world of a strange vampiric goth cult. None too keen to have their story told, they abduct the news-hound and suck her dry, dumping her body when finished.

But Sadie is a tough girl and refuses to just keel over. Instead, she joins the ranks of the undead, and sets out to get revenge on those responsible for her current state.

Director Sebastian Gutierrez presents a refreshingly different take on the whole vampire schtick with this low budget shocker that is both bloody and innovative (these vampires may lack fangs, but still pack plenty of bite). Great cinematography, an engaging story, and a decent cast all go to make Rise: Blood Hunter worth seeking out, although the gimmicky use of a non-linear storyline is a little unnecessary (so many films seem to use this idea these days).

A strong, sexy performance from Lucy Liu means that the film is never boring, although, at times, it does come across as a little too earnest for its own good. At times, Gutierrez strives so hard for an effectively moody atmosphere to suit his tale that the resulting gravitas detracts from one's enjoyment. Fortunately, Lucy Liu sees fit to shed her clothes at several points in the movie, so everything balances out nicely in the end.

If you love vampire films of all types, adore Gothic fantasy, or, like me, just want to see Ms. Liu in the buff, then Rise: Blood Hunter is recommended viewing.

I just saw this at the Tribeca Film Festival and I have to say that the movie wasn't all too bad. It was very formulaic and predictable, but still entertaining to a decent degree. It's take on vampires was slightly different, in that the vampires don't have fangs or have a weakness to sunlight, they just kill and drink blood. For a low budget movie that will probably go straight to DVD here in the US, it will be worth a rental - especially in that Lucy Liu bares her boobage in numerous scenes.

Carla Gugino is in the movie and sat a row in front of us at the screening in Chelsea. Holy schnikey's she has one smoking body... let's hope she sticks around as Amanda in Entourage for a few more episodes.