Peter Thorwarth

(Netflix Streaming, July 2022) On paper, Blood Red Sky should work much better than it does in reality—after all, what’s not to like about an airplane thriller in which terrorists see their plans foiled by the unexpected appearance of a vampire on the passenger manifest? As far as good old genre premises go, this one is pretty good. This German import (via Netflix) even has the budget required to do justice to most of its invention, and the terrific opening sequence (a modern airborne update on the classic boat arrival of Dracula in Stoker’s original) sets an intriguing tone. Alas (and it would be tempting to make a link here with its German origins), the film is almost absurdly over-the-top serious and tragic. In making sure its vampire is a tragic heroic figure, Blood Red Sky paints itself in a corner in terms of fun. (It also makes things a bit too convoluted by dancing inconclusively around the idea of making its hijackers terrorists, instead going for something more nebulous that doesn’t improve anything.)  In other words—this is the kind of fun genre thriller that ends up being a not-fun ordeal. Its 121 minutes running time is absurdly overlong, especially considering that the film essentially takes place in a tin can (there’s a little bit on the ground and a few flashbacks, but they only underscore the point). The cinematography is drab and the set-pieces are fewer than you’d imagine. It seems like an error for writer-director Peter Thorwarth to play up a mother/son emotional plotline when there’s so much fun left on the table. But there’s the problem: for a sealed-environment terrorists-versus-vampires genre exercise, Blood Red Sky leaves viewers unmoved—no chuckles, no fist-pumping victories, no “I can’t believe this” moments. Just the most ordinary execution of a promising idea.