Daybreakers is a breath of fresh air for blood-sucker fans after the recent glut of teen-friendly reinterpretations of the vampire myth. Although the film is set in 2019, it doesn't use the futuristic setting as an excuse to change all the classic vampire rules. In this world vampires don't sparkle in the sunlight, they burst into flames. They also have no reflections and can be killed by wooden stakes. There is a bat motif running through the film, both in the look of some of the vampires and in literal flocks of bats in some establishing shots. The action scenes contain the most refreshing showers of blood since Blade's nightclub sprinkler scene. If Daybreakers seems like a timely contrast, coming so soon after New Moon and the lesser Cirque du Freak, that's only because it was shelved for a few years by the studio. Yet it shows few signs of being dated, other than some references to the vampire apocalypse of 2009 (I must have missed that).
     That said, Daybreakers falls short of being exceptional. It patiently creates a believable dystopia early on in which vampires have taken over most of the population, but the movie devolves into action and chase scenes as it progresses. The characters are fairly dull, despite being portrayed by some talented actors. Some of the more minor characters have the potential to be the most interesting, but are given little screen-time. The plot is nothing new, and the conclusion especially feels a bit rushed.
     Said plot revolves around Edward Dalton (Ethan Hawke), the chief hematologist for the primary supplier of human blood for the vampire population. His laboratory is under increasing pressure to find a substitute for human blood due to a worldwide shortage. When the vampires are starved of blood, they turn into vicious bat-like creatures who will do anything for a drink. Dalton has moral qualms with the corporation he works for (headed by a ruthless Sam Neill), due to their gruesome human farm which resembles the massive towers of networked humans from The Matrix. These qualms make him the perfect target for a group of renegade humans trying to keep the species alive (including Willem Dafoe and Claudia Karvan).
     What elevates Daybreakers above other similar genre films is its believable world. The art direction is consistent and the set decoration striking. The cinematography and editing are patient, developing a haunting atmosphere and a unique visual sense. There are also plenty of small touches which bring the world alive. The vampires stir blood into their coffee instead of cream. A poster featuring Uncle Sam recruits new human-hunters. The infrastructure of cities has changed to allow for the passage of vampires without exposure to sunlight.
     There's not much more to the film besides an intriguing world and some well-choreographed action scenes. One might think that the dwindling supply of blood could be likened to the supply of oil in the present, but the parallels are weak. The treatment of the starving vampires brings up some interesting questions about how we treat the poor in a capitalist society, but the film doesn't dig too deep. And in another instance of coincidental timeliness, Daybreakers joins District 9 and Avatar as another story of a hero going over to "the other side." But mostly, the film is just a slick, fun, great-looking, and wonderfully gory vampire movie.