''Midnight Son'' is a 2011

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deat ...

horror film written and directed by Scott Leberecht, produced by Matt Compton, and starring Zak Kilberg. A trailer was released late October 2010.

Plot

Jacob (Zak Kilberg) is a young man in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

who lives a life of isolation by day and works as a security guard by night. This is due to a rare skin disorder developed in his youth that prevents him from being exposed to sunlight. His world opens up when he meets and falls in love with a local bartender and secret druggie, Mary (Maya Parish), recently departing a relationship with a

drug dealer A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalati ...

. Beginning to crave blood, as everyday food no longer cures his hunger, Jacob suspects he may be a

, though his physician, Dr. Barnes (Kevin McCorkle), diagnoses him to be

anemic Anemia or anaemia (British English) is a blood disorder in which the blood has a reduced ability to carry oxygen due to a lower than normal number of red blood cells, or a reduction in the amount of hemoglobin. When anemia comes on slowly, th ...

. His condition worsens and he goes from consuming animal blood to depending on human blood for medical sustenance, a necessity which brings out his violent tendencies on people in the city. Jacob, longing to be normal, hides his deteriorating condition from Mary, and their romantic relationship suffers because of it. Searching for blood at a hospital, Jacob comes in contact with an immoral hospital physician named Marcus ( Jo D. Jonz), who alongside his younger, misguided brother, Russell ( Arlen Escarpeta), helps Jacob by milking a patient for blood in exchange for money, a grim method Jacob is against. Shortly, Detective Ginslegh ( Larry Cedar) narrows his focus on Jacob during a homicide investigation. While on security one night, Jacob assaults a disobedient man, resulting in his job termination. Fascinated with Jacob’s paintings and attempting to help him monetize it, Mary interests her friend, Liz (Juanita Jennings), who works at an art gallery. However, his relationship with Mary, suspicious there is more complications to his health, falls apart. In desperation, Jacob approaches Marcus to help him get more blood, but Marcus turns him down for initially opposing his actions. After Marcus hits him, Jacob lashes back and causes Marcus an injury on broken glass, leaving him to bleed heavily. Jacob reconciles with Mary, confessing to her he is suffering from severe anemia, which plays a role in his skin sensitivity. When they decide to ditch a party at the gallery, Russell tracks and follows them to a quiet location, shooting Mary to avenge his missing brother who he believes Jacob killed. Jacob is able to retrieve the gun and scare him away. He sucks the bullet out of Mary’s chest and soon realizes he passed on his contagious case of anemia to her. Jacob keeps her isolated in his home and not wanting to harm Mary, attempts to convince Detective Ginslegh that he infected and killed the girl in the homicide case whose body burned during sunrise, but there is mysteriously no evidence for an arrest. Jacob finds out Marcus is alive, and he is left with a burn on his face from escaping daylight, after Jacob had sucked his blood, infected him and left him for dead. Morally corrupt, Marcus forces Jacob and Russell to dismember and dump the dead old man’s body they used to extract blood from. After Marcus decides to dump the body instead, they revolt against him, with Russell using a

cinderblock A concrete masonry unit (CMU) is a standard-size rectangular block used in building construction. CMUs are some of the most versatile building products available because of the wide variety of appearances that can be achieved using them. Tho ...

to knock Marcus unconscious before running away. Jacob chains Marcus up and leaves him to burn at the break of dawn. He returns home the next night, and Detective Ginslegh follows him there, looking to arrest him for seemingly harming Mary, who starves for blood. In an act of need, Jacob kills Detective Ginslegh, providing blood for him and Mary to feast on. In the end, they kiss and begin their new found life together.

Cast

* Zak Kilberg as Jacob * Maya Parish as Mary * Larry Cedar as Detective Ginslegh * Jo D. Jonz as Marcus * Kevin McCorkle as Dr. Barnes *

Juanita Jennings Juanita Jennings (born September 12, 1952) is an American actress, known for her roles on television. Career Jennings won the 1994 CableACE Award for Supporting Actress in a Movie or Miniseries for her role in '' Laurel Avenue''. She guest-starre ...

as Liz * Billy Louviere as The Junkie *

Tracey Walter Tracey Walter (born November 25, 1947) is an American character actor. He has appeared in more than 170 films and television series. Life and career Walter was born and grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey, as the son of a truck driver. He has a ...

as Janitor

Critical reception

''Midnight Son'' received very positive reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes rated the film "Fresh" with 95% of critical reviews being positive. Philip French of ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'' newspaper said it was "a frightening story, plausibly developed within a relatively brief running time, and the central love between the male protagonist increasingly addicted to blood and a girl addicted to cocaine is oddly moving." The '' Daily Telegraphs

Robbie Collin Robbie Collin is a British film critic. Collin studied aesthetics and the philosophy of film at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. He edited the university's student newspaper, '' The Saint''. Collin has been the chief film critic at ''The D ...

stated that "Horror films driven by ideas are thin on the ground, but behind the gory façade of Scott Leberecht's debut feature there ticks some cleverly assembled clockwork."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Midnight Son 2011 films 2010s adventure films 2011 thriller drama films 2011 horror films 2011 horror thriller films American adventure drama films American horror thriller films Films set in Los Angeles Films shot in Los Angeles American independent films American vampire films 2011 drama films 2011 independent films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films

Plot

Cast

Critical reception

See also

References

External links