Tom Holland has quietly become one of the most influential names in the horror genre over the past 40 years. He may not have the name recognition of classic horror maestros like John Carpenter, Wes Craven, or Tobe Hooper, and he may share his name with the current actor who plays Spider-Man, but Holland softly put his stamp on the genre throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s.
Without Holland, we wouldn’t have cult favorites like Psycho II and Class of 1984, which he wrote, and we wouldn’t have the movie adaptations of Stephen King’s Thinner or The Langoliers. Most importantly, Holland wrote and directed Child’s Play, which led to a franchise that is still going strong today. 40 years ago, between his other fun contributions and Child’s Play, Holland created one of the best vampire movies ever made, 1985’s Fright Night.
While Holland was writing the screenplay for the unsuccessful 1984 film, Cloak & Dagger, he thought up the premise for Fright Night: a vampire moves next door to a teenager, who witnesses his new neighbor growing fangs and murdering women. His mom doesn’t believe him, and neither do his friends nor the police.
Fright Night’s main trio of Charley Brewster, Amy, and Evil Ed were played by William Ragsdale, Amanda Bearse, who would go on to play Marcy D’arcy in …Married with Children, and Stephen Geoffreys, who would eventually turn down a reprisal in Fright Night: Part 2 for the lead role in Robert Englund’s 976-EVIL.
The most memorable stars of the film were Roddy McDowall as Peter Vincent (named after Hammer’s Peter Cushing and Vincent Price). Vincent is a horror entertainer inspired by popular hosts at the time, like Elvira, Svengoolie, and Joe Bob Briggs, and of course, Chris Sarandon as Jerry Dandrige, the film’s suave, sexy, and calm vampire next door.
Sarandon played Dandrige like a cool breeze, unbothered by Charley’s threats and attempts to out him. He toys with and tortures Charley throughout the film, even to the point of seducing and turning the love of his life into a vampire. McDowall plays Vincent opposite his vampire-hunting TV persona. He’s a fraud, coward, and a joke until he decides to join the fight against evil.
Related: Contributions to Horror: Chris Sarandon
One of Fright Night’s greatest qualities is its excellent practical effects. Led by Richard Edlund, the team had recently done impressive work on Ghostbusters and would split off to work on tons of amazing films in the horror and sci-fi genres, known for their incredible effects, including The Blob, Species, Jurassic Park, Men in Black, and Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
Fright Night used the effects sparingly in the first half of the film with small gore and transformation scenes, and then went all-in during the final act, starting with Evil Ed getting a cross burned into his forehead and his transformation from wolf form after getting staked, the dissolving of Jerry’s ghoulish henchman, Billy Cole, and ending with Dandrige’s full-on vampire assault and transition into a bat monster in the movie’s finale after proclaiming, “Welcome to Fright Night… For real!”
The film’s soundtrack is a banger, too, including the title track, “Fright Night” by The J. Geils Band. Other songs like Evelyn King’s “Give It Up” during Sarandon’s seductive club scene and “LET’S TALK” by Devo make it one of the most memorable horror soundtracks of the 1980s.
Fright Night’s impact on the genre can’t be ignored, either. The “vampire next door” storyline has been used in countless films and books, including by Grady Hendrix in The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires. Fright Night was extremely successful, becoming the second highest-grossing horror film of 1985 (behind Freddy’s Revenge) and led to Fright Night: Part 2 in 1988. While the sequel wasn’t as good as the first, both Ragsdale and McDowall reprise their roles to take on Jerry Dandrige’s sister. The film also received its own documentary in 2016, titled You’re So Cool, Brewster! The Story of Fright Night.
Related: ‘The Lost Boys’ Retro: 35 Years of Monsters and Mullets
In 2011, a fun, serviceable remake of Fright Night was released by Craig Gillespie (I, Tonya, Cruella), which starred Colin Farrell as Jerry Dandrige, the late Anton Yelchin as Charley Brewster, and David Tennant as Peter Vincent. The cast also included Toni Collette, Imogen Poots, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Dave Franco, and even a cameo from Chris Sarandon. While the remake wasn’t successful financially, it did capture the spirit of the original film and received a 72% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
Fright Night also received a lesser-known video game adaptation on floppy disc exclusively for the Amiga PC in the ‘80s. Weirdly, though, you played as Jerry Dandrige, searching for and slaying potential victims who entered his mansion, along with zombies and other horror monsters.
While Fright Night may not have the iconic staying power of Dracula or the memorable mullets of The Lost Boys, its simple and contained story, amazing effects, and fun performances cement it as not only one of the best horror films of the ‘80s, but also one of the best vampire films of all time.
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