Ten Minutes To Midnight 2020 Have You Seen This Chaotic Vampire Film?

Erik Bloomquist directed a great thriller movie released in 2019 with co-writer Carson Bloomquist. An underappreciated indie gem, Long Lost. Now he’s back with a new horror movie about vampires for 2020, Ten Minutes to Midnight. Less of a straightforward linear storyline and more akin to a mashup of a late-night horror anthology show or an episode of The Twilight Zone, Ten Minutes to Midnight is one heck of a horror movie.

Caroline Williams stars as Amy Marlowe. Horror movie addicts and fans of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre will get a kick out of Amy’s role as a radio host and DJ which mirrors her role in the 1986 cult-favorite film. In Ten Minutes to Midnight, Marlowe begins her shift during a massive storm and an unfortunate run-in with a rabid bat.

More to the point, she’s been bitten and with the storm growing fiercer, the radio station is on lockdown. Williams is fantastic in her role which chops and changes depending on what aspect of her life is being touched on. She moves from the aggressor to the victim to cool calm and collected as though she simply needs to push a button to become the desired persona.

Nicholas Tucci’s Finale

Also starring in Ten Minutes to Midnight is Nicholas Tucci (You’re Next and Myth) in his last performance before his death in March 2020. I must admit, I’ve watched a few of Tucci’s films this year and was unaware of his passing. Certainly makes articulating a film like this a little difficult.

To be fair, this style of fever dream and psychedelic imagery is not my favorite style of cinema. But Bloomquist is a talented writer and director in any regard and I can certainly appreciate the vigor in what’s been done in this instance. Additionally, Nicole Kang (Batwoman), and Alice Kremelberg (Orange is the New Black) also star. Adam Weppler who starred in Bloomquist’s’ directorial debut, Long Lost features in the film too. Weppler has a way of maintaining an innocence that I really enjoy. It’s certainly suited to dark and sinister storylines.

Movies About Vampires and Rabid Bats

Minutes to Midnight will keep you guessing. It also offers a myriad of opportunities to guess what sort of film it’s going to be. There are references to Marlowe’s career all from different viewpoints. At the start of the narrative, Marlowe finds she is being replaced by a younger host decidedly leaving her to face a sudden end right before she goes to air.

The underpinning theme of industry revolving doors, sexism, and what people are willing to do to make their way up the ladder juts up against the allegory of life and death as her coworkers die in horrible ways. Or do they? Elaborate macabre scenes play out over 73 minutes of run time and you can never be sure whether they are the result of a hallucination, a mental break, or simply the work of a radio station filled with vampiric bloodsucking ambition.

Ten Minutes to Midnight 2020 by Erik Bloomquist

For Amy, her spot on the radio show where she worked for 30 years is a constant source of transition. Flashbacks cover both relative and metaphoric ways showing just how much ground can be covered in a long-lasting career. The film points to Marlowe standing as a woman who will essentially simply move on and forget about her. New blood so to speak is always an essential turning point in many face-forward roles.

“I like that moment of transition, as a new time approaches.”

Amy Marlowe – quote from Ten Minutes to Midnight

Overall, Ten Minutes to Midnight is a unique and visually interesting story. The film is held together by not only the solid casting but excellent performances as well. Although its fatalistic message can be a little too pushy at times, the narrative works and shows that Bloomquist is versatile both as a writer and director. More, please.

I give Ten Minutes to Midnight

3 dumpster b*tches out of 5

Ten Minutes to Midnight Movie 2020 Official Trailer

For another great review of Ten Minutes to Midnight follow this link to The Daily Dread website. If you are looking for more vampire movies, Mother of Movies is a fan too, so add these titles to your watchlist next: Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person, Crucible of the Vampire, or Bloodsucking Bastards.