Plot: Connor (Colin Egglesfield) and his girlfriend Amanda (Meredith Monroe) are on vacation in Thailand, so they expect a calm, relaxing experience during their visit. But that just isn’t in the cards, as a pack of vampires is destined to break up their vacation. The vampires have glowing blue eyes and when they swarm the couple, the lovers are too shocked to react. As a result, Amanda is taken by the vampires and Connor is left behind, though he isn’t going to be idle. As he searches for his girlfriend, Connor encounters another band of vampires, only this group refuses to feed on humans. As it turns out, this group is involved in a bitter feud with the vampires that took his girlfriend. Soon after, he meets more folks who could help him in his search, as he runs into a band of slayers who want the bad vampires out of the picture. With this uneasy alliance of slayers and vampires at his side, he pushes on with his impossible quest. But can he find his lover and even if he does, will he be too late and discover she is now a vampire herself?

Entertainment Value: This second sequel to John Carpenter’s Vampires has little in common with the original movie, but it does have vampires, so I suppose that’s the important thread. The narrative in The Turning is by no means a creative one, but the good vampires versus bad vampires theme is a reliable one, so the plot does what it needs to do. The movie manages to stand out a little thanks to the inclusion of martial arts elements and an odd extreme sports vibe, which add some fun touches even when the film drags a little. I do appreciate that The Turning seems to want to throw some fresh takes into the mix, but none of it really gels and the real draw ends up being how silly the film is at times. I don’t think the b movie vibes are strong enough to balance out the poor choices and sometimes dull pace, but it is neat to have vampires in the world of kickboxing, I think. The cast is passable, but no one stands out as memorable, so it is just kind of basic, but serviceable performances. In the end, The Turning is no vampire classic, but it has some weird elements that make it worth a look, just don’t expect a direct sequel to the original movie.

This movie is centered on a lost romance, so it has some sexual elements, but the lone nakedness is one brief topless scene. But if bare breasts are involved in a vampire transformation sequence, I think that’s always a plus. The bloodshed is limited, but we do have a fun decapitation scene and several of the vampires dissolve in the light, in cheap, but still fun fashion. The movie also has the expected bites and some blood flows in those scenes, but not much. On the action front, the martial arts fights are basic, but add to the good times. I would have loved some wild vampire martial arts showdowns, but it is what it is. The dialogue here is functional, but doesn’t provide many fun or wild lines. Just the basics in this case. The movie also never gets that wild, but I do think the inclusion of martial arts and extreme sports earns a point, even if they’re not taken full advantage of.

Nudity: 1/10

Blood: 3/10

Dialogue: 0/10

Overall Insanity: 1/10

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