Day Watch, Moscow in Peril

I have never been to Russia, but I have a great desire to visit.  Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Vladivostok are all on my list of top 10 cities I must travel to.  This blog has been remiss for not including films from this great country.  So today we look at 2006's "Day Watch."  The apocalypse, vampires, shape-shifters, and demons all wreak havoc on Moscow,  Big budget, lots of great f/x, and an ambitious story are all assets to this Timur Bekmambetov film. This epic, filmed in Russia and Kazakhstan, runs over two hours, and throws a lot at us.

Anton (Konstantin Khabenskiy) and Svetlana (Mariya Poroshina) are kinda supernatural cops.  These two, with some supernatural abilities, are tasked with keeping an eye on "The Dark Ones." The Dark Ones, and The Light Others are enjoying a truce in Moscow, though neither side trusts the other.  If the truce is broken, the end of the world will ruin everyone's day.  Each side has "Great Ones" who will keep them powerful.  Uh-oh....Anton's son is just one soul....but he has joined the dark side.  The beautiful Svetlana, Anton's hot partner, is destined to be a Great One on the Light side.  Poor Anton, he desires a rekindled relationship with his son, and also a more carnal one with Svetlana. 

Anton's son has taken up with the boss of the dark side, Zavulon (Viktor Verzhbitskiy).  Zavulon has a vixen wife, Alisha (Zhanna Friske, pictured above, sadly died of cancer earlier this year) who also has some neat abilities, especially with red sports cars. Alisha enlists the help of Anton's neighbor, who is a vampire, and together they assist in framing Anton for a murder of a schmuck from the dark side.  Zavulon intends to use this frame as an excuse to start a war between light and dark, which will end the planet as we know it (...perhaps not a bad idea).  Oh yes, Olga (Galina Tyunina) also tries to help Anton.  Olga is a psychic, who at one point changes bodies with Anton.  This body switching leads to one of the weirdest love scenes, technically between Anton and Svetlana....or is it Olga and Svetlana....you figure it out.  All sound confusing?  It is....until the end.  When you watch this film, don't worry about understanding every scene.  Before the final credits roll, you'll understand.

Will light prevail over dark?  After centuries of fighting, has the line between light and dark faded? Will Svetlana and Anton end up together?  Will Moscow survive?  This epic feature has a comic book feel to it.  "Day Watch" may look complicated, but if you just relax and enjoy the ride, all will make sense.  Available on Netflix, enjoy this end-of-the-world epic from our Russian and Kazakh friends.