The Stranger, Eli Roth gives us Vampires in Chile

In a mountain town reminiscent of the one in "Twilight" comes a mysterious stranger.  Unfortunately, there'll be no twinkling and games, rather gory carnage and death.  From producer Eli Roth comes 2014's "The Stranger," an unusual vampire tale set in the fictional town of Grey Mountain but shot in Chile.  Grim and creepy, this film starts with a pall of dread and proceeds to cascade downward as our visiting vampire proves that he cannot gel with the society of the living.

Martin (Cristobal Tapia Montt) arrives by sea one night.  He is looking for his wife, Ana (Lorenza Izzo).  The two split when Martin tried a murder/suicide (usually a relationship buster) thing as he realized Ana could not control her urge for human blood.  Interrupted by a gang of the living, Ana escaped. He finds his old house occupied by Monica (Alessandra Guerzoni), a nurse, and her son Peter (Nicolas Duran).  Peter tells him Ana is buried in the graveyard.  Martin departs, heartbroken, and is quickly pummeled by a gang of youths.  Peter saves him and brings him back to his house where Monica tries to administer first-aid.  Peter warns her to stay away from him, as his blood will kill her.  Uh-oh, the thugs set their sight on Peter, and they beat him up, but Martin returns the favor and dispatches them.

The town cop (Luis Gnecco) now has Martin and Peter in his cross-hairs, as the head thug, Caleb (Ariel Levy) is his son.  The cop tortures Peter and burns him beyond recognition.  Once again, Martin to the rescue as his blood is used to heal Peter.  Now the cop is really mad and will stop at nothing to kill Peter and Martin.  We are let in on the backstory of Ana and her death.  No spoilers here, but we understand why Martin is hanging around.  As Martin tries to stay in the shadow (...this never works), bloody carnage awaits a lot of innocent people.  Too late to slip away quietly, Martin and Peter will have to confront their tormentors.  Oh yes, Caleb is back...and he ain't quite human...or sympathetic to the ones who put him in the hospital.

Directed masterfully by Guillermo Amoedo, "The Stranger" is a perfect vampire film for those who thought the genre could give us nothing unique anymore.  Not the feel good movie of the decade, and invading certain taboos, this Eli Roth produced film will surely please those that love their horror dark.  Available on Netflix, enjoy this one over the Halloween season.