Photo courtesy of Entertainment Weekly
If you are looking for a Halloween movie to watch in these final days of October, look no further. Netflix’s new movie “Vampires vs. the Bronx” has been out since the beginning of the month, and you’ll want to watch it while it’s still in season. The movie, which is directed by “Saturday Night Live” director Osmany Rodriguez, is wholesome, funny and painfully corny at times, but with a serious and spooky twist.
“Vampires vs. the Bronx” is a horror comedy about Miguel Martin (Jaden Michael) and his friends who are trying to save a bodega that is on the verge of being bought out. In the meantime, while the kids try to save the bodega, the owners of the other businesses in the area each seem to go missing after selling their property. Miguel eventually discovers that it is vampires who are taking over the neighborhood through murder and gentrification.
Although the movie is filled with cliches about vampires – like not being able to go outside in the day time, being repelled by holy water and crosses, sleeping in coffins and not having a reflection – the familiar and simplistic interpretation of the mythological beings allows audiences to see the bigger picture in the film. These vampires cast a unique type of terror and it’s safe to say that there is definitely some symbolism between the jokes and the drama. By depicting the the pale and monstrous bloodsuckers as destroying the neighborhood, buying out property and killing off residents so that they can take over, the movie makes some serious points about the way that gentrification impacts predominantly Black and brown neighborhoods and small businesses. While the movie is lacking some background information that would have given the overall story a stronger backbone, the holes in the plot don’t necessarily take away from the spooky, feel-good aspect of the movie and its many jabs at the problematic nature of gentrification.
The main reason many viewers tuned in, however, was for Coco Jones, one of the supporting actresses in the film. After years of being missing in action, Jones came back into the spotlight after a viral YouTube livestream where she spoke about how Disney treated her poorly after filming the movie that she is best known for, “Let it Shine.” After hearing her talk in such a hilariously candid yet respectful way about the toxic atmosphere that exists behind the scenes at Disney, fans were happy to support her in this new project. In “Vampires vs. the Bronx,” Coco Jones plays Miguel’s overaged crush, Rita, who is the only person in the neighborhood who believes him and his friends about the vampires that are terrorizing the community. Her role was not groundbreaking, but people are happy to see Jones diving back into the acting world again.
“Vampires vs. the Bronx” is worth the watch, giving new life to the sometimes worn out vampire narrative, and it’s a good source of entertainment to finish off this otherwise uneventful Spooktober.
