Daywatch (2006) 7/10

Daywatch is the sequel to the popular Nightwatch. Both films were produced in Russia and showcase the ability of Russia to produce a high quality special effects epic.

Personally I loved Nightwatch. The film had such a unique plot line as well as a great sense of humor and aesthetic. The whole film was engaging and I was really excited to see the continuation of the story. Notice how I said was?

The problem here is that the films are based on a trilogy of books that were hugely popular in Russia. The first film was the first book and worked marvelously well. The second film however, is the last two books in the series. What we get is a lot of plot devices mashed together with no thought as to why things are happening, they just are. It's hard to understand the motivations of the characters as i felt like i was missing vital information to understand the real scope of things. Its almost as if the film is in a race with itself, a race that it loses. Instead of trimming some of the unnecessary items from the last two books it seems like we get every major event that happens with none of the information in between to explain the events themselves. The action sequences are even more epic then in the first film but without any information backing them up they just look like show pieces for the film makers to say, "Hey! Look what we can do!" instead of using them to tell the story.

To put it simply, the film is hard to follow. I've watched Nightwatch at least 4 times since it came out so feel i have a pretty good handle on the story. There is no chance in hell that anyone who hasn't seen Nightwatch would understand Daywatch.

So, why did I give it a 7? Well the ending actually makes up for the confusion. I won't give it away but i felt that it was very satisfying and brought the film out of the 5 or a 6 realm and into a 7. For anyone that saw Nightwatch and loved it you don't need a review to tell you to watch the film, you will anyway, and for anyone that hasn't seen Nightwatch, don't bother with Daywatch until you have.

Overall - 7/10