Review movie Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire Assistant (2009)

Steve (played by Josh Hutcherson) and Darren Shan (played by Chris Massoglia) are close friends who are 15 years old. Although familiar, they are different. Darren is a model student who is always obedient and becomes an outstanding student who obeys his parents. While Steve is a delinquent boy who always upsets his teachers.

One time, they went to watch a circus program that was held in secret and limited, Cirque du Freak. Where all the cast are people who are born strange and have unusual abilities. Like Corma Limbs (played by Jane Karowski) a woman who can grow broken flesh from her body, Alexander Ribs (played by Orlando Jones) a man who has no meat around his waist, until all his ribs are visible, Gertha Teeth (played by Kristen Schaal) women who can chew anything, Rhamus Twobellies (played by Frankie Faison) a man who has two stomachs, Evra (played by Patrick Fugit) the snake boy.

Steve is very obsessed with vampires while Darren is obsessed with spiders. At the circus, Steve was convinced that Larten was actually Vur Horsten, a vampire because he had seen his picture in one of his collection vampire books. While Darren could not take his eyes off Madam Octo the poisonous spider.

Steve then went to Larten and asked him to make a vampire. But Larten refused, after he tasted Steve's blood. He said Steve's blood was full of evil and he swore that Steve would never be able to become a vampire. Steve was very angry and threatened to take revenge for Larten's refusal. Meanwhile, Darren manages to steal Madam Octo's flute and intends to steal the spider for herself. He was separated from Steve but managed to eavesdrop on Steve's conversation with Larten. But he was kidnapped by a group of vampires on his way home, even though he was finally released. But they managed to take a pinch of his hair.

Darren then kept Madam Octo in her school locker and accidentally separated from her cage. The frightened spider ran frantically between the legs of the students leaving the classroom, trying to find a way out. Steve, who felt resentment over Larten's refusal, intended to kill the spider but failed because Madam Octo stung him until he passed out before finally finding a way out. Steve was hospitalized and in a coma.

Desperately, Darren returned to the circus to meet Larten and ask for his help to save Steve. Larten, who was angry because of Darren's theft, finally agreed to help on the condition that Darren must be willing to become a half-vampire man who could walk during the day and be his assistant. Darren was forced to agree and Larten gave an antidote to cure Steve.

Meanwhile, over time, Darren began to experience changes in him. His strength grew to become extraordinary and he began to like raw meat. He even nearly ate his sister, Annie, because he was tempted by his blood and pulse. Finally he realized that he had turned into a vampire. Larten then came to pick him up and invited him to join the Cirgue du Freak. The reason is simple. Darren can no longer live among humans because he could have eaten them unknowingly. Larten then helped him plan a mock suicide so that his parents thought he found him dead the next day by jumping off the second floor of his house and breaking his neck.

Only Steve suspected his death after seeing the wound at Darren's finger tips. He knew that Darren died as a vampire and he was very angry because Larten refused but accepted Steve. That night Larten dug up Darren's grave to revive him. At the tomb, Larten meets with his old enemy, Murlaugh (played by Ray Stevenson), an evil vampire who wants to make Darren as one of his flock and fight with him. Larten told Darren to run away. They managed to escape from Murlaugh and hid themselves in a circus gathering of strange people and met with Rebecca (played by Jessica Carlson), the monkey girl who has a tail.

Larten tried to persuade the circus owner, Mr. Tall (played by Ken Watanabe), to receive Darren in his society. Tall agreed to take him in for a while but Larten had to take Darren away as soon as possible because he did not want his circus gathering to be attacked by Murlaugh and his group. Darren met again with Madame Truska who immediately recognized him again after their first meeting at the circus. Darren was told to live in a tent with Evra the snake boy and immediately befriend him.

Meanwhile, Mr. Tiny (played by Michael Cerveris), leader of the Murlaugh group, succeeded in persuading Steve to join the evil vampire as they were. Tiny agreed to make it a vampire, according to his wishes.

At the circus gathering, Darren always remembered his family and tried to contact Darren on his cellphone, before Larten finally destroyed his cellphone. Suddenly Tiny came to visit Cirque du Freak to blame Larten's treatment which had made Darren a vampire even though he was still a child. He threatened to attack the place if Tall did not surrender Darren to him. But he left disappointed because Tall refused to turn over Darren.

At the campsite, Darren becomes acquainted with Harkit, a meat-eating kate creature who turns out to be Tiny's spy. Harkit and his group always followed Darren wherever he went and spied on him, but he didn't really care. Darren falls in love with Rebecca but Larten forbids them from having sex. Larten instead forced him to practice martial arts, because he already knew Tiny's plan to use Steve, Darren's best friend, to hunt Darren later. He also taught Darren to hunt human blood and how he could drink human blood without killing it. But Darren refused to prey on humans and chose to prey on mice.

And indeed, the Tiny group had turned Steve into an evil vampire. And the first thing he did was kill his teacher, Kersey (played by Patrick Breen), who often punished him at school. Then they went to the Cirque du Freak camp to kidnap Darren. Larten fled Darren away from the camp while all the group members fought to drive away the evil vampire. When Darren returned to camp, he realized that Murlaugh's group had succeeded in kidnapping Rebecca.

Steve, the evil vampire, visits Darren's parents' house and kidnaps them. Darren, who was already suspicious of Steve's plans to visit his parents' house, without Larten's knowledge, found a Cirque du Freak paper that told him to come to the circus to pick up his family. There he met with Murlaugh and his gang. Rebecca and her family are bound and meet with Steve who hates him.

Steve forced him to kill and drink Rebecca's blood, otherwise he would kill his entire family. Angry, Darren tried to paralyze Steve, but he was weak because he had never drunk any blood. Even though Steve killed many victims. At that crucial moment, Larten came to help Darren and had to deal again with his old enemy, Murlaugh.

Rebecca, who saw Darren's difficulties and weaknesses because she had not yet drunk blood, offered her blood voluntarily to be smoked so that Darren had the strength to help Larten fight the Murlaugh mob. Because Larten won't be able to face them all alone. By force, Darren agreed.

Then when Larten starts losing to the evil vampires and will be killed by Steve, Darren shows up to help. Larten managed to stab Murlaugh in the heart to death and end a peace agreement for hundreds of years. Steve and Darren fight but are stopped by Tiny.

Larten then hypnotized his family members to forget the incident and brought Rebecca back to camp. Larten could only watch helplessly, however disagreeing he was. They returned to Cirque du Freak where Tall held a vote to determine whether Darren was accepted to live between them or not. It turned out that most of them accepted him and he could stay. And he was finally able to accept the situation that he was indeed a vampire and was willing to sleep in a coffin.

Release:
2009

Director:
Paul Weitz

Cast:
John C. Reilly
Ken Watanabe
Josh Hutcherson
Ray Stevenson
Chris Massoglia
Salma Hayek
Willem Defoe
Patrick Fugit

Writer:
Paul Weitz
Brian Helgeland

Studio:
Universal Pictures