Barrow, Alaska, the northernmost city in the United States, faces a month of darkness every winter. Not willing to face 30 days without sun, many of the townspeople head south, leaving 152 of their neighbors, friends and loved ones to face the time, and the creatures, alone.

“30 Days of Night,” like many vampire movies, has the creatures prowling the city not only for food, but also just for fun. And their expedition, purging Barrow of human life, makes for one interesting film.

First of all, wow, Josh Harnett grew up to be one solid actor and a little bit of a heartthrob. His character, the heartbroken sheriff and up-and-coming vampire-slayer Eben Oleson, is deep and well portrayed. Harnett does a fabulous job of making the character loveable, yet torn between duties, which actually made me cry more than once throughout the two-hour horror flick.

The other actors were not quite as impressive. Melissa George took on the role of separated-wife, fire marshal and leading lady Stella Oleson for “30 Days of Night,” but was a little disappointing. George is relatively new to the box office breaking scene, so she should be cut a little slack, but if I had heard her weapy-scream one more time, I might have vomited. However, the estranged love-story between the two made her a little more bearable.

The vampires are not the classical Anne Rice take, nor are they the sexy, gun-wielding Underworld ones. They are actually a gross, disfigured race whose mere scratch can turn any human into a blood-thirsty monster. Having the creatures depicted as such is a breath of fresh air, but it’s not my personal favorite.

Other than the characters, the cinematography for the movie was amazing. Between the snow-swept landscape drenched in blood to the boarded walls of an abandoned town, whoever designed the set should be given props. Not to mention that spilling the blood of 150 people over clean, white snow makes for a gruesome backdrop.

Another enjoyable aspect is that the director avoids the typical jump-out scares. There are plenty of times when there could’ve been a cheap fright, but the movie thrives on thematic fear instead of pop-out thrills.

If you’re looking for an awesome date movie that will keep you on the edge of your seat and keep the girlfriend interested, “30 Days of Night” is a sure bet.