Stakeland ★★★

I MUST be a little thick; either that or the 2010 post-apocalyptic horror film Stakeland takes a while to make things clear.

Rather than zombies terrorising the survivors, a vampire epidemic is the cause, which means stakes through chests rather than skulls.

The problem with the starting confusion is due to the fact we are thrown into the middle of the action and location with adversaries that have a pretty non-descript look and actions.

Compounding this is the barest minimum of back story devoted to either the apocalypse or the two main characters.

But once the film gets into gear it is inventive enough to stand out a little from the pack. It was successful enough for a sequel, The Stakelander, to be released in 2016.

The other main advantage of the film is having two decent actors in the lead roles who aren’t instantly recognisable.

Connor Paolo plays teenager Martin who finds himself alone early in the film after a tragedy and is taken under the wing of Mister, a sullen loner who has developed a reputation for his vampire-slaying skills.

Nick Damici, who also co-wrote the film, is particularly effective as Mister while an almost unrecognisable Kelly McGillis impresses in a small role as a nun.

The story is pretty basic, the trio are seeking to build a new life in a safe haven area called New Eden, but there are a range of inventive touches, e.g. he black market trade in vampire teeth and an attack on a settlement by hurling live vampires from helicopters onto the unsuspecting victims.

Ultimately the tone of the film is very dark, overall even more even than television’s Walking Dead.

It is directed and co-written by Jim Mickle who previously made two other dark but entertaining films – the drama Cold in July and horror We Are What We Are.