10 Vampire Movies That Broke All The Rules
6. Daybreakers
Daybreakers, for its flaws, is an undeniable true original, taking place in a future where most of humanity has been transformed into vampires by a plague.
Those few humans who remain are hunted to be harvested for blood, while the increasingly starving vampire population is progressively transforming into rabid "subsiders", as hematologist Edward Dalton (Ethan Hawke) attempts to develop a blood substitute.
The Spierig Brothers (Predestiation, Jigsaw) do a fantastic job of aggressively re-configuring classical aspects of vampire lore, offering up a totally fresh take on a tired genre in the process.
It's also beautifully shot, with strong performances from Hawke, Willem Dafoe (as a crossbow-wielding former vampire), and Sam Neill (as a scenery-chewing blood manufacturer).
It's a shame we never got to see more from this world - whether by way of a sequel or a TV spin-off - because its alluringly singular mythology begs deeper exploration.