WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Vampires vs. the Bronx, available now on Netflix.
Vampires vs. the Bronx is a fresh and fun take on the still relevant blood-sucking genre, giving us a coming-of-age tale cleverly wrapped in an allegory for gentrification. Though it ties a cheerful bow on its characters’ stories, the loose ends surrounding the vampires’ mysterious identities, and even more mysterious box, remain untied. What is in the box? Could it be worse than Gwyneth Paltrow’s head?
During the struggle to thwart the impending vampire invasion in the Bronx, Miguel, Luis and Bobby steal a mysterious, skull-shaped key from Frank Polidori, the owner of the real estate company buying up the neighborhood on behalf of the vampire invaders. Neither they nor the viewer know what the key belongs to until Polidori unveils a locked metal box that he cannot open – much to the chagrin of the mysterious leader of the vampires known only as “commander.”
The second and third acts of the film revolve around the key to the box, culminating in the boys taking the fight to the vampires’ doorstep for a bloody showdown. Unwittingly, the boys place the very item the vampires want right at their feet.
Until the final fifteen minutes, it is tempting as a viewer to label the box and key as MacGuffins, simple plot devices whose sole purpose in a narrative is to keep the story moving. But when the commander – revealed to be the friendly neighborhood newcomer, Vivian – finally gets a hold of the key, she opens the box and reveals it is not just a red herring. The box contains the ashes of the first vampire, an absolutely essential ingredient for the vampires’ plans to take over the Bronx.
As Vivian explains to the boys, it is not enough to be bit by a vampire to become one. A revelation that falls neatly into place, as multiple people are bitten throughout the film, but never reappear as vampires. To create more vampires, the remains of the “original” vampire are required in addition to being bit. A small amount of the ashes must be blown into the face of the victim before being bit for the vampire transformation to occur.
In this film’s version of the mythical blood suckers, every new vampire must be “blessed” with the ashes of the creator, and in doing so (though this is speculative) absorb a small piece of its essence. This second mechanic to the vampire transmission may sound like a contrivance at first, but in the context of the villains plans (completely inhabiting the Bronx with only their kind, those select few that were graced with the ashes of the creator) the mechanic actually makes a lot of sense.
These vampires, like typical vampires, feed on human blood. But not at the cost of creating a new vampire each time they must feed. The ashes are a “key” for their species, so that they are in total control of who joins their ranks while freely feasting on any human they please.
In the final confrontation, Vivian is the sole surviving vampire in the wake of the boys’ attack. Desperate for aid, she grabs Bobby and blows the creator’s ashes into his face. But before she can bite him, Miguel drives a stake into her heart and puts an end to the vampire siege on the Bronx. The neighborhood is saved. The boys are heroes.
But even as the credits roll to the upbeat music and scenes from the block party, there are questions that remain unanswered. Did the boys kill the only vampires left on Earth, or was Vivian’s nest one of many? What became of the box, left unattended and open on the top floor of the old courthouse? Is it possible to use the ashes on someone that has been bitten and killed? Would this resurrect and transform them, or must the process be in the other order? Will Bobby be totally unaffected by the ashes, or has his encounter bound him to vampires in an unexplained way?
Like most mysterious boxes in film, Vampires vs. the Bronx’s box poses more questions than it answers.
Vampires vs. the Bronx stars Sarah Gadon, Chris Redd, The Kid Mero, Method Man, Shea Whigham, Vladimir Caamaño, Jaden Michael, Gregory Diaz IV, Gerald W. Jones III and Coco Jones. It is available for streaming now on Netflix.