Vampire Hunting After Last Call

Read Time:10 Minute, 31 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
Cinnamon
–

Genre: Horror, Action, Comedy, Vampire
Year: 2026
Runtime: 1h 35m
Director: Landon Spicer
Writer: Landon Spicer
Cast: Sabreen Marie, Isadora Ortega, Freddy John James, Michelle Renee Allaire, Malek Ghattassi, Danielle Gray, William Hairston, Haley Kahn
Where to Watch: available now; stream here: www.tubitv.com

RAVING REVIEW: CINNAMON eventually becomes the ridiculous vampire movie I wanted from the start. Unfortunately, writer-director Landon Spicer spends too much time trying to convince us how cool everything looks before letting the actual movie do much of the entertaining. This female-led action-horror production from 3FN Productions throws together strippers, bloodthirsty vampires, seasoned hunters, raunchy comedy, and enough B-movie enthusiasm to make its influences immediately recognizable. It's rough around the edges, sometimes unintentionally funny, and far too dependent on music and dramatic editing to manufacture excitement. Once the vampire-hunting action gets moving, it still delivers a fair amount of entertainment despite those shortcomings. And when a certain BLADE homage arrives, I couldn't help smiling from ear to ear.

Sabreen Marie stars as Cinnamon, a young exotic dancer who becomes the target of a dangerous group of vampires led by Freddy (Freddy John James). Her increasingly unpleasant circumstances eventually bring her together with a group of experienced vampire hunters led by Jo (Isadora Ortega), who are determined to end Freddy's bloody reign. The premise is straightforward. It taps into the entertainment potential of throwing someone from a familiar nightlife setting into a far more dangerous supernatural conflict. Cinnamon isn't simply dealing with troublesome customers anymore. She's facing creatures whose intentions go far beyond being assholes at a strip club.

The film embraces its exploitation influences from the outset, combining sexuality, violence, attitude, and a predominantly Black ensemble within a contemporary urban setting. It isn't attempting to disguise itself as an elevated examination of vampire mythology, and I appreciate that. Sometimes you want an elaborate psychological horror experience that examines humanity's deepest fears. Other times, you want people fighting vampires while everything gets increasingly bloody and ridiculous. Both have room, and CINNAMON is firmly interested in the latter.

The problem is that Spicer initially seems more concerned with establishing the production's style than developing its momentum. Music becomes an almost constant presence, often accompanying sequences that already convey what's happening visually. The editing adopts a similarly exaggerated approach, leaning heavily on dramatic presentation to give ordinary moments additional importance. After a while, the combination becomes exhausting. It's hard to appreciate an exciting moment when practically everything around it has been treated as equally exciting.

That music-video approach isn't entirely inappropriate for a production so closely connected to nightlife. The club environment gives Spicer a natural opportunity to incorporate loud music, exaggerated visuals, and characters who exist in a world built around performance. There's a difference between using those elements to establish an environment and allowing them to dictate the entire experience. CINNAMON occasionally crosses that line, making its opening stretches feel more like an extended collection of promotional sequences than a story finding its footing.

Thankfully, the film becomes considerably more enjoyable when it prioritizes its supernatural conflict. The vampire-hunting material gives the production a stronger sense of direction, letting the characters and their increasingly violent circumstances entertain without requiring every moment to announce its own importance. The premise already has plenty of absurdity. A stripper joining a group of experienced hunters to eliminate an underground vampire threat doesn't need much help convincing audiences that something unusual is happening.

Sabreen Marie gives Cinnamon an appropriately confident presence, making her a protagonist whose circumstances demand a major adjustment to her understanding of the world. Surrounded by exaggerated personalities, questionable decisions, and supernatural dangers, she must maintain that presence. The role also places her in a tradition of action-horror heroines who confront threats far more dangerous than anything in their everyday lives.

Isadora Ortega's Jo brings a different energy as the leader of the vampire hunters. Her character helps establish the more experienced side of the supernatural conflict, contrasting with Cinnamon's introduction to this dangerous world. Their involvement also supports the film's female-driven approach without pretending that women fighting monsters is some revolutionary concept. The entertainment comes from letting them participate in the action rather than spending the entire movie waiting for someone else to save them.

Freddy John James, who also serves as one of the film's producers, plays the villain Freddy. His performance fits comfortably within the production's exaggerated personality, favoring a larger-than-life presence over the restrained menace associated with more traditional vampire antagonists. This isn't exactly a collection of undead aristocrats sitting around discussing the burden of immortality. These vampires exist in a much less sophisticated world, and the movie happily embraces their uglier, more outrageous qualities.

The acting throughout CINNAMON is unmistakably B-movie, with performances that vary widely in delivery and effectiveness. Some dialogue lands with the intended attitude, while other exchanges feel awkward enough to pull attention away from the story. At times, the cast approaches the material with different levels of seriousness, creating an occasionally amusing contrast between dramatic declarations and the ridiculous circumstances surrounding them.

That inconsistency can be frustrating, but I also don't think every exploitation production needs to feature polished performances to be enjoyable. Horror history is filled with movies whose limitations eventually became part of their identity. The distinction comes down to whether the surrounding material provides enough entertainment to compensate. CINNAMON eventually reaches that point, though it asks audiences to work through a fair amount of uneven presentation to get there.

Its strongest influence is also impossible to ignore. The spirit of BLADE hangs over the production, particularly in its combination of contemporary urban environments, nightclub culture, vampire mythology, and action-oriented horror. Stephen Norrington's 1998 film remains one of my favorite examples of how effectively those ingredients can work together, and its opening nightclub sequence is still an incredible introduction to a supernatural world hiding beneath ordinary nightlife.

CINNAMON's direct homage to BLADE was easily one of my favorite moments. I had a ridiculous smile on my face, and I appreciate the willingness to acknowledge such an important influence without pretending audiences won't recognize what they're watching. The homage provides exactly the kind of genre-loving enthusiasm that makes independently produced horror appealing to me. It's a little bit of filmmakers celebrating the movies that clearly helped inspire them, and sometimes that's all I need to enjoy a particular sequence.

Of course, acknowledging BLADE also invites comparisons that don't necessarily favor Spicer's production. The earlier film possessed a distinctive visual identity, memorable action choreography, and an extraordinary ability to combine horror and superhero entertainment without sacrificing either. CINNAMON operates on a considerably smaller scale, and its attempts to capture some of that energy aren't always supported by the same level of technical execution. The influence is obvious, but the film works better when it's celebrating those familiar ingredients rather than trying so hard to manufacture their impact through editing.

The action-oriented material gives the movie opportunities to embrace its lower-budget personality, and that's where it becomes more entertaining. Its mixture of vampire violence, exaggerated characters, and increasingly outrageous circumstances feels connected to the exploitation tradition rather than another conventional attempt to modernize the genre. The production doesn't need to behave like a major studio release, and its willingness to become a little ridiculous is welcome.

The film also draws a clear distinction between its deliberate humor and the moments that become funny for entirely different reasons. Some of the dialogue and exaggerated behavior clearly aim for comedy, while the uneven performances occasionally create their own unintended amusement. I wouldn't pretend everything lands as intended, but those unexpected moments make the experience easier to appreciate once you understand exactly what kind of movie you're dealing with.

Spicer's screenplay isn't particularly interested in reinventing vampire mythology, either. Its familiar supernatural elements serve primarily as the foundation for a female-led action story, where surviving the creatures matters far more than an extensive examination of their origins. That's fine with me. A production at this scale benefits from recognizing which aspects of its premise deliver the most entertainment, and CINNAMON is strongest when it focuses on its characters confronting the undead.

The film's tendency to overproduce its own excitement remains difficult to ignore. Music should complement a sequence, not constantly instruct audiences on how intensely they're supposed to react. Dramatic editing can create energy, but relying on it too frequently makes the technique increasingly noticeable. When the actual vampire action becomes entertaining enough to hold your attention without those distractions, the earlier insistence on constantly amplifying everything feels even less necessary.

The film also benefits from a predominantly Black cast in a genre space that hasn't always offered audiences many comparable productions. Its cultural identity and contemporary urban setting give CINNAMON an appealing personality, and I appreciate seeing independent filmmakers developing their own vampire stories without simply reproducing the familiar Gothic traditions associated with the genre. The representation isn't a substitute for effective filmmaking, but it's a welcome part of a production that brings different characters and environments into its supernatural world.

At about 95 minutes, CINNAMON has enough material to deliver an entertaining night of vampire hunting, though inconsistent execution makes some parts far more enjoyable than others. Its greatest weakness isn't a lack of ambition or an inability to recognize what makes these movies fun. Spicer clearly loves the genre, and that enthusiasm becomes increasingly apparent as the production develops. The trouble comes from trusting the exaggerated presentation more than the actual entertainment unfolding within it.

Currently streaming for free on Tubi, CINNAMON is also the sort of independent production that benefits from an accessible release. Audiences interested in obscure vampire movies, unapologetic exploitation entertainment, and low-budget genre filmmaking can discover it without committing to a theatrical ticket or an expensive rental. That's a fitting home for a film whose strongest qualities are more likely to appeal to horror enthusiasts willing to embrace its rougher edges than viewers expecting polished mainstream entertainment.

I had my frustrations with CINNAMON, particularly its reliance on music, dramatic editing, and performances that occasionally struggle to deliver what the screenplay is attempting. When it finally leans into its vampire-hunting premise, the film becomes much more entertaining. It has enough personality, bloodthirsty nonsense, and obvious affection for its influences to make it worth checking out, even if its stronger material requires some patience.

And damn, that BLADE homage made me happy. It reminded me why I continue seeking out independently produced horror, even when the results are inconsistent. Sometimes an imperfect movie delivers one moment that captures everything you love about the genre, and suddenly you're grinning like an idiot. CINNAMON won't replace BLADE in anyone's vampire-favorite collection. I appreciate a production that wears that influence proudly while throwing its own assortment of dancers, hunters, and undead troublemakers into the fight.

Please visit https://linktr.ee/overlyhonestr for more reviews.

Follow me on Letterboxd, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. You can also find my social media accounts on most platforms by searching for 'Overly Honest Reviews'.

I’m always happy to hear from my readers; please don't hesitate to say hello or send me any movie questions.

[photo courtesy of 3FN PRODUCTIONS]

DISCLAIMER:
At Overly Honest Movie Reviews, we value honesty and transparency. Occasionally, we receive complimentary items for review, including DVDs, Blu-rays, CDs, Vinyl Records, Books, and more. We assure you these arrangements do not influence our reviews, as we are committed to unbiased, sincere evaluations. We aim to help you make informed entertainment choices regardless of our relationship with distributors or producers.

Amazon Affiliate Links:
This site also contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may receive a commission. This affiliate arrangement does not affect our commitment to honest reviews and helps support our site. We appreciate your trust and support as you navigate these links.