I have a subscription to HBO Max, and there is so much content! My watch list has grown exponentially, even though it takes me some time to watch everything. On HBO Max are the three Blade movies starring Wesley Snipes as the hybrid vampire, Blade. One of the main reasons I started watching the original trilogy is because Marvel relaunched Blade, starring Mahershala Ali. Blade is a well-made movie ahead of its time.

Blade (played by Wesley Snipes) is a vampire hunter while being a hybrid vampire himself. His mother was attacked by a vampire while pregnant with Blade. As a result, Blade has vampire attributes while still being human. Blade is mentored by Abraham Whistler (played by Kris Kristofferson), who assists in Blade’s training regimen. When vampire rebel Deacon Frost (played by Stephen Dorff) wants to capture Blade to resurrect a blood god, that’s when all hell breaks loose.

The Blade opening sequence has to be one of the best openings in an action movie. The film opens with a man being walked through a butcher shop into a vampire rave. Blood is sprinkled among the crowd as the vampires go into a feeding frenzy. This frenzy is stomped on when Blade enters with his sword and kills the vampires while the strobes flash. This opening scene helped keep me invested as the movie unfolded.

Blade also doesn’t force a romance between the protagonists. Assisting Blade with taking down Frost is Karen (played by N’Bushe Wright). Karen is a hematologist who is attacked by another vampire named Quinn (played by Donal Logue). Blade rescues Karen and keeps her safe since she’s been marked after being bitten. It’s clear Blade starts to care for her, but they aren’t romantically entangled when the credits roll. This doesn’t happen in many action movies.

Watching Blade, it doesn’t feel like a movie made in the ’90s. The one exception to this is Deacon Frost’s overall aesthetic. Deacon looks like a former Backstreet Boy who was turned into a vampire. Otherwise, this movie still holds up today.

Blade was a blast to watch. The day after watching Blade, I watched Blade II. I will write a Blade II review soon because I was surprised by how well this holds up as a sequel. Blade is available to stream on HBO Max.