…has anyone else noticed the abundance of apocalyptic culture these days? Certainly a longstanding theme in American culture, but now more than ever it feels like half the new books, tv shows and movies lately are about the end of America.

For instance: Last night I attended a screening of an as-yet unreleased film called “Stakeland,” which is about an epidemic that sweeps the world, turning most of the population into vampires. Against the background of a devastated United States, a boy and a man—not his father, I won’t tell you what happens to his father but it’s not ideal—try to make their way north, because there are rumors of a safe haven in the North.

Complicating their journey: the existence of a homicidal cult whose leader teaches that the vampires have been sent by God to purify the Earth.

It’s a fantastic film, reminiscent of predecessors like Omega Man and The Road, but original in its own ways and beautifully filmed. Don’t miss it.