My older son asked for the book Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter for a present last Christmas. He said he was intrigued by the title. Following a strong beginning, the book failed to maintain his interest and he put it down about halfway through.

I had a similar reaction to the movie “Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter.” The movie starts strong but begins to bore early on. The vampire killings are marginally entertaining, but they become redundant.

The lengthy battle with vampires on the train to Gettysburg is literal overkill—it goes on much too long. This distraction may explain why Lincoln’s speech at the battlefield, supposedly composed on the train ride, was so short and to the point. Unlike the well-crafted Gettysburg Address, this movie was not so neatly assembled.

My teenage daughter calls “Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter” “hilarious!” I call it “ludicrous.” Surely you have better ways to waste two hours than with this bad movie.