There's a lot going on in "Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant." But not much of it is very interesting.

Something tells me that Darren Shan's "Vampire Blood" books are interesting, though, and that this adaptation dilutes the original material. It's obvious it was developed as the beginning of a Harry Potter-type franchise, specifically to address the fact that vampires are in vogue at the moment. But I'm not sure there will be a sequel. I'm guessing it depends on whether vampires remain all the rage a year or two from now.

For the moment, it certainly has a built-in pre-teen and teen audience simply because of its release date and PG-13 rating.

The star is Chris Massoglia as Darren, who has an affinity for spiders. Darren and his best friend Steve (Josh Hutcherson, "Bridge to Terabithia") decide to attend a sort of circus described in flyers as a "freak show."

There, they meet a bearded lady (Salma Hayek) whose facial hair comes and goes, a very short man with a towering forehead and a performer named Larten Crepsley (John C. Reilly) who has a fabulous spider as part of his act.

Darren can't keep his eyes off the spider. In fact, he goes backstage and swipes the alluring arachnid. He ends up hiding and hearing a conversation with Steve, who knows that Larten is really a vampire because he has seen a picture of the man in a book.

Darren takes the spider to school, where it avoids several near-misses until it ends up biting Steve. Unfortunately, a bite from this spider is always fatal and Steve lies dying in a hospital. It's up to Darren to throw himself on Larten's mercy, such as it is, and make a deal: Larten can make Darren a vampire in exchange for the administration of a venom antidote that will save Steve's life.

Naturally, to become a vampire, Darren must appear to die, later to be dug up by Larten. Darren then joins the troupe of unusual folks who perform in the Cirque du Freak. Meanwhile, a war erupts between two kinds of vampires, with Darren and Steve both involved.

It's an average adventure story tailored for older kids, full of CGI that looks like it was created quickly. As vampire flicks go, this one is pretty soul-less.