'The Librarian' review

"The Librarian," TNT's reluctant TV-movie hero, is back for a third installment with "The Curse of the Judas Chalice." The two-hour special combines secret societies with vampire folklore and revisionist biblical history—like a budget conscious "Da Vinci Code" for these economically trying times!

Librarian Flynn Carsen (Noah Wyle) needs a break after job stress ruins his relationship with his needy girlfriend, so his bosses—played by the painfully underused Jane Curtin and Bob Newhart—send him on a vacation in New Orleans. His vacation turns into overtime though, when a group of Russians show up to resurrect Dracula and an army of vampires so they can, presumably, bring back communism. (The stale Cold War tone in the contemporary setting makes the vampires the most convincing element of the film.)

The buzz: Things can't get much hotter than vampires these days, and the newest “Librarian” has them in pigment-deficient spades. But unlike their more popular kin dominating the silver screen, these vamps don't seem to be advocates for abstinence.

The verdict: With so many of your favorite shows taking an early holiday break, the latest "Librarian" will make for some welcome rainy day filler on your DVR. If it might get in the way of your regularly scheduled Sunday programs, however, you could stand to skip it.

Did you know? When the doors to County General close for the last time next year, Noah Wyle will have clocked more hours in the "ER" than any other cast member in the show's 15 seasons. He'll reprise the role of Dr. Carter for the final four episodes in early 2009.