The expectation: I am a sucker for vampire tales but I was not sure if I could handle the horror of this one. I braved it if only to see what happens when vampires meet capitalism. And I miss William Defoe as if he were my estranged brother (uncle?).The result: A little background: Vampires took over Humanity through sheer force. Not violent, end of the world, revenge, evil force; but more through practicality. Vampireness was considered to be a virus that spread through blood contact and eventually enough people had it that the vampires forced humans to choose between turning or being farmed (Matrix style) for blood. Most people turned. Ten years later the film starts. Humans are now a shortage and vampires are running out of blood. Otherwise, civilization is similiar. There are subways and cars and houses. Vampires have jobs in corporations and the military. There are obvious class hierarchies, family issues, and personal guilt. This is a portrait of Vampire society mimicking human society- with a capitalist structure. The premise is very smart and I enjoyed this reflection of vampire society; a premise that is rare in the grander scheme of vampire mythology. The joke is on them though, because their society cannot sustain itself without humans who are both precious commodities and discarded as lowly sub-human? (can I use that term here and still make sense?). You get it. It is a familiar tale, no? There are some gory parts that go a little too towards the end but the film retains its creative plot. It is so smart it even gets comedic towards the end. Overall, not the best vampire movie- I am more keen on the hauntingly horror/baroque Anne Rice version instead of this guilt stricken kind-, but it borders on an originality that is often missed. If only it did not end with a blatant sequel setup- so tacky!
What to look out for:
William Defoe is always great. I love his ruggedness.
The cinematography is brilliant (not literally). Check out the sheen of the film.
A comment on sustainability? Will we ever learn to plan for the future?
Flickr photo by Abhishek Jacob
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