#4 - Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
(dir. Jim Jarmusch)
Okay, so this isn't really a horror movie. I mean, it's about vampires and they drink blood and all, but nothing scary or even particularly creepy happens. In fact, being a Jim Jarmusch film, not a whole lot happens at all in terms of a story - it is a slow paced and contemplative piece on loneliness, decay, nostalgia, and generally living as a vampire in the 21st century. Despite their immortality, their dependence on clean blood from blood banks leaves them living like junkies. Apparently blood directly from modern humans is too often "tainted" and unsafe to drink - they never specifically mentions what this means, although disease, pharmaceuticals, drugs, etc could all be to blame and would fit with the themes of the film.
The film's main characters, Adam and Eve (Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton), are married but have been apart for some time. It is unclear if they are the "real" Adam and Eve, although it's possible. He is living as a suicidal recluse in Detroit, recording music that he never shares with anyone, and she is in Tangiers surrounded by books, seemingly living a relatively less lonely existence (for a vampire, at least). She is also good friends with Christopher Marlowe (John Hurt), who really did write all those plays... Prompted by Adam's loneliness and despair, Eve travels to Detroit to reconnect, where they wax nostalgic for better times.
I loved this one. The whole cast is excellent, especially Swinton - she might be my favorite actress working today. The music, comprised mostly of hypnotic shoegazer-style rock, is really great. The atmosphere is amazing, too - Adam's crumbling old house, pretty much the modern Detroit equivalent of Dracula's castle, is filled with relics, antique musical instruments, and a general feeling of decay and neglect. And what better setting than Detroit could there be? With its rows and rows of abandoned homes and encroaching packs of wild dogs who howl all night, it feels more like a graveyard than a city.
Anyway, I could go on but I'll keep it short. This was a wonderful film, and I highly recommend it. The very slow pace and lack of action may turn some folks off, but with some patience I think anyone would find this a very worthwhile watch.
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