Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles

Based on Anne Rice’s book of the same name, 1994’s Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles develops the vampire mythology into a modern context to help further sex appeal of the iconic literary figure. Rice’s books about vampires were immensely popular, echoing the popularity the Twilight series has today. Thankfully the Rice pantheon of blood-suckers carries much more philosophical weight.

Neil Jordan, the Irish filmmaker behind The Crying Game, makes Interview with the Vampire come to life on the big screen with a star-studded cast, a touch of nudity and a nice amount of good old-fashioned blood. He doesn’t shy away from Rice’s work in any way, choosing to go full-bore into the crimson-soaked material with doses of sudden violence and continual sadness.

Louis (Brad Pitt) is a vampire. The movie introduces him as he sits down to talk to a reporter (Christian Slater) about his life. In an interview format, Louis explains how he became a vampire at the age of 24 in 1791 and how his relationship with his “maker,” Lestat (Tom Cruise), developed through the years. Louis initially rebels against what Lestat views as the necessary part of vampirism and refuses to kill humans, only to see his strength diminish as a result of choosing to eat only rats, chickens and poodles.

Years pass and animosity develops between Louis and Lestat, with Louis looking for more answers from his maker about what the life of a vampire is supposed to mean. It is interesting to hear vampires discuss concepts of purpose in light of their immortality and Jordan’s picture does well to prove the sadness and despair that living forever may bring. Lestat eventually provides Louis with a vampire “daughter” in Claudia (Kirsten Dunst) but she encounters many of the same troubles as Louis.

Louis and his quest for meaning are really at the core of Interview with the Vampire. His relationships come as a result of his searching for a suitable teacher or his thirst for blood. He also takes on the role of a father for Claudia, who struggles with the idea of never aging to be an older woman. All the while, Lestat remains as vicious and misunderstood as ever.

Jordan’s picture gets the vampire thing right. That is, of course, in large part due to Rice’s novel series. Her research and her creativity really drive the wheels of this picture, giving the characters depth missing from other more “Mormon” vampire stories. Rice grants her characters weakness, sadness, despair, and fear and Jordan scores major points in bringing all of those elements to the screen.

Cruise is probably at his career best here at Lestat. The makeup job is the beginning of the magic for his characterization, as the pale skin and veins make for a creepy, disturbing appearance. His attempts at a slight British accent, often seemingly forgotten by the actor, add a unique aura to the role as though Lestat isn’t quite sure where he’s come from or who he is.

Pitt is, unfortunately, the weak link in a film of powerful performances. His scenes working with the remarkably good Kirsten Dunst are often hollow and void of emotion and his attempts at conveying the sadness of his new reality come across bland and bare. Still, he manages to look the part of the innocent vampire archetype and that’s never really a bad thing.

In the end, Interview with the Vampire is probably the best of the modern gothic vampire flicks. It certainly makes something as bland and idiotic as Twilight look stupid and it tells the backstory and reality of vampirism well. It’s a good movie for expressing the sadness and gloom of the vampire lifestyle, informing us that living forever and needing blood to survive isn’t exactly the type of living that would make for good-looking, spiky-haired high schoolers.

Trailer: