Review: Jim Jarmusch's 'Only Lovers Left Alive' Starring Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton

Only Lovers Left Alive is exactly the type of vampire movie one would expect from Jim Jarmusch. The eclectic and weird have always been his bailiwick, and he gets to indulge in both while paying reverence to the artistic misfits and outsiders he's always felt such a deep kinship. That the film is also slow moving and seemingly never-ending can be forgiven because of the director's signature cool, surrealist style and the performances by Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton that are never less than intriguing.

We've never seen a vampire movie quite like this before, and that reason alone makes Only Lovers Left Alive worth the experience. Adam (Hiddleston) and Eve (Swinton) are centuries-long vampire lovers, separated at the beginning of the film for unknown reasons. Adam is an underground rocker of some renown, living rather ironically in the heart of Motown; Detroit the birthplace of soul music occupied by the literally soulless. The eons of existence have worn Adam down to the point of depression; so much that not even his vintage guitars can pull him out of it. Meanwhile, Eve is in Tangier hanging out with her old friend Christopher Marlowe (John Hurt, and yes it's the Marlowe you think it is) who can get his hands on the purest blood in the world. Sensing her mate's despair, Eve hurries to his side under the cover of night in hopes of pulling him out of the vampire dumps.

Droll yet visually intoxicating, the film is merely a chance for Jarmusch to luxuriate in everything from classic rock, to art, and architecture. Adam harps on the presence of zombies (a derogatory term for humans) who have no respect for the past, while Eve indulges in her return to America. One scene has them visiting the home of musician Jack White, with Adam telling a tale of the rocker's ascendence to greatness. Truthfully, there isn't much of a story here at all other than Jarmusch's usual musings. That is until Mia Wasikowska turns up as Eve's frollicking, meddlesome sister Ava, who turns their world upside down. She's not around long, but she gives the story a much needed injection of danger and mischief. All of the high-minded references and name-drops will strike some as pretentious, but to those who are up on what Jarmusch is laying down, they'll be worth a knowing chuckle or two.

Jarmusch may take his sweet time getting around to it, but ultimately Only Lovers Left Alive is about the strain of eternal love and the value of our shared artistic history. It may not be for everyone, but this is a vampire film that at least has some blood coursing through its veins.

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Jim Jarmusch adds Anton Yelchin to his vampire tale, 'Only Lovers Left Alive'

Last year turned out to be something of a mixed bag for Anton Yelchin. His biggest hit by far was in voicing one of The Smurfs, while his on screen roles mostly went ignored by audiences. Not even starring opposite Colin Farrell was enough to get people to care about Fright Night, and for all the buzz surrounding Mel Gibson in The Beaver, it kinda came and went. However, Yelchin was widely praised in all those flicks, and earned some serious leading man attention for Like Crazy. So it wasn't all bad.

While fans of Dean Koontz(like yours truly) wait patiently for updates on the Odd Thomas adaptation Yelchin is starring in, the actor is jumping into a project that has been in the works for a few years now. Deadline reports he'll join Jim Jarmusch's long in the works vampire film, Only Lovers Left Alive. Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska, and John Hurt star in the story which follows a love affair between two star-crossed vampires.

Yeah, we're all sick of vampires at this point, but this is Jim Jarmusch we're talking about here. There's a good chance the entire film is a bunch of vamps sitting around a table discussing philosophy over hot blood and doughnuts. In other words, expect the unexpected. Filming should begin this summer.

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Michael Fassbender, Mia Wasikowska, Tilda Swinton to star in Jim Jarmusch vampire flick

Remember when vampires were creatures meant to be feared? Now they sparkle in the sunlight rather than burst into flames, and humans are portrayed as volunteering to be turned into one of the undead bloodsuckers. Totally backwards. With so many vamp films steadily streaming into theaters, I could do with some sort of moratorium or something. Unless the director is Jim Jarmusch, then he could make all the vampire movies he wants.

Last year Jarmusch revealed that he had a number of projects cooking, with one of them featuring a sterling cast of Michael Fassbender(Fish Tank), Mia Wasikowska(Alice in Wonderland), and frequent collaborator Tilda Swinton(I Am Love). At the time we had no idea what the film was, but now we know that all three will be playing vampires in the untitled film. John Hurt(The Skeleton Key) will be involved in a "major" role as well. Jarmusch describes it as a "crypto love story" set in Detroit and Tangiers. Exactly how those two places mesh into the same story should be worth the price of admission alone. 

This'll be Jarmusch's first film since the surpremely confusing The Limits of Control. Swinton was featured in that one, also working with Jarmusch on Broken Flowers, another movie I'd sooner forget. Fassbender and Wasikowska were just recently paired up romantically in the most recent adaptation of Jane Eyre, so I wonder if they'll be making kissy face in this one as well.  How Fassbender can fit this into his schedule is beyond me, but I'm sure that's why shooting won't begin until early next year.

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Joaquin Phoenix's big screen comeback in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter?

So, Joaquin, how'd that rappin' career work out for ya? Oh? It was all a trick? A ruse? A cunning attempt to fool us? Well now that all theI'm Still Here nonsense is over, and I assume that Paul Bunyan beard has been shaven off, it looks like the eccentric Joaquin Phoenix could be making his return to real movies for the first time since 2008's underrated Two Lovers.  Deadline is reporting that the actor is mulling over a major role in Timur Bekmambetov's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, based on the novel by Seth Grahame-Smith.

If accepted, Phoenix would be tackling the role of Henry Sturgess, a vampire who teaches the 16th President how to fight and kill other bloodsuckers. Benjamin Walker is currently slated to star as Lincoln in the action flick, due out in theaters on June 22nd 2012.

Very happy to see Phoenix at least considering a return, even though I'm a bit pissed at the way he blew up the marketing campaign for Two Lovers with his silly antics. He remains an extremely talented, versatile actor and his presence has been sorely missed, in my opinion. 

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Tops at the Box Office

1. The Expendables- $16.5M/$64.9M
The competition got slayed again by Sylvester Stallone's muscle bound rat pack, dropping 53% but easily besting the slew of new releases this week. In fact, The Expendables is already $20M ahead of 2008's Rambo.
2. Vampires Suck- $12.2M/$18.6M
Can someone tell me how this poor man's "Movie" spoof beat out both Julia Roberts and Jennifer Aniston? By comparison, it's about $3M ahead of 2008's Superhero Movie, and almost double that of Disaster Movie which had the benefit of a four-day weekend.
3. Eat Pray Love- $12M/$47.1M
On last weeks' show I compared Eat Pray Love to last year's Julia and Julia, in that they'll both start of slow then maintain a steady audience on the way to a large box office total. I still think that will be the case, but the Julia Roberts starrer will need to bounce back from a 48% dip.
4. Lottery Ticket- $11.1M
Debuting at only about 2,000 theaters, the Bow Wow/Ice Cube urban comedy got off to an average start. Consider the film it's clearly emulating, 1995's Friday, which opened at only 865 theaters and a $6.5M debut.
5. The Other Guys- $10.1M/$88.2M
6. Piranha 3D- $10M
Again, the buzz doesn't match the end result. Just like Snakes on a Plane failed to match industry predictions, so has its aquatic counterpart, mustering up a measley $10M. That's roughly $6M less than Snakes did back in 2006, and this one has the added benefit of 3-D pricing.
7. Nanny McPhee Returns- $8.31M
Maybe they should've stuck with the original title, Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang? Not that I think it would've mattered, as the sequel to the 2005 Emma Thompson hit failed to latch on with viewers this time. The original McPhee went on to gross over $122M.
8. The Switch- $8.1M
Blame the piss poor marketing, which made the Jennifer Aniston/Jason Batman comedy look like a cheap knock off of The Back-Up Plan. Nobody wants to relive that experience, as evidence by the terrible opening weekend. A shame, because it's quite a good flick.
9. Inception- $7.66M/$262M
10. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World- $5.03M/$20.7M
Forget the Sex Bob-Ombs, Scott Pilgrim is the biggest bomb of the summer. Period.

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Trailer Time: Let Me In, starring Chloe Moretz and Kodi Smit McPhee!

Yesterday at Comic-Con we got a look at the exclusive new trailer for Let Me In, the American remake of Swedish vampire thriller, Let The Right One In. Directed by Matt Reeves, the film is about a bullied little boy who becomes friends with the mysterious new girl in his apartment. Only he doesn't realize that she's more than a regular 12 year old girl.

I dug the other trailer that we saw before, but this one has a bit more substance to it. Chloe Moretz has Eli's look down pat. My only concern, and this could just be a product of the trailer, is that it looks like some of the slow build tension has been jettisoned in favor of a film that's more overtly scary. I hope that's not the case. Let Me In hits theaters on October 1st, 2010. Check out the new trailer and let us know what you think!

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

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1st Look at LET ME IN

The best vampire movie of the last few years didn't sport glamorous, sparkling non-bloodsuckers with fab haircuts and designer gear. In other words, it wasn't Twilight. It was the Swedish made Let the Right One In, starring Linda Leandersson as a vamp stuck in a child's body who befriends a lonely boy. The film had a moody, almost hazy look to it, presenting a side of vampires that we just hadn't seen before.

The remake, titled Let Me In, has been a bone of contention not just with me but with many of the film's fans. Generally I'm against remakes anyway, but in particualar when one is as good as Let the Right One In, I want people to take the time to experience it. Finding out that Chloe Moretz(Kick-Ass, 500 Days of Summer) would be taking on the lead role of Eli the vampire, eased by apprehension somewhat. In every film she's been in, she's stolen scenes from some of the best actors out there. She's always the most mature one in the room, it seems.

Now we're getting our first peek at how she looks in the film, and I'm not sure what to make of it. While she shares Leandersson's unique look, the image we're treated to doesn't make her appear all that mysterious or terrifying, something Leandersson had in spades. Then again this is only one shot.  Check it out, and let us know if you think Moretz has the right look.

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Tops at the Box Office!

1. The Blind Side- $20.4M/$129M

Sandra Bullock's football drama sacked those pesky vampires this week after basically keeping pace with them last time around. While movies of this type have always been successful, The Blind Side is setting new standards, as it's now the highest grossing sports drama of all-time and the highest grossing football film period. Sorry, Necessary Roughness fans.

2. The Twilight Saga: New Moon- $15.7M/$256M

At this point, New Moon has far and away exceeded it's predecessor, even though it continues to decline at a rapid rate, dropping 63% from last week. On a side note: There are already posters up for next June's The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, which indicates to me that we aren't going to get even a moment's rest from this whole Twilight nonsense.

3. Brothers- $9.7M

Jim Sheridan's sibling rivalry drama packed a ton of star power and an intriguing premise, but failed to really connect with audiences. Then again, the post-Thanksgiving weekend is usually slow so perhaps it will maintain a strong hold over time.

4. A Christmas Carol- $7.52M/$115M

Disney's computer animated tale dropped only 52% on it's way to doing exactly as expected, strengthening it's hold from week to week leading into the Christmas holiday. Expect similar numbers next week.

5. Old Dogs- $6.9M/$33.9M

That's still too much.

6. Armored- $6.6M

I'm sure expectations were fairly low for this Columbus Short starring actioner, but I thought it would atleast beat out returning dreck like Old Dogs. This has to be consiered a disappointment on some level, not the least of which is the studio(Screen Gems) which has a multi-picture deal with the actor now. No longer is he gonna be able to tag along as the sidekick in top grossing films, he's got to actually carry them. Not a good start.

7. 2012- $6.6M/$149M

If there's gonna be a 2012 spinoff TV show, I'll only watch it if it involves Woody Harrelson's conspiracy theorist character. Everybody else can take a long walk off a short Ark as far as I'm concerned.

8. Ninja Assassin- $5.03M/$29.8M

All sizzle, no steak.

9. Planet 51- $4.3M/$34M

10. Everybody's Fine- $4.03M

Further illustrating my point that the days of the big movie star are over, the star laden Everybody's Fine couldn't even beat out month's old animated junk like Planet 51, and barely made the Top 10 at all. In it's defense, it only was at roughly 2100 sites, but even that shows the lack of faith the studio had in the material otherwise distribution would've been greater.

Also...

Jason Reitman's Juno follow-up, Up in the Air, flew circles around everybody with a whopping $1.2M at 15 sites! Expansion to follow.

Dorm Daze 3...urrrr, Transylmania set the record for the lowest opening weekend ever for a film opening at over 1,000 sites grossing only $274,000! Back to the DVD bin and late night Skinemax with you!

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The Rank 'n File: Trav's Top 5 Favorite Vampires

I don't know when or what it was that made me love vampires so much, but I've always had a soft spot for any movie or TV show that had even a hint of their icy hearts and pale skin. From Interview with the Vampire to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the soulless creatures with a taste for human blood have always appealed to me. Lately, though, I'm less and less enthused when I see any new project involving my beloved vamps. Vampires are suddenly cool and hip. They don't kill people anymore. They'd rather stand around(sometimes in broad daylight! Aaargh!) and stare longingly at the mopey chick across the classroom. Screw that shit, man. I like my vampires as chilling, brutal killers. Or at the very least highly manipulative scumbags.

And before you ask, no I did NOT include Eddie Murphy's Vampire in Brooklyn.

5. Marlowe -30 Days of Night

The crucial moment in this film for me comes when the leader of the vampires, Marlowe, descends on a poor helpless woman who cries out for God to help her. His calm, measured, reply probably killed her worse than the vicious attack that soon followed: "No God."

4. Eli -Let the Right One In


As far as vampire movies go, Let the Right One in is a strange bird. It's as much of a love story than anything else, between a lonesome boy and the mysterious Eli, a vampire trapped forever at the age of 12. They form a unique relationship that's not quite love, but maybe not quite friendship, either. She protects him, and he in turn provides her companionship. With an American remake already in the works, I'm sure people will get a chance to see this story told after a fashion, but my suggestion is that you go rent the original. The first is always best.

3. Max Schreck- Shadow of the Vampire

I watched this movie twice before I realized Willem Dafoe was even in it. That's how much he encompasses the character of Max Schreck, a real vampire hiding in plain sight on the set of F.W. Murnau's 1922 film, Noferatu. Of course this is a fictionalized account. A "What If" scenario that envisions reknowned theater actor Schreck as a real blood sucker, but it sure as hell had me convinced. When Schreck, who had most of the actors thinking he was just really into his role, goes into a tale about his origins as a vampire then calmly bites the head off a bat, it's one of the creepiest scenes ever. If you ever..and I mean ever...run into anyone who thinks Willem Dafoe can't act, calmly show them this movie and tell them to shove it up their arse.

2. Vlad Dracula- Bram Stoker's Dracula

Say what you want about how cheesy this movie can be(and it certainly is), there's no denying how gorgeous it is. Nor is there any denying the power of Gary Oldman's performance as the undead King himself. You can't play a commanding figure like Dracula without charisma to match, and Oldman has it in spades. Whether he's walking cheerfully down the streets with his top hat, lusting with his concubines, or agonizing over his lost love(played wonderfully by Winona Ryder), Oldman is simply captivating in every way. Plus his battle with Van Helsing(Anthony Hopkins) was far more impressive than anything Hugh Jackman ever gave us.

1. Blade-

"Some muthafuckas always tryin' to ice skate up hill". Those iconic words will live forever in the pantheon of cheesy Snipe-isms. That bit of dialogue would be enough to earn him the top spot here on this list, but the fact that he's the baddest ass of all vampire badasses is the clincher. He's the one guy I'd pay to see drive a stake through all of my other faves' hearts and turn them into dust. Blade's trademark dry wit, "How do you think we fund this operation? We ain't the March of Dimes", and assortment of crazy weapons helped solidify Wesley Snipes as the top action star in Hollywood. The Blade character, though, would continue to pull me in even after Snipes left the role. Yes, I'm one of those few who loved the Blade tv series. So sue me. Or better yet, suck it!

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Daybreakers Theatrical Trailer

We just posted the theatrical poster for this upcoming vampire flick a couple of days ago, and now here's the newly released trailer. Looks pretty damn good. The film stars Ethan Hawke, Sam Neil, and Willem Dafoe as a group of vampires trying to save their race from extinction. Check it out:

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Trav to Twilight: Bite Me

You might not have known about it, but some movie called Twilight came out this past weekend. You wouldn't have known it because there was practically no marketing of the film whatsoever. It wasn't on every channel, or on the front of every magazine from Tiger Beat to Ladies Home Journal. It stars tons of name actors performing surprisingly meaty roles that stretch the boundaries of their craft. What little buzz it's attained has been through word of mouth only based off critical reviews of it's rich, deft, storytelling.

Obviously that's all b.s. This is without doubt the most overhyped movie of the year, and while that doesn't automatically disqualify the film from being good it does have the effect of magnifying the criticism when the film tanks. In every sense of the word this movie is a turd. It smelled from the first trailer I saw months ago, and it smelled worse over time and now the stink is a vapor trail wafting behind long after the opening weekend receipts have been tallied.

The film, inspired by the Stephanie Meyer book of the same name, tells the story of Bella Swan, played by one of my favorite actresses Kristen Stewart. Bella has just moved to the impossibly cloudy town of Forks, WA to live with her father. Why's the town so cloudy? So that vampires can walk around all day, silly! Duh! Her father is the folksy chief of police who's main job appears to be the cliche of hanging around the one diner in all of town and ordering the largest steak in the house. Bella is the new girl, so she's immediately taken a liking to by everyone. She's an instant celebrity. Well, to everyone but the Cullens, that is. The Cullens are the mysterious "family" of cool kids who hang out together in school. They are impossibly pale, impossibly good looking, and never eat anything. Oh, and they are never around when the sun is shining. I think there might be something wrong with them. Something vampirey.

Bella finds herself attracted to Edward Cullen, played by that guy who Voldemort killed in one of the Harry Potter movies. But Edward doesn't seem to like her back, in fact he actively avoids her. That is, until he's forced to save her life suddenly and outs himself to her. Then he can't stop talking. And when he talks...it's...like this all the.....time. He's so dark and moody it's a wonder he gets out of bed in the morning. Oh wait, he's a vampire, he doesn't have a bed. Color me stupid. Edward reveals that he is drawn to Bella, not because she's hot or anything, he never actually tells her anything remotely romantic, but because her "blood smells sweet". Try that one next time you're out at the bar, fellas. There's a small window time where that line might actually work, and if the lady in question has seen this movie more than once your chances increase two-fold. So Bella, being the cheap skank that she is, likes the fact that she is the Splenda™ of human cattle, decides she can't be without Edward now. She's introduced to his family, led by Peter Facinelli. Yes, that Peter Facinelli. He's playing somebody's Dad now. The guy from Can't Hardly Wait and Fastlane is a daddy figure.

For the better part of two hours nothing of note happens in this slow moving train of a film. Bella and Edward make awkward googly eyes at eachother for roughly 90 minutes. It's not terribly interesting, in fact it's downright boring. That is unless you are one of the myriad of of pimply faced little girls swooning everytime Edward Cullen....well, he doesn't actually do anything. Oh wait, he climbs trees and bounces falling apples off his foot. He's the monkey organ grinder of movie vampires. In all seriousness the vast majority of the early part of this movie is Bella and her not quite cool, not quite geeky friends. It's not terribly fun to watch. There's some stuff about people being murdered in town by "wild animals" that isn't compelling because we know where it's headed from the first mention of it. There is absolutely no conflict in this film. It's never in question whether Bella or Edward will be together. There's never a question whether his family will accept her, in fact they do quite easily. They try to make something out of Nikki Reed's(director Catherine Hardwick's muse) character perhaps not liking Bella but nothing comes of it. There's a trio of "evil" vampires who become rivals near the end but it amounts to literally ten minutes of a crisis for Bella and Edward. I guess this was supposed to be the time when Edward shows how much he really cares for her...sweet...smelling...blood. They even remove the most simple of problems for vampires, which is their presence in sunlight. In this silly little OK! Magazine world created for this movie, sunlight makes the vampires prettier rather than kills them. Yes, it makes them even more attractive. This movie simply abhors anything that stands in the way of making life difficult for it's high school sweethearts. I dare say there was more drama in High School Musical than in this mess.

Catherine Hardwick, who has made a career making shallow teen flicks of inflated importance, has decided to completely subtract the importance element from her resume here. This film is total schlock. It doesn't work as a vampire movie. It doesn't work as a teen drama. It doesn't work on any level whatsoever. It's wasted the talents of some great actresses like Stewart, Nikki Reed, and particularly Anna Kendrick. And what's worse for me it has finally found a way to make vampires decidedly UNcool. A feat I thought damn near impossible. I just hope this isn't the stake to the heart to other, more competent vampire movies.

4/10

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