ChicRawIdol
A brilliant film that helped define a genre
DipitySkillful
an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.
Phillipa
Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.
dalaye
To those that enjoy the Dracula vampire movies, don't bother with this one. This is not a fantasy. This is a true modern day sanguinarian vampire drama that is very enjoyable and very believable. While some may consider if bordering on horror, only due to a second vampire within the story, it is a well written and portrayed drama of true vampirism, where people truly are addicted to drinking human blood of others. Most will enjoy this as it fails to be as predictable as it first appears, and everyday life drama is well portrayed. It is disappointing that that many gave this a low rating, most likely as they simply wanted to see the typical fantasy vampire horror movie. This isn't it - this movie is real life, and truly could be based on a true story.
DhariaLezin
I was really surprised after watching this vampire movie. It is refreshing after all the soap-opera vampire dramas that have been on TV and movies recently that make the vampires corny stupid creatures. If you are looking for blood and gore, this is not gonna be your kind of movie, but if you are into psychological thrillers with extremely well created characters go for it. Perhaps the thing that hooked me up the most in this tiny indie movie, is that each of the characters that appear have a story to tell, even if their appearance is short. It has many elements that have not seen in a movie before with the touch that the director gives, such a suicide community online, and a serial killer that actually kills the victims with their consent, making him kind of sweet. You will never understand for sure if he is a vampire or why he does what he does, but you get really attached to different characters in one way or another and you cannot help feeling empathy for more than one in different moments. There is no way you can hate Simon (the main character), even if he is a "serial killer", and when you hear the victims, you also get why they don't wanna live anymore. The dialogs are breathtaking, and the acting of every single actor is just fabulous. Definitely the casting team made excellent choices, I didn't know most of them, but that was an amazing surprise, again, specially for being an indie low budget movie. I would have given it a ten if the last half an hour of the movie didn't got slower, and because of the photography. Although it is good, some scenes are extremely long for just one shot. However, I would recommend it if you want something new, deep and with a deep psychological content about vampires.
meddlecore
This slow, bizarre film tells the story of a semi-benevolent Vampire who trolls suicide pact websites looking for vulnerable souls who he can convince to consensually bleed themselves to death- so that he can feed on their blood. He's not one of those typical mythological vampire types- the ones we are all familiar with. Rather, a daywalking human Vampire that seems to possess an inescapable and insatiable desire to drink human blood.By day, he's a highschool biology teacher that watches over his Alzheimers ridden mother. By night, he associates with an online community of suicidal wannabes, and the other twisted f*cks that are attracted to such people- like moths to a light.He normally operates by forming a relationship with one of the "Side by Cide" members, who he then meets in an isolated location- with their computer (to prevent the police from obtaining evidence of their correspondence)- before using his cunning to convince them to bleed themselves dry- while assuring them that he'll take himself out when it's all over. Though, actually collecting and consuming their blood, instead.Things take a turn, when he goes to meet a potential suicidee...only to find out that she had arranged a group suicide with a bunch of other members from the site. All but he and one other girl are killed when one of the suicidees releases a cloud of carbon monoxide inside their van.The two survivors make their way back to civilization. But on the way...the girl figures out that he is the infamous "Vampire", who has been seducing, killing and consuming the blood of the site's disappearing members. He's kind of famous in their realm.When confronted with his real identity, he admits everything to her. Only to discover that she is willing to offer her blood- her life- to him.While working on the girl he met at the group suicide, his psycho stalker wannabe-girlfriend breaks into his apartment and onto his computer- looking for some sort of evidence that he's found someone else. While rummaging through his apartment, she jimmies open a locked closet, where she (apparently) discovers his hidden secret.He doesn't even kill the girl from the group either, having fallen seemingly in love with her- rendering him unable to go through with it. The two form a new pact with each other: he is to cease killing if she let's him drink from her neck- being his "only one".In an ironic twist of fate, though, one of his student's with suicidal tendencies- whom he had previously talked out of killing herself- slits her wrists and winds up in the hospital, needing blood. When he is contacted as next of kin, the nurse asks him if he is willing to donate his own blood in order to save her life.You'd think that this altruistic act would have garnered him some good karma, but when he returns to his flat, the police are waiting for him... I do, however, suppose that you might wonder whether it was this act of benevolence that actually sealed his fate.With this film Iwai has created a monster that is not merely a heartless and manipulative, psychopathic killer, rather a burdened and tormented soul who is forced to cope with the fate he's been dealt. It's not your typical horror scenario, by any means. It's less a film that exploits the romantic gore on which most cliché vampire films are based. Instead opting for more of an emotionally disturbing approach. The ending is kind of a cop-out, but the film is oddly intriguing enough to hold your attention throughout it's almost two-hour runtime. It's certainly not the best vampire flick I've ever seen, but it's most definitely a different and original take on the genre. And for that reason it's worth a watch.6 out 10.
Radu_A
This is not a vampire flick. It shouldn't really be necessary to point this out, after all the summary makes it very clear. But it would seem that the reason for this film's overall cold reception is precisely that it doesn't feature supernatural, love-lorn beings to satisfy inhibited sexual desires of self-destruction. Rather, it presents an altogether uncomfortable view on real-life blood-thirst and a controversial look at suicidal obsession.If you're familiar with Iwai's work, then neither the subject matter nor the style come as much of a surprise. Iwai's staple theme is alienated youth and the thin line between friendship and destruction. In 'All about Lily Chou-Chou', he explored bullying and underage prostitution against a backdrop of how virtual and real-life personalities differ, 'Swallowtail Butterfly' dealt with the ups and downs of a group of misfits bonding and betraying each other, and 'Hana & Alice' showed a close high-school-girl friendship with elements of rivalry over a particular boy.'Vampire' follows a story which actually happened in Japan: a man convinces young women in suicide chat-rooms to die together with him, eventually tricking them so that he may consume their blood. The focus isn't so much on why he wants to do this (apart from ambivalent references to the quest for immortality), but rather why these women want to die - and this is where I see a continuity with Iwai's other work. It's not so much about the story itself, which takes somewhat unfathomable turns and ends up in a confusing mêlée, but rather the visuals, which create a mystified, surreal and at times even humorous perspective on death. The proverbial 'vampire' is actually seen as a perversion of this theme, which becomes obvious in a rather gory parody of the 'serial killer' image, complete with fangs and cape.If you wonder what a Japanese film with American actors may look like, then this one may be very well for you. To me, it's been worthwhile just for seeing that the styles of Japanese cinema - character vagueness, visual rendition, and most of all quietness - can be translated into English rather well. However, if you really expect a vampire flick, better wait until the next 'Twilight' segment.
