Home :: DVD :: Horror :: Things That Go Bump  

Classic Horror & Monsters
Cult Classics
Frighteningly Funny
General
Series & Sequels
Slasher Flicks
Teen Terror
Television
Things That Go Bump

Vampire's Kiss

Vampire's Kiss

List Price: $14.95
Your Price: $13.46
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 >>

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Interesting horror comedy!
Review:
This 1989 cult dark comedy with vampire and horror themes is set in the late 80's in New York City, a yuppie businessman executive whom falls for a gorgeous woman ( Jennifer Beals) whom is a real vampire that bites him on the neck turning him into one, but when he finds out he goes nuts especially eating cockroaches and having tastes for blood.

A smart and interesting yet original vampire movie that doesn't play by the usual rules of a vampire flick but contains good satire in it and romance with it with some dark humor into it. Nicolas Cage does great as the main character whom falls for the vampiress, there is also Maria Conchita Alonso from " The Running Man" as one of the workers. The DVD is good with picture, sound and two good extras like audio commentary by Cage and the director with theatrical trailer, this is a must watch if you want a vampire satire.

Also recommended: "Vamp", " American Psycho", " Office Space", " Near Dark", "Vampire Hunter D", "Wolf", "Shaun of the Dead", " Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust", " Blood: The Last Vampire", " Bram Stoker's Dracula", " From Dusk Till Dawn", "Blade", "Blade II", " An American Werewolf in London", " Boiler Room", " Underworld", " Fright Night 1 & 2", " Innocient Blood".


Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Loneliness is a Stake Through the Heart
Review: "Vampire's Kiss" is an overlooked and misunderstood dark comedy, and an allegory for the isolating fear of intimacy that can mimic being "undead." It features an amazing physical comic performance by Nicholas Cage as Peter Loew, which deserves recognition.

I've read reviews wherein people feel that the character of Peter Loew has descended into madness as a result of being a jilted lover. But his madness is more about his crushing loneliness in a world where everyone around him seems to be happily and easily paired off. In spite of his solitude, he is emotionally unable to connect to anyone.

One night, he brings a woman back to his place, but while in the throes of passion, a bat flies into his apartment through an open window. The mystery and excitement of fighting off the bat becomes more erotic and interesting to him than the willing beauty in arms.

Terrified of the closeness he craves, he sabotages any opportunities he has for actual relationships in favor of elusive fantasies and hallucinations. His fear of commitment manifests itself as a vampire lover in the form of Rachel (Jennifer Beales), a woman he has had one conversation with in a bar, but has never made it with, except in his own fantasy world. There, she is a dominatrix of a vampire, sucking the life out of him, making him a prisoner of her demands, hungers, and lusts, distracting and preventing him from any real intimacy, promising him that soon, he will "be with her."

The vampire is the only one to whom he can say "I love you," and she doesn't even exist--not really. She represents the promise of something more exciting right around the next corner. Peter simply cannot commit to anything else when love and immortality are so close, but so far...

Vampires seem human, but they aren't human; they FEED ON humans. They're dead, cold, and isolated from the warmth of human existence--which is exactly how Peter feels, and why he believes he's becoming one. Plus, he is suicidal, and he seems to have found a way to receive deliverance in the form of his secretary Alva, who he begins to torment in earnest once he discovers she carries a gun, hoping she'll (justifiably) use it on him.

It's over the top and a little hard to understand, but I found this movie so engaging, and Cage's performance so funny and astonishing, in spite of the dark subject matter, that I have watched it over and over again. I have used this movie as a compatibility test for potential mates (which is sort of Peter-ish, I guess), and if they like it, I know it's a good match. If it had been performed another way, by another actor, I don't know if I would like it at all. But Cage brings brutality, vulnerability, tragedy, and all-out desperation together to create a complex character the like of which I have never seen before or since.

Sure, there are violent scenes, but are they real, or are they his imagination? We'll never know. So much of "Vampire's Kiss" happens in Loew's mind that all we know for sure is that he's desperately alone. So alone, he's willing to drive someone else over the edge to help ease his pain. He's so cowardly and childish that he uses terror as a way to achieve relief from his horrible solitude-death is less frightening to him that actually getting close to a real person. Therein lies the horror, and the sadness, of "Vampire's Kiss." And in Cage, lies the performance which makes this story watchable, and actually very funny.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: CULT MOVIES 10
Review: 10. VAMPIRE'S KISS (horror-comedy, 1988) In the giant-stoic skyscrapers of NY city lives Peter Loew (Nicholas Cage), a successful 'yuppie' that heads a sales agency. Behind his expensive clothes, expansive apartment and clean demeanor, he hides a loveless life. He compensates this by going out to clubs and bars in hopes of finding his mate. On one of his outings, he meets Rachel (Jennifer Beals). While making love, she bits him on the neck. The next morning Peter starts feeling ill. Believing himself to be turning into a vampire, he starts to wear sunglasses, sleeps under his couch, and buys plastic teeth (since he feels the urge to bite). To make matters worst, Rachel pays him nightly visits, sucking the life right out of him. Peter starts to lose all se3nse of reality. Is he or isn't a vampire?

Critique: A vampire movie with a difference, where's the vampire? Quirky and funny don't even begin to describe this little gem. Let's just call it a sick nightmare. It's like one of those old Twilight Zone episodes where the lead character is always left in a state of damnation. The film seems to be more of homage to the vampire genre with black humor added. Nicholas Cage reprises the role he had in Raising Arizona (1987), though it's 'beefier' this time around (Peter is a complete loon). On second viewing, I feel David Lynch would have been a better choice as director, but Robert Bierman still pulls it off. The film belongs to Joseph Minion's ferocious screenplay. This is a vampire film that lacks bite, but more than makes up for it with a unique story.

QUOTE: Rachel: "It's all right, it's all right. You chose me."

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Mind numbingly awful
Review: Cage is only the worst performer in a cast full of actors that make 2nd grade school plays look subtle. Why Jennifer Beals has gotten few roles after "Flashdance" is obvious with her one dimesional performance here. The comedic concepts are obvious here but it is so poorly done that it never rises above self parody. Completely avoidable.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Mind numbingly awful
Review: Cage is only the worst performer in a cast full of actors that make 2nd grade school plays look subtle. Why Jennifer Beals has gotten few roles after "Flashdance" is obvious with her one dimesional performance here. The comedic concepts are obvious here but it is so poorly done that it never rises above self parody. Completely avoidable.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Nicolas Cage Rules
Review: First of all Nicolas Cage is my favorite actor in any kind of movie. This movie is both so funny and ludicrus at the same time, it rules. I know this might be a stretch but I consider this movie to be a cross between "Raising Arizona" and "Vampires". Nicolas Cage has the uncanny ability to bring out the humorous in ever realm of a character he plays. I guess this is what most people like to refer to as dark humor, which I guess it is, but all I know is that this is a weird and funny movie. If you are reading this review then you need to buy this movie.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: A let down for a vampire movie
Review: I am a fan of vampire movies and collect them, from humorous to frightening. This movie was a let down. This was exactly what I would expect to find in a bargain bin, but definitely not at the price it is offered here. I am, also, a Nicolas Cage fan. I collect movies he stars in and so far, until this movie arrived, I can't say that I was ever let down by one of them. To say this was a bit bizzare is an understatement. You never really know if he is just crazy and imaging things or if it is really happening to him. It is hokie to the point of not being humorous, just very bad. My daughter loves hokie and even she walked out the room even though I suffered until the end. I bought this based on the fact that it is a vampire movie and Nicolas Cage stars in it. Even the trailer for this movie had to be edited in a way to make it sound interesting. If you watch it, you will notice how scenes were taken out of content to make it look better than it really was. Throughout the movie, Nicholas Cage had an on again off again accent that sounded like it was suppose to be British. Word of advice, don't waste your money.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Movie! Where's the DVD?
Review: I saw this movie years ago, and would definitely buy it for my home collection... if I could only find it in DVD format.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: DARK COMEDY AT ITS BEST!!
Review: if you like comedy with a dark twist this movie is for ,very funny and also disturbing one of cages best roles

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Strange
Review: Odd movie that did zero at the box office and became a cult favorite. I bought it a few years ago for $9.99 off of a remainder shelf, remembering that I'd seen and liked it a long time before and deciding it was worth that small price. Well, it was, and probably worth more. I can't give it five stars--only "Lawrence of Arabia" or "Goodfellas" or "M" deserve that kind of rating--and it's not quite a four, but certainly just misses that rating. This movie is funny, with Nicholas Cage doing (some might say overdoing) his role as an uptight literary agent who suddenly comes to believe he's a vampire in an unforgettably mannered, twitchingly insane way. "Am I getting THROUGH to you, Alva?"


<< 1 2 3 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates