Connect with us

Entertainment

‘Interview With the Vampire’ pumps fresh blood into Anne Rice’s story on AMC | CNN

Published

on

‘Interview With the Vampire’ pumps fresh blood into Anne Rice’s story on AMC | CNN



CNN
 — 

Considerably enhancing upon the 1994 movie, “Anne Rice’s Interview With the Vampire” does extra than simply add the late creator’s title to the title, ambitiously updating the story, introducing a racial element and serving up loads of intercourse and gore. Determined to exchange “The Strolling Lifeless,” AMC may need accomplished an unbelievable baton cross from zombies to a different sort of undead.

Though the outlines mirror Rice’s gothic novel, the collection manages to concurrently develop upon them as if this had been a sort-of sequel and reinvent sure features, all whereas upping the quota on sexuality and violence into tiers occupied by the edgiest premium-TV fare. In that sense, this appears to have been produced at the least as a lot with AMC+ in thoughts because the linear community AMC.

Jacob Anderson (attending to say much more than he did as Gray Worm in “Recreation of Thrones,” and benefiting from it) stars as Louis de Pointe du Lac, telling his story to a now-older journalist (Eric Bogosian) whose dismissive, sarcastic angle appears to be flirting with fangs for the recollections.

Assembly in a pandemic-ravaged future that brings further resonance to the story, the pink meat nonetheless exists in flashbacks to Louis’ previous with Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid), the suave vampire who made him; and later Claudia (Bailey Bass), a barely older (once more) spin on the kid vampire whose perpetual state of adolescence captures the tragedy of her arc in a barely totally different method.

Advertisement

Louis and Lestat hook up in New Orleans throughout the early 1900s, a time and place the place such interactions are attainable however the racism of the occasions is overtly expressed, and a continuing element of the narrative.

Tailored by Rolin Jones (HBO’s reimagined “Perry Mason”) with early episodes directed by Alan Taylor (“The Sopranos”), there’s a palpable stress in Anderson and Reid’s performances, with the previous managing to be wistful and scary sooner or later and confused, melancholy and sometimes exultant up to now. As constructed, there’s additionally the intriguing challenge of what would immediate him to step out of the shadows to share his story.

The motion, when it occurs, is swift, bloody and brutal. But the collection format affords this incarnation vital latitude as a personality examine, together with the immortal loneliness that may immediate Lestat to create himself a companion, and Louis’ subsequent dedication to Claudia, with all of the related rising pains that go together with it. The identical goes for fleshing out supporting gamers, corresponding to Louis’ mom (Rae Daybreak Chong) and sister (Kalyne Coleman), versus simply trotting smaller roles out for the slaughter.

“Interview With the Vampire” will make its debut after the “The Strolling Lifeless” begins its ultimate season – in TV phrases, an old school baton cross supposed to safe further sampling in launching this seven-episode opening arc.

Advertisement

In contrast to its ageless characters, “Vampire” won’t be fitted to a very long term, though AMC has already introduced a second season, a well-deserved vote of confidence based mostly on its extraordinarily promising begin. That’s excellent news for each viewers and the community, for whom – on the verge of bidding farewell to its largest hit – the stakes couldn’t be greater.

“Anne Rice’s Interview With the Vampire” premieres October 2 at 10 p.m. ET on AMC and AMC+.

Movie Reviews

Ti West – 'MaXXXine' movie review

Published

on

Ti West – 'MaXXXine' movie review

Mia Goth has reprised her widely beloved role of Maxine Minx in MaXXXine, the third instalment of Ti West‘s X film series, previously comprised of 2022’s X and its prequel Pearl. Modern scream queen Goth is joined by an impressive cast, including Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney, Michelle Monaghan, Halsey, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito, and Kevin Bacon.

Such a roster of actors and musicians proves the kind of reputation West has earned in recent years and shows the increasing calibre of entertainment figures wanting to work with him. The real question, though, is whether the films themselves stand up to those performing in them. Three movies into his 2020s era, West has largely been revealed as a director who knows how to make a horror films look fun and flashy even if they lack originality.

MaXXXine takes place six years after the events of X as Goth’s character has left behind the “Texas porn star massacre” of the first movie to find her fame and fortune in Hollywood. Initially making her way as an adult entertainment actor, Maxine eventually finds herself making a ‘proper’ film; well, at least a dodgy horror B-movie by the name of ‘The Puritan II’, directed by Elizabeth Debicki’s domineering filmmaker, Elizabeth Bender.

At the same time, 1985 Los Angeles is suffering the crimes of notorious serial killer Richard Ramirez, dubbed in the media the ‘Night Stalker’, who appears to be targeting Maxine’s stripper and porn star buddies as his victims. MaXXXine’s Hollywood is generously doused in all the nostalgic expectations of the most excessive decade of the 20th century with neon lights on every corner, shitty horror movie rental stores (including one owned by Moses Sumney’s Leon) and a groovy soundtrack comprised of ZZ Top and, of course, Kim Carnes’ ‘Bette Davis Eyes’.

Advertisement

Narratively and aesthetically somewhat typical, then, but where MaXXXine excels the most is in its many moments of self-aware homage. At one point, our hero Maxine is chased to the Bates Motel (from Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho) on the Universal studio lot by Kevin Bacon’s seedy private eye John Labat, while a later moment sees Lily Collins’ dodgy-accented Molly Bennett have her mouth splattered with blood by Bender in a scene likely paying respect to Andrzej Zulawski’s horror classic Possession and its iconic Isabelle Adjani performance.

In addition, West seems to have fun positing the notion that horror movies in the latter part of the 1980s were deemed B at best, toying with the idea that they could never be taken seriously. Judging from the popularity of his X series, though, such a belief has been proven wrong ten times over. Still, there are a handful of issues with MaXXXine, as well as with the films that preceded it, that prevent admittance to the canon of horror greatness.

One of the film’s most engaging and genuinely exciting moments is when Maxine’s past finally catches up with her, and a motive for the entire series, which had been starkly missing (whether supernatural, religious or just downright maniacal), is finally revealed. However, by the time this antagonism finally arrives, one can’t help but feel that it’s somewhat too late and that West has only managed to deliver a pastiche of the horror world’s past with a 1980s gloss rather than provide an effort of originality or even one that genuinely feels scary.

Sure, there are some brilliantly gory set pieces, including the splattering of a man in a car crusher and the decimation of an even more unfortunate gentleman’s genitals (let’s not forget that the X series is undoubtedly feminist in tone). Still, such standout moments do not guarantee a good horror movie and West’s most recent entry seems to suffer from a lack of an overall haunting spectre or suchlike. MaXXXine is exciting, flashy, funny, sassy, self-aware and incredibly sexy, but it fails to be anything more than the sum of its parts: a neon-lit homage to the horrible history of Hollywood horror rather than a fear-inducing glimpse into the genre’s future.

Advertisement

Related Topics

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Ann Wilson, lead singer of Heart, reveals cancer diagnosis and postpones tour

Published

on

Ann Wilson, lead singer of Heart, reveals cancer diagnosis and postpones tour

Ann Wilson, the lead singer of rock band Heart, is battling cancer and will be stepping back from the Royal Flush Tour for the remainder of the year to focus on her health and recovery.

Wilson, 74, shared the news with fans in a heartfelt post Tuesday on Instagram, detailing her health and expressing her regret over the tour postponement. “I recently underwent an operation to remove something that, as it turns out, was cancerous,” she wrote. “The operation was successful & I’m feeling great but my doctors are now advising me to undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy & I’ve decided to do it.”

The Royal Flush Tour, which included more than 50 shows across the United States and Canada, will be rescheduled to 2025. The tour was set to feature performances from Heart alongside bands including Def Leppard and Journey, but it is unclear whether those acts will join the tour for its rescheduled dates.

“To the ticket buyers, I really do wish we could do these gigs. Please know that I absolutely plan to be back on stage in 2025,” Wilson wrote. All previously purchased tickets will be honored for the new dates.

Ann Wilson’s career spans decades alongside her sister Nancy Wilson. The Seattle-based band had its big break when it opened for Rod Stewart in Montreal in 1975, garnering media attention because of the then-novelty of women. The following year, Heart released its first album, “Dreamboat Annie.” It included the songs “Magic Man” and “Crazy on You,” which reached No. 9 and No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, respectively.

Advertisement

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2023 for their profound influence on rock music.

The European leg of Heart’s tour was canceled in May due to a “time-sensitive but routine procedure” with a six-week recovery time, perhaps referencing the operation spoken of by Ann Wilson.

“This is merely a pause. I’ve much more to sing,” Wilson wrote Tuesday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Advertisement

Continue Reading

Movie Reviews

‘Tiny Lights’ Review: Empathetic Czech Drama Sees the World Through a Child’s Eyes

Published

on

‘Tiny Lights’ Review: Empathetic Czech Drama Sees the World Through a Child’s Eyes

If you’re lucky enough to remember memories from your early childhood, you’ll know they tend to be fragmentary, skewed from an outlook incapable of fully grasping the adult world. Czech filmmaker Beata Parkanova captures that feeling beautifully in her film receiving its world premiere at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Related entirely through the viewpoint of a six-year-old girl, Tiny Lights emerges as a small gem.

It helps that the little girl, Amalka, is played by adorable child actress Mia Banko, possessing wide, saucer eyes that are endlessly expressive and long red hair of which Heidi would be jealous. In the opening scene, Amalka hears voices emanating from a closed-door room and, naturally curious, attempts to listen. She hears her grandmother angrily say to her mother, “Happiness? Save it for the fairy tales,” but she has no idea of what it means.

Tiny Lights

The Bottom Line

Skillfully observed.

Advertisement

Venue: Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
Cast: Mia Banko, Elizaveta Maximova, Marek Geisberg, Veronika Zilkova, Martin Finger
Director-screenwriter: Beata Barkanova

1 hour 16 minutes

So she goes to play with her very submissive cat, apparently named Mr. Cat. But she tests Mr. Cat’s patience by putting him inside a wooden chest, from which her grandfather (Martin Finger) soon rescues him. She returns to the room, and when she opens the door, the adults grow silent. “I’m bored,” Amalka says petulantly, and her grandmother (Veronika Zilkova) tries to assuage her by promising that she’ll take her to the lake that afternoon.

After naughtily picking flowers that we later learn came from a neighbor’s garden, Amalka has soup for lunch, unaware of the tensions surrounding her. Her grandparents live up to their promise by taking her to the lake, where her grandfather teaches her how to dive. They hike in the woods and pick blueberries, but Amalka throws a tantrum when told they have to leave.

Advertisement

And so the film goes, with Amalka trying to amuse herself as the adults seem to be engaged in tense confrontations, especially when her mother (Elizaveta Maximova) shows up with a strange French man and announces that she’s going with him to Prague. Amalka, of course, doesn’t comprehend what’s happening except when it relates to her, as when her father (Marek Geisberg) gently upbraids her for picking the flowers and tells her that she’ll have to apologize to the neighbor. As the day ends, she goes to bed, unaware of the fissure in her parents’ relationship, and her father wearily reads her a bedtime story that she’s heard a thousand times before but clearly still finds fascinating.

Even with its brief running time, Tiny Lights demands a certain degree of patience with its intense focus on banal childhood preoccupations. The filmmaker also indulges in stylistic flourishes — principally quick inserted shots that look like they were captured on 8mm and feature a series of close-up views of objects and facial features ­— that are more distracting than illuminating. The strained attempts at artiness just feel self-conscious.

But for most of the film’s running time, Parkanova maintains tight control over her material, making us fully identify with little Amalka and her preoccupations. The film presents things from her viewpoint, even physically; DP Tomas Juricek often places the camera low down, aligning with her diminutive size. The story takes place over the course of a single day, and its poignancy derives from the fact that we, if not Amalka, are fully aware that her life is going to change, possibly forever.

Or maybe she does realize it, as evidenced by the haunting, lingering final shot, in which we see the silhouette of her body as she peers through the large windows of her bedroom, as if trying to see the world beyond her limited perspective.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending