The Addiction

1995 must have been the year for bold, black and white takes on the vampire genre: first we had _The Addiction_, a few months later, _Nadja_. I'd call this an art film, but since it's not total garbage, I'll say it's an indie drama. Isn't this a vampire movie? Yes, but just barely. We don't get a full-on horror moment until the end. This is a very talky movie. Dialog heavy, and mostly dealing with philosophy for some reason. I get the sense that _The Addiction_ is trying to "say something," but I don't know what that is. What will stick with me about the movie is the beautiful way it was shot; stunning black and white, where every shot could be printed, and framed. Outside of that, it's the performances: Lili Taylor really shines as the lead, as does Walken, who needed to play a larger role in the movie. A very strange soundtrack for a slow vampire movie. I don't know who I'd recommend this to, vampire goths who like rap or art snobs who don't mind a semi-coherent storyline.

The Addiction is one of the more thoughtful films about vampirism available today. While the film is incredibly thoughtful, with loads of subtext at every corner, it borders, and sometimes crosses into, pretention. There are times where the narration is attempting to add subtext, but it's so heavy-handed that the film loses sight of the fact it's a horror film. I'd argue it's thought piece first and horror film second, honestly. Maybe that makes it even more frightening. Christopher Walken is wonderful, and Lili Taylor does a fine job, as well. The choice to shoot the film in black and white was a great idea, as well. There's a real focus placed on the ideas the film is pursuing. Even though the subject of the horror in this film are vampires, the movie is truly describing humanity.