VAMPS (2012)

Genre: Thriller/Comedy
Director: Amy Heckerling
Cast: Alicia Silverstone, Krysten Ritter, Sigourney Weaver, Asim Ahmad, Richard Lewis, Kristen Johnston, Wallace Shawn, Justin Kirk, Dan Stevens, Todd Barry, Marilu Henner, Zak Orth, Malcolm McDowell
Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Violence And Sexual References)
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: http://www.facebook.com/VampsMovie

Opening Day: 7 February 2013

Synopsis: Stacy and Goody have been living the good life as two young and beautiful vampires in contemporary New York City, until love gets in the way and each has to make a choice that will jeopardize their immortality. When night falls, the roommates wake from the coffins in their Greenwich Village apartment to go out and hit the town, attend their night school classes, or hit their graveyard-shift jobs. However, despite their deliberately hidden true identities, the pair’s destiny is set on a new course when love steals into each of their lives. But even in love, the women must overcome obstacles set in motion long ago. Stacy learns that her young beau, Joey, is in fact a descendant of the infamous Van Helsings. Joey’s parents, like their legendary namesake, are expert vampire hunters waging the age-old battle against her kind, so it is up to Stacy to conceal her identity from Joey in the name of her personal safety. When Stacy becomes pregnant, the stage is set for a final reckoning with history. If Stacy wishes to stay with Joey in order to see their unborn child survive pregnancy within the inhospitable conditions of a vampire child-bearer, she and Goody must join forces with the Van Helsings to kill the bloodthirsty Cisserus – the ancient “stem” vampire that turned Goody and Stacy into vampires in the first place. Only by killing Cisserus can Goody and Stacy break the spells and return their souls to the realm of common mortals. Doing so, of course, would require the ultimate sacrifice for both women, but Goody is determined that they live – and die – by her long-held credo: "Sometimes it seems to impossible to make anything good happen, but I guess you have to keep trying."

Movie Review:

This movie is certainly not the answer if one is searching for a film with depth and substance. Vamps is rather entertaining, but the humor is a little overdone at points and most of the time, the script falls flat. The climax doesn’t stray far at all from the comfort zone of the audience. With a lacklusture plot that is too predictable, Vamps simply doesn’t impress.

The script, written by Amy Heckerling, is saved by its one-liners. Injected every now and then into the dialogue, and even then sometimes to the point of being quite unnecessary, they couple the Vampire references of the old to the times of new.

The acting falters especially on the part of the character Stacy, played by Krysten Ritter. Vamps does not hold the level of acting one would expect from notable screen actors such as Alicia Silverstone and Sigourney Weaver. Silverstone did manage to bring a lovable quality to Goody. However, her breakdowns came out of nowhere and didn’t have enough build-up, leading them to be simply too stiff and lacking in any real emotion.

Weaver plays her classic, typecast role of the domineering, female leader. She does nail it with deadly accuracy, but then again, she’s had years of practice. This character of hers has been seen time and time again. One would have thought that she’d have been bored by now, playing the tough, overbearing lady-in-charge.

Most of the Vampires that the audience will see in this film are stereotypes that have been appeared before in cinema; highly steoreotypical, from the classic, Romanian Vampire with the heavy accent, to the lusty alpha-male. At some points, Vamps seems like a satire, but even then it doesn’t go all the way for one to comfortable call it that.

Cinematographically, Vamps is riddled with errors. At one point of time, the 180-degree line is crossed for no apparent reason but a lapse on the part of the filmmakers; and not to mention the level of grain on-screen in many shots.

The makeup and hair are both reminiscent of Beetlejuice(1998) and Dark Shadows(2012). They merely went on to make the movie even more camp. The set design, however, should be commended. The art directors had managed to recreate 1800s America in a manner that was quite pleasing. However, it couldn’t make up for the dismal visual effects.

Overall, a dismal B-Grade movie. Vamps had simply come too late; long after the Vampire far had passed in fact. One cannot help but to wonder about the circumstances under which this movie got released. With a long break between the end of production and the release of this movie, it’s no secret that Vamps had trouble finding distribution. It saw itself going straight to DVD with limited release in some cities, and for good reason. This is definitely not a film for the more serious movie-goer.

Movie Rating:

(Your everyday chick-flick with a vampire twist, that doesn’t require much deep-thinking on the part of the audience in order to be enjoyed)

Review by Nishanthini Ganesan