Part of the Jim Jarmusch ‘All About the Masters’
Series
* * * ½
Being a reclusive artist must
be something like living like a vampire, where the shadows and darkness are not
only preferential, but vital. After all, exposure to the light will only bring significant
displeasure. I have no doubt that this is what Jim Jarmusch was thinking about
when he was working on Only Lovers Left Alive, a story about love,
vampires, and rock n’ roll. It’s a collage of ideas that only Jarmusch could
not only come up with but execute, and while it’s not a masterpiece by any
means, the result is one of his coolest and most charming films to date.
Who knows how long Adam and
Eve (Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton, respectively) have been married? It’s ben
literal centuries, no doubt: they are vampires. Unfortunately, they now live in
totally different parts of the planet; Eve in Tangiers, Adam in Detroit, where
he spends his days confined to a shabby home. He is a recording artist, not
only a reclusive one, but also widely renowned (perhaps an inseparable combination).
He is deeply depressed, currently contemplating suicide by way of gunshot – his
errand boy (Anton Yelchin) is hooking him up with a wooden bullet. Worried
about his well-being, Eve flies all the way to Detroit to revitalize him, but
things take a difficult turn upon the arrival of Ava (Mia Wasikowska), Eve’s
younger and extremely impulsive younger sister.
I wonder if Only Lovers
Left Alive was made in some sort of response to the joke that vampire movies
had become in the wake of the Twilight saga (the final entry to was
released one year prior to Jarmusch’s film, after all). It’s something to think
about, but it doesn’t really matter for two reasons: 1) Twilight hasn’t
been relevant for 7 years, and more importantly 2) Only Lovers Left Alive stands
on its own as a truly wonderful movie, a singular and unique take on vampires
in the movies.
In his writing, Jarmusch is
wonderfully clever in his interpretation of vampires living in the modern era. You
can walk into this movie totally blindsided and know that these two characters
are vampires without anything really happening and still know exactly what they
are, from the way they reminisce about events from decades, if not centuries,
ago (keep your ears open for an early exchange about Eddie Cochran) to the way
they talk about blood, as if they’re a kind of wine. And there’s plenty of subtle
pop-culture and music references to keep you happy without overdoing it.
Speaking of blood, Adam and Eve’s favored choices of blood is type O negative (those
that get it know exactly what the reference is).
There’s an atmosphere
throughout that works on a subtle yet very effective level, setting the stage
for a world that cannot possibly understand its two protagonists. The world
around them is surrounded by decrepit buildings, shadows of their former selves
– to top things off, the entire film is set in the darkness of the nighttime. When
indoors, their world is smoky and claustrophobic, the room corners always
masked in shadows. It is simultaneously suiting and alienating for the two
leads, and creates a bittersweet line between for them to linger in.
This makes way for a sense of
tragedy, but that doesn’t make this a remotely morose picture. As a matter of
fact, Swinton and Hiddleston’s romance is an absolute joy to behold. Though it
is bolstered by the clever writing and alienating atmosphere, this wonderful
romance works all on account of the incredible range and abilities of these two
great actors, who carry on with a reserved nature that is, on one hand, humble,
cool as hell on the other.
I had a wonderful time with
this movie, but I admit that it’s not a complete success. There are two
sequences involving travelling across multiple countries via airplane, and I have
a really difficult time believing these two would have such luck finding international
flights without any kind of daytime travel. Yes, there are explanations, but
they’re explained in a very hand-wave fashion. It’s a shame, because this is a
setup for very interesting (and perhaps even hilarious) moments. Additionally,
the entire third act feels very underdeveloped. It moves along just fine with
what we’re presented, but I feel like there should have been so much more going
on (this is all said without spoiling anything, mind you).
Just a few years ago, to mention vampires in any context would inspire
only groans and eyerolls (thanks, Twlight), but now that such a
terrible era for vampires has passed, perhaps more people will rediscover the
subject matter. In turn, I can only hope that Only Lovers Left Alive will
gain the cult audience it truly deserves. It’s just short of being practically
perfect, but nonetheless, Only Lovers
Left Alive is still a moodily
wonderful, adorably romantic, and truly original take on the vampire story.
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