Pitt is fine as Louis, the centuries-old vampire who recounts his sad and fascinating history to a nameless "interviewer", played a bit too light by Christian Slater. Complete List of Characters in Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire. [6], Digital effects were used mainly to add small details or to enhance certain physical effects, like the burning of the New Orleans set or the burning of Louis's plantation, whereby CGI flames were imposed on a miniature of the house. Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles filming location: Louis watches a sunrise: Phoenix Finchley, East Finchley, London The cinema interior seen in the film lives on. Lestat attacks them, but Louis sets him on fire and, in the ensuing blaze, they are able to escape to their ship and depart. A stand-alone sequel, Queen of the Damned, was released in 2002, with Stuart Townsend replacing Cruise as Lestat. "Sympathy for the Devil" was performed by Guns N' Roses. There are a few short scenes of daylight in the beginning, until Louis is transformed. Louis is outraged that Molloy has not understood the tale of suffering he has related, and attacks Molloy to scare him into abandoning the idea. Obviously due to the subject matter, 'Interview' is a relentlessly dark film. Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? The story is ostensibly a simple one: having suffered a tremendous personal loss, an 18th-century Louisiana plantation owner named Louis Pointe du Lac descends into an alcoholic stupor. Louis recounts how he became a vampire at the hands of the radiant and sinister Lestat and how he became indoctrinated, unwillingly, into the vampire way of life. In the book it is a guy going on this search of discovery. Paralyzed in the Vietnam war, he becomes an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after feeling betrayed by the country he fought for. Brad Pitt, as the more conflicted vampire Louis, is a quieter presence on screen. [32], Praise from The New York Times' Elvis Mitchell[33] and the Chicago Sun-Times' Roger Ebert[34] was tempered by poor reviews by The Washington Post's Rita Kempley[35] and Desson Howe[36] and Time magazine's Richard Corliss. Learn everything you need to know about Louis de Pointe du Lac, Claudia, and more in Interview with the Vampire. Jordan stated that: "It's not very often you can make a complicated, dark, dangerous movie and get a big budget for it. Use the HTML below. Louis describes his human life as a wealthy plantation owner in 1791 Spanish Louisiana. Interview with the Vampire is a 1994 American gothic horror film directed by Neil Jordan, based on Anne Rice's 1976 novel of the same name, and starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. $1,500.00. $5.01 shipping. Filming took place primarily in New Orleans and in London, with limited location shooting done in San Francisco and Paris. Revived by Molloy's blood, Lestat offers Molloy the choice that he "never had" — whether or not to become a vampire — and, laughing, continues driving over the bridge. The film's musical score was written by Elliot Goldenthal and received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Score. Is Louis' mystical epic of bloodshed genuine? Interview with the Vampire ~ ANNE RICE Signed Advance Preview ARC First Edition. To entice Louis to stay with him, Lestat turns the dying girl, Claudia, into a vampire. The centuries old vampire Count Dracula comes to England to seduce his barrister Jonathan Harker's fiancée Mina Murray and inflict havoc in the foreign land. Wandering the streets of New Orleans amid an outbreak of plague, Louis can resist his hunger no more and feeds on a little girl whose mother died in the plague. The book was published in 1976. Thirteen years later, an unexpected random encounter with a former guard gives them a chance for revenge. The idea of making a sequel to the $102 million-grossing Interview With the Vampire has many a heart beating wildly. Let us know what you think in the comments below. Another Louis accepts, but quickly comes to regret it. The themes of Catholic guilt which pervade the novel attracted Jordan, who called the story "the most wonderful parable about wallowing in guilt that I'd ever come across. Need some streaming picks for the month? [31] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. Interview with the Vampire ANNE RICE ~ Signed Advance Preview ARC First Edition. Interview with the Vampire is Anne Rice’s debut novel published in 1976. When I saw this in the theater, the effect of sitting in a darkened room watching a film that takes place entirely at night, really felt strange. The self-indulgent 25-year-old Louis owns a plantation in 1791 near New Orleans. or Best Offer. In this loose sequel to Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994), the vampire Lestat becomes a rock star whose music wakes up the equally beautiful and monstrous queen of all vampires. Against the backdrop of a gloomy San Francisco, the nearly two-century-old vampire, Louis de Pointe du Lac, recounts the unbelievable story of his eternal transformation and a life worse than death to the sceptic reporter, Daniel Molloy. Is this, indeed, an interview with a vampire? Debuting in the first novel Interview with The Vampire where he acted as the main antagonist in both the novel and its 1994 film adaptation of the same name.. 2 weeks ago anna . Rice composed the novel shortly after the death of her young daughter Michelle, who served as an inspiration for the child-vampire character Claudia. Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles is a 1994 film in which a vampire tells his epic life story: love, betrayal, loneliness, and hunger. July 24, 2010 HattersMadGirl . Though Louis is shocked and upset by Lestat's death, he helps Claudia dump Lestat's body in an alligator swamp. A vampire tells his epic life story: love, betrayal, loneliness, and hunger. On this IMDbrief - presented by Acura - we explain how an online premiere resulted in a multi-million dollar payday and the Sundance 2021 must-see movies to add to your Watchlist. Published in 1976, Interview with the Vampire quickly became a cult success, and a prominent influence on present Goth culture. [13] A song titled "Lovers Forever", which Cher wrote along with Shirley Eikhard for the film's soundtrack, got rejected as Pitt was ultimately cast for the role, though a dance-pop version of the song was released on Cher's 2013 album, Closer to the Truth. Interview With The Vampire. Interview With the Vampire - TV Guide. [37], Oprah Winfrey famously walked out of an advance screening for the movie only 10 minutes in, because of the gore and dark themes. [16] Louis's plantation was a combination of primarily Destrehan Plantation, just west[17] of New Orleans, and Oak Alley Plantation in nearby Vacherie. Was there a real Théâtre des Vampires in Paris? [23], Visual effects were overseen by Stan Winston and his team, while the newly founded Digital Domain was responsible for creating the digital effects under Visual Effects Supervisor Robert Legato. Military lawyer Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee defends Marines accused of murder. [7] He agreed to direct on the condition that he be allowed to write his own script, though he did not gain a writing credit. The costumes as well are breath-taking, and accurate to the time. INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE: THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 Sound formats: Dolby Digital / SDDS 17th century New Orleans: The relationship between an ancient vampire (Tom Cruise) and his bloodsucking protegé (Brad Pitt) is tested to destruction by a young girl (Kirsten Dunst) who challenges their established dynamic, leading to betrayal … Woman of the (Web) Page Anne Rice is very active online, communicating often with her People of the Page (this is what she calls her fans), and even posting videos… like that time she arrived at a book signing inside a coffin.. Trivia with the Vampire There is a special section of Anne Rice's webpage just for Interview with the Vampire. They spend weeks planning a voyage to Europe to search for other vampires, but Lestat returns on the night of their departure, having survived on the blood of swamp creatures. Louis concludes his interview with Molloy, prompting Molloy to beseech Louis to make him his new vampire companion. During years of mourning in an alcoholic haze, Rice wrote Interview With the Vampire to help deal with her grief and loss. Interview with a Vampire is a classic. Vampires are very attractive, and even beautiful, as the transformation of becoming a vamp… 2 spot with a solid take", "Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles Reviews", "FILM REVIEW: INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE; Rapture and Terror, Bound by Blood", "Interview with the Vampire movie review (1994)", "CINEMA: Toothless: Interview with the Vampire falls flat, despite Tom Cruise", "Cruise's Vampire Turns Off Oprah - She Walks Out", "Oklahoman Movie Critics Rank Their Favorites for the Year "Forrest Gump" The Very Best, Sandi Declares", "Oklahoman Movie Critics Rank Their Favorites for the Year Without a Doubt, Blue Ribbon Goes to "Pulp Fiction," Scott Says", "CRITIC'S NOTEBOOK; The Good, Bad and In-Between In a Year of Surprises on Film", "Interview with the Vampire (1994) [13176]", "Anne Rice's 'Tale of the Body Thief' In Development With Imagine, Kurtzman/Orci", "Universal buys rights to Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles book series", "Interview with the Vampire remake: Jared Leto is screenwriters pick to play Lestat", Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Combo, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Interview_with_the_Vampire_(film)&oldid=1004052893, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2012, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. It was her debut novel. So “Interview” is cathartic for Rice? It is always terrifying and strange when a child is cast in such an evil role. David Geffen is very powerful and he poured money into Interview. They contend they were acting under orders. In the late 20th century, a vampire named Louis de Pointe du Lac tells his life story to a young interviewer in San Francisco. Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles [26] This required the actors to hang upside down for 30 minutes, so that the blood would rush to their heads and cause their veins to protrude, enabling the makeup artists to trace realistic patterns. The film focuses on Lestat (Cruise) and Louis (Pitt), beginning with Louis's transformation into a vampire by Lestat in 1791. Also sign me up for FanMail to get updates on all things movies: tickets, special offers, screenings + more. In modern-day San Francisco, reporter Daniel Molloy interviews Louis de Pointe du Lac, who claims to be a vampire. The rights to Rice's novel were initially purchased by Paramount Pictures in April 1976, shortly before the book was published. Lestat senses Louis's dissatisfaction with life and offers to turn him into a vampire. View production, box office, & company info. Against the backdrop of a gloomy San Francisco, the nearly two-century-old vampire, Louis de Pointe du Lac, recounts the unbelievable story of his eternal transformation and a life worse than death to the sceptic reporter, Daniel Molloy. [21] Pitt called the production "six-months of f---king darkness" because of the almost-exclusive night shoots, filmed mostly in London in the depths of winter, which sent him into a depression. While Lestat revels in the hunt and killing of humans, Louis resists his instinct to kill, instead drinking animal blood to sustain himself. Rice later confirmed that creative differences that were beyond those involved resulted in the dismissal of the project in April 2013. During pre-production, Rice had pleaded with the studio not to produce a film of the book just yet as she believed her readers wanted a film based on the second book in the series, The Vampire Lestat. In the movie, they took the sensational aspects of Lestat and made that the pulse of the film, and those things are very enjoyable and very good, but for me, there was just nothing to do—you just sit and watch. [12], Due to Rice's perception of Hollywood's homophobia, at one point she rewrote the part of Louis, changing his sex to female, in order to specifically heterosexualize the character's relationship with Lestat. Rice sold the… To be sure, this is a Hollywood production, but with director Neil Jordon in charge, the film possesses that special "arthouse" film look, with many scenes being too strange and dark to come across as typical Hollywood. Despondent following the death of his wife and unborn child, he drunkenly wanders the waterfront of New Orleans one night and is attacked by the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt. Spanning two hundred years of cruel betrayals, extreme solitude, and unquenched thirst, Louis' grimly fascinating tale pivots around his perpetually regrettable decision to embrace the dictatorship of blood, and, above all, his maker: the seductive blonde aristocrat of death, Lestat de Lioncourt. He also introduces the child vampire Claudia into his story. The film focuses on Lestat (Cruise) and Louis (Pitt), beginning with Louis's transformation into a vampire by Lestat in 1791. "[30] The film holds a 59/100 on Metacritic from 19 reviews. [28] In subsequent weeks it struggled against Star Trek Generations and The Santa Clause. In the now-classic novel Interview with the Vampire, Anne Rice refreshed the archetypal vampire myth for a late-20th-century audience. ENTER CITY, STATE OR ZIP CODE GO. Coming out of the theater I felt as though I had been away from the real world for a long time. When Christian Slater was cast in his place as Molloy, he donated his entire salary to Phoenix's favorite charitable organizations. Tom … Vampire movies were traditionally made at the lower end of the scale, on a shoestring, on rudimentary sets. The series begins with Interview with a Vampire, Louis de Pointe du Lac tells his 200 year life story to a young reporter (played by Christian Slater). 24 wins & 34 nominations. She tricks Lestat into drinking the "dead blood" of twin boys whom she killed by overdose with laudanum, which weakens Lestat, and then slits his throat. Jordon's aesthetic vision, supported for once by the huge Hollywood budget, insured that "Interview" looks gorgeous. [14], Originally, River Phoenix was cast for the role of Daniel Molloy (as Anne Rice liked the idea), but he died four weeks before he was due to begin filming. [58], In August 2014 Universal Pictures acquired the rights to the entire Vampire Chronicles. Movies Personality. Seeking revenge, Louis returns to the theater at dawn and sets it on fire, killing all the vampires. Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci have been named as producers and the deal includes the aforementioned screenplay for The Tale of the Body Thief, written by Christopher.[59][60]. As decades pass, Louis never recovers from the loss of Claudia and dejectedly explores the world alone. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. [27], A rough-cut of Interview was shown to test audiences, who according to producer David Geffen felt "there was a little too much blood and violence." After traveling around Europe and the Mediterranean but finding no other vampires, Louis and Claudia settle harmoniously in Paris in 1870. On the Golden Gate Bridge, Lestat appears and attacks Molloy, taking control of the car. Opening weekend grosses amounted to $36.4 million, placing it in the number one position at the US box office. Interview with the Vampire was a box office success when it premiered in 1994. find out if you are Lestat, Louis or Claudia. Shortly thereafter, the Parisian vampires abduct the three of them and punish them for Lestat's murder, imprisoning Louis in a coffin and trapping Claudia and Madeleine in a chamber, where sunlight burns them to ash. [61] In November 2016, all plans for a theatrical reboot were scrapped as Rice announced she had regained the rights to her novels and intends to create a television series starting with The Vampire Lestat. "[38], The film was released on VHS on November 21, 1995, and LaserDisc on June 6, 1996,[56] DVD in 1997 and on Blu-ray Disc on October 7, 2008.[57]. This darkly effective horror drama holds plenty of interest, even for those who find Anne Rice's gothic cult novels unreadable. Which was probably applicable to me at that time: 'Am I good? Armand does nothing to prevent this, but the next day he frees Louis. A self-indulgent and vain publishing magnate finds his privileged life upended after a vehicular accident with a resentful lover. [8] Later on, when Interview entered the casting stage, British actor Julian Sands was championed by Anne Rice and fans of the novel to play Lestat,[9] but because Sands was not a well-known name at the time (being only famed for his performance in A Room with a View), he was rejected and the role was given to Tom Cruise. The finest thing about this production though, is the beautiful, doll-like Claudia, the child-vampire, played by Kirsten Dunst. Because of his star power, Cruise received a record $10 million salary and a percentage of the profits. After moving to a new town, two brothers discover that the area is a haven for vampires. [26] The scene where Claudia cuts Lestat's throat was achieved by transferring from Tom Cruise bleeding from a prosthetic wound to an animatronic model designed to 'wither' as it bled out, enhanced with CGI blood. The biography of Ron Kovic. Vampires throughout movie history have often chortled as if they'd gotten away with something. "Interview With the Vampire" is a very special, and at times superb cinematic delight, that was not ruined by it's over-exposed stars and commercialism. The novel was set apart from its predecessors of the vampire genre by its confessional tone from the vampire's perspective, touching on existential despair and the sheer boredom of lifeless immortality. Interview with the Vampire Screenplay » … "[11], Eventually, Rice became satisfied with Cruise's performance after seeing the completed film, saying that "from the moment he appeared, Tom was Lestat for me" and "that Tom did make Lestat work was something I could not see in a crystal ball." Famously based on Anne Rice's vampire novels, INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE features a scenery-chewing Tom Cruise as gleeful, blood-thirsty villain Lestat. Louis rejects Armand and leaves, knowing Armand had allowed Claudia's murder so that he could have Louis to himself. Fandango FANALERT® Sign up for a FANALERT® to find out when tickets are available in your area. She is often inspired by her surroundings. The screenings were held over the objection of Neil Jordan, who was planning on further paring down the length of the film before previewing it, but Geffen wanted to show the longer version in order to "get a feel for what the audience wanted." Would a Vampire fall in Love with You? [24] The most difficult digital effects to illustrate were Louis and Claudia's transformations into vampires, which were technologically very advanced for the time. Louis then vanishes, and Molloy runs to his car and takes off, while playing the cassette tapes of Louis' interview in his car. Is this, indeed, an interview with a vampire? Jordan was intrigued by the script, calling it "really interesting and slightly theatrical", but was especially interested after reading Rice's novel. [18] The depiction of 18th- and early-19th-century New Orleans was achieved with a combination of location shooting in the French Quarter of New Orleans and filming on a purpose-built waterfront set along the Mississippi river. He is an elegant, wealthy, fairly charismatic and energetic vampire of French descendant with a fiery temper and several … Interview with the Vampire Resources Websites. [22] Shooting took place in San Francisco, mainly on the Golden Gate Bridge, with the external façade of Louis's hotel located at the intersection of Taylor Street, Market Street, and Golden Gate Avenue. The score opens with the Catholic hymn Libera Me slightly rewritten to reflect Louis's character. Louis chronicles his meeting of the Vampire Lestat and the ending result of Louis becoming a vampire. 'Santa Clause' sleighs into the No. Nick Riganas. Interview with the Vampire is a 1994 American gothic horror film directed by Neil Jordan, based on Anne Rice's 1976 novel of the same name, and starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Death, who takes the form of a young man, asks a media mogul to act as a guide to teach him about life on Earth, and in the process, he falls in love with his guide's daughter. Rice was refused the cooperation of the studio. The road to bringing Interview with the Vampire to the big screen was a rough one, as well as a long one. She even considered cancelling an interview with Tom Cruise promoting the film, stating that "I believe there are forces of light and darkness in the world, and I don't want to be a contributor to the force of darkness. But these things are unconscious, I don't have an agenda."[7]. It was reported that screenwriter Lee Patterson was going to pen the screenplay. The film chronicles their time together, and their turning of ten-year-old Claudia (Kirsten Dunst) into a vampire. Almost a decade after this film, an adaptation for the third book in the series, The Queen of the Damned, was produced and distributed once again by Warner Bros. Cruise and Pitt did not reprise their roles as Lestat and Louis. (1994). When she finally realizes that she will never grow older or become a mature woman, she is furious with Lestat and tells Louis that they should leave him. [21] The script, which he received only two weeks prior to filming, was also a source of disappointment. When a sports agent has a moral epiphany and is fired for expressing it, he decides to put his new philosophy to the test as an independent agent with the only athlete who stays with him and his former colleague. Thirty years pass, and Claudia matures psychologically but remains a little girl in appearance and continues to be treated as such by Lestat. And in the meantime, he has this Lestat character that he's entranced by and abhors. Together, they raise her as a daughter. How did Lestat survive the drinking of dead blood? Am I of the angels? The latest, and arguably the most ambitious, to enter this potentially-lucrative market is a cinematic version of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire. Eventually about 20 minutes' worth of footage was either cut or re-arranged before the theatrical version was ready. Dismissal of the theater at dawn and sets it on an A+ to scale... Reported that screenwriter Lee Patterson was going to pen the screenplay 's with! Him his New Vampire companion enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing Interview with Molloy taking! Was there a real Théâtre des vampires in Paris in 1870 after traveling around Europe and ending! Actress for her role in the Vampire ~ Anne Rice refreshed the archetypal Vampire myth for a to! 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