An odd blend of bitter comedy and genuine horror.
Vampire's Kiss (1989)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted: 22
Fresh: 15
Rotten:7
Average Rating: 6.1/10
Runtime: 1 hr 43 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Synopsis: Nicolas Cage plays Peter Loew, a sleazy literary agent who prowls the bars in the evening looking for some action. One night he hooks up with Jennifer Beals, and in the course of their relations,... Nicolas Cage plays Peter Loew, a sleazy literary agent who prowls the bars in the evening looking for some action. One night he hooks up with Jennifer Beals, and in the course of their relations, she bites him on the neck. When he wakes up the next morning, Peter doesn't feel quite right. He is irritable, and has a hard time dealing with life at the literary agency, where his secretary takes the brunt of his ire. Suddenly, it dawns on Peter that he was bitten by a vampire, so he goes out and buys a set of real fangs. However, mere plot exposition can't begin to get at what makes this movie so amazing. Well, the film itself isn't really amazing--it's Cage's performance. Here, it seems, he was given free rein to act like a complete madman. There is absolutely no precedent for this performance anywhere in film history, and Cage is a wonder to watch. Though this film is usually mentioned only when people want to talk about how Cage ate a live cockroach once because he insisted on absolute realism, his performance here dwarfs everything else he's ever done. The movie might be rather silly, what with its pretentious device of using Peter's transformation into a vampire as a metaphor for his other life as a parasitic literary agent and lady-killer, but Cage overacts so stunningly that you can't take your eyes off the film for a second. [More]
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Maria Conchita Alonso, Jennifer Beals, Elizabeth Ashley
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Maria Conchita Alonso, Jennifer Beals, Elizabeth Ashley, Kasi Lemmons, David Hyde Pierce, Amy Stiller
Director: Robert Bierman
Director: Robert Bierman
Screenwriter: Joseph Minion
Composer: Colin Towns
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Reviews for Vampire's Kiss
Problem is that Cage's over-the-top performance generates little sympathy for the character, so it's tough to be interested in him as his personality disorder worsens.
What truly distinguishes the movie is Cage's performance, which is so off the wall that even if you don't like it you have to watch in awe.
What really makes this worth seeing is Cage's outrageously unbridled performance.
Undeservedly dismissed by most critics, this original film, whether taken as a straight horror yarn or as a psycho-erotic nightmare, mixes elements of fable and satire in a startling manner.
Bierman's striking first feature leaves one trembling between corrosive laughter, edgy terror, and a residual sadness at Loew's pitiful plight.
Kooky vampire flick gives us an already neurotic Nicolas Cage slowly turning into one of them after receiving a bite.
The film is dominated and destroyed by Mr. Cage's chaotic, self-indulgent performance.
This is a flick for which I had very fond memories from back in the day, but watching it again after all these years, I can't say that it was as great as I once remembered it.
What this movie needs isn't criticism, it's more like a stake through the heart.
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