The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part
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Critics Consensus: He's a vampire! He's a vampire! He's a vampire!
Critic Consensus: He's a vampire! He's a vampire! He's a vampire!
All Critics (23) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (14) | Rotten (9) | DVD (6)
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 really makes this worth seeing is Cage's outrageously unbridled performance.
Bierman's striking first feature leaves one trembling between corrosive laughter, edgy terror, and a residual sadness at Loew's pitiful plight.
The film is dominated and destroyed by Mr. Cage's chaotic, self-indulgent performance.
What this movie needs isn't criticism, it's more like a stake through the heart.
You're not exactly sure if the material is meant to be funny or is laughable merely by default.
A vampire satire with real bite.
As Vampire's Kiss unspools, the lead character, Peter Loew (Cage), wavers in and out of this accent and a wide variety of voices, seeming to give every role Cage has ever played (or would ever play, past, present and future) equal vocal time in the film.
100-minute-long piece of performance art masquerading as a moody, silly indie switchblade. Rarely impresses, succumbing to overwhelmingly sluggish filmmaking decisions and a permissive attitude that robs the picture of its...well...bite.
An odd blend of bitter comedy and genuine horror.
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.
For pure, undiluted Cage-osity, Vampire's Kiss is the film to beat.
Nick Cage plays a snooty New Yorker who believes he may have been bitten by a vampire, believes he may be turning into one himself. Or, an already over-the-top actor is absolutely let go for over the course of a whole film. It's a different film experience. Alonso watches horrifically from the sidelines.
Super Reviewer
At the witching hour in NYC, the opening title sequence for the fiendishly pell-mell, daft cult classic 'Vampire's Kiss' is drenched in atmospheric ghoulishness. When a bat flutters around his apartment, it's a toss-up as to who is frothing more rabidly: the winged beast or Cage as the womanizing literary agent. For the record, Cage's flights of bombastic, gangly grandeur don't really occur until the half-hour mark. Cage nails the snide Upper West Side accent and who else could sincerely deliver the line "I was in mortal combat with a fucking bat". It's only germane for the film's darkly humorous sensibilities that the tone is more sobering than broad like a sulfuric Bret Easton Ellis novel (much like Patrick Bateman, Cage is a white-collar professional in Paul Smith suits with homicidal delusions). Public outbursts are Cage's forte and this is practically an acting showcase for his tics and mannerisms but it doesn't diminish how eminently sensational he is. Rather than chewing the scenery, he literally obliterates in a scene where he completely vandalizes his own apartment and eats a live cockroach. Along with Cage's askew Method theatrics, we are regaled with a nubile Jennifer Beals in lingerie. On the downside, Cage's mistreatment of his secretary (Maria Conchita Alonso) is brazenly misogynistic to the point where a rape is ostensibly envisioned as a rib-tickling set piece (ex. When Cage confesses, his psychiatrist blithely remarks "It's just a little id release. No need to worry.").
Back when vampires had a certain deadly sex appeal, not overly romanticized like they are, vampire films were lots of fun and highly entertaining. Vampire's Kiss is another standout vampire feature from the 1980's. Starring Nicholas Cage, who is terrific in the lead performance of Peter Loew, a man who falls victim to a vampire. Cage delivers a powerful performance here, and it ranks among his finer, more underrated performances as well. The film has a great blend of horror mixed with hints of black humor to really make something unique. What we end up with is an overlooked vampire film that deserves to be rediscovered. While films like Fright Night, The Lost Boys and Near Dark get the credit as being the three best vampire flicks of the decade, Vampire's Kiss is also in the same category, although no one ever seems to mention this film. The film features several memorable scenes, especially the one where Cage is his office and losing his and threatening to fire his secretary, which inspired an internet meme. This film is a must watch for any genre fan, and viewers who are normally reluctant to watch a Nicholas Cage film due mainly to his recent body work, might be surprised at how good he is here. Every scene he's in, he just commands it, with a dark intensity and his performance alone should make anyone want to watch this film. The writing is brilliant, and in terms of vampire films, this one is straight forward, one that relies on the cold blooded nature of the bloodsucker lore, and making something truly remarkable in the process. As far as vampire films go, Vampire's Kiss is sure to satisfy genre fans, and it's a highly entertaining film that you can sink your teeth into.
I read that Vampire's Kiss is now a cult film. I guess I'm not in the cult. Does it really matter if he is a vampire or not if it is a bad movie?
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