Sólo los amantes sobreviven

This has been heralded as a return to form for Jarmusch but, frankly, I liked his last two films a lot better. The big problem here is that there is absolutely nothing left to say about Vampires. Jarmusch just uses the genre to create a gorgeous mood piece, but it's hard to deny the fact that we've seen it all before. Really, the plot here is almost identical to Xan Cassavetes' 2012 film Kiss of the Damned. Much like that film, Only Lovers Left Alive tries to spice of the genre with artiness, and it succeeds (as did Kiss of the Damned) up to a point. Really, Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston are so engaging the film comes off pretty good. Swinton's awesome hairdo alone makes the film worth watching. I am a little perturbed that Jarmusch glamorizes heroin chic in this film - the vampires are very rock-star like and, when they drink blood, it's depicted very much like heroin use. And it's depicted quite romantically. Tom Hiddleston's music even sounds like The Velvet Underground (I found it hilarious when characters tell him how brilliant his work is). The film co-stars John Hurt, Anton Yelchin, Mia Wasikowska and Jeffrey Wright. Wright's scenes with Hiddleston are by far the highlight of the film.

"You drank Ian!" Best line of the film, delivered by Eve (Tilda).

There should have been more of this light-hearted irony, especially from Tom Hiddleston who takes his part (Adam) a touch too seriously. Result: he comes across as lugubrious. And he plays on a note of such desperate ennui that Tilda comes across as positively incandescent by contrast. She's the mother of the family, the fixer, the one who gets people up in the evening. She's very watchable.

But points for John Hurt as Christopher Marlowe (it was me, you know, not that Shakespeare!). And for Mia W. playing every family's nightmare, the teenage girl who can't say no.

Given the fact it wasn't shot on film one can forgive the murkiness of the picture but I don't think Jim Jarmusch has much of an eye for setting up shots. There's not much flow. Some awkward cuts. And so on.

Lots of wealthy addicts cope with their addiction provided they have access to quality drugs - Jean Cocteau being a classic example. The plot here hinges on how that supply can be so easily blocked, the panic and despair that ensues and the inevitable descent into violence. Moralistic? Maybe.

Jim Jarmusch's delicious new comedy is a vampire movie unlike any other. It's set in the present but forget those "Twilight" sagas; these are vampires for the art-house crowd, smart, funny and yes, sexy creatures of the night, (the whole film takes place at night; there isn't a single shot in daylight), and I was crazy about them. Indeed Jarmusch has fashioned a masterpiece about a couple of lonely people whose only solace is each other, doomed if you like to be together for all eternity or until one of them gets a stake or a wooden bullet in the heart or drinks some 'bad blood'; (I loved the subtle AIDS metaphor; be careful who you bite). Adam, (tall, dark and sexy Tom Hiddleston), and Eve, (a mesmerizing Tilda Swinton), have been married to each other, several times it would appear, over the centuries but living separate lives, he in Detroit as a reclusive musician, she in Tangier where she has another old vampire for a friend. He is Christopher Marlowe, (yes that Christopher Marlowe), and he's played by John Hurt with a twinkle in his eye. It's when Eve visits Adam in Detroit, flying by night, (in a plane; what did you expect - bat-wings?), that all hell breaks loose in the shapely form of Eve's sexy sister, (a terrific Mia Wasikowska), who can't keep her fangs to herself. As you would expect from Jarmusch this is funny, intelligent and off-the-wall. Hiddleston proves to be a highly dapper comedian while Swinton is superb as Eve, getting all she can out of a life she knows is going to go on forever. Unmissable.

Wonderful imagery. style and atmosphere in the extreme. great acting. Beauty in many forms: you get a lot for your eyes. Also, depending on your taste in music, there is also a lot for your ears.

For your brain, sadly, not as much.

"Only lovers left alive" is filled with a lot of name-dropping, by word, picture and sometimes sound. Whether you find that fascinating or pretentious depends on your taste.

But what this movie really lacks is a story. The characters are throughout and the dialogue may be scarce, but has some dry humour and snappy lines. That doesn't save it from going nowhere. Glaring plot holes may make you cringe at times. And the pacing looks like Jarmush tried to surpass Kaurismäki in terms of slowness. If so, he won.

So perhaps this movie is best tasted in the state its protagonists enter after relishing an excellent glass of blood: dazed, blissful, and somewhat drugged.

In the abandoned Detroit, the depressed musician Adam (Tom Hiddleston) lives in an old house in the middle of derelict buildings with his musical instruments and books. Adam has been a vampire for centuries but is tired with the fate of the world taken by wrong decisions of mankind. He has a confidentiality agreement with Ian (Anton Yelchin) that provides rare instruments to him and does not ask questions to him. Adam poses of Dr. Faust and buys blood bags from Dr. Watson (Jeffrey Wright) in a nearby hospital. His wife and lover Eve (Tilda Swinton) lives in Tangier, Morocco's, and is also a vampire. Her best friend is "Kit" Marlowe (John Hurt) that supplies blood for her that he buys from a French doctor.

When Eve calls Adam from Tangier, she feels that he is down and she decides to fly to Detroit to meet him. She meets Kit to say good-bye to him and Kit tells Eve that he had a dream with her younger sister Ava (Mia Wasikowska). Eve and Adam reunite and spend the nights making love. Out of the blue, the wild and reckless Ava comes to Adam's house and turns their lives upside-down.

"Only Lovers Left Alive" is a stylish and original vampire movie with a story of eternal love and music. The plot has no clichés and is developed in slow pace, with charismatic characters, great performances and entertaining dialogs. I dare to say that "Only Lovers Left Alive" is in 2014 what "The Hunger" was in 1983. Fans of gore or conventional vampire movies will probably not like this feature. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Amantes Eternos" ("Eternl Lovers")

Note: On 23 Oct 2018 I saw this film again.