The Thirst

Plot is about a terminal ill woman's last ditched attempt to keep alive, thanks to a late night visit from a vampiric nurse, only set back being she didn't tell her boyfriend her plans, so when he finds her months later dancing in a seedy nightclub after being supposedly dead, he gets roped into joining her new found vampire family. Then they decide to try kick the vampire urge by going cold turkey.

The "Requiem For A Dream Meets Near Dark" tagline for this was always going to be hard for it to live upto. And sadly though pretty obviously this doesn't come close to either.

But that said its a very entertaining horror film once it picks up, has bucket loads of blood, heaps of throw away laughs and enough twisted off the wall madness to keep even the most hard to please horror fan happy.

Great to see Fireflys Jayne aka Adam Baldwin turn up in a horror movie but even he's outdone by the thin white duke English vampire played by Neil Jackson (Duke is also in The Thirst (2006) by Tom Shell).

Director Jeremy Kasten is slowly but surely rising to the top tier of new American horror genre directors, hopefully this is a sign of things to come specially as his next feature is a remake of HG Lewis's Wizard Of Gore. One I'm sure horrorheads don't want to see messed up.

The Thirst gets a very respectful 7/10 from me, leaving me thirsty for more of the same.

A woman seemingly dies of cancer. But her boyfriend soon discovers her at a goth club where she has joined a cult of vampires led by Jeremy Sisto. Of course, the boyfriend joins the cult and then the fun begins...

I had my worries about this one. A low budget film, with "Starz" mentioned about eight times before the film even begins (okay, Starz, I get it... just chill out). And a vampire story, which is one of the more overdone horror branches exploited today. On top of this all, the case claims it's "Requiem For a Dream" meets "Near Dark" and we should always be aware these sorts of comparisons are never accurate (except with "The Hunt" -- see separate review).

In all fairness, this film did have some elements of "Requiem", though I wouldn't say it was quite on that level. And it was a really good movie once it got going. I particularly need to say the makeup and special effects crew did a wonderful job. The lead actress (Clare Kramer of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer") transformed radiantly fro ma dumpy cancer patient to a glorious stunning vampire. And the blood! Oh my, the blood! This film sets a new standard on blood spray. Without being over the top like "Kill Bill", this film has more blood spray than you'll ever see in a movie. Maybe that's the only thing the special effects guy does, but he does it so well it hurts.

And I can't sell the cast short. Jeremy Sisto, as I say, is wonderful as always. He may have played Jesus Christ, but his best roles remain his Satanic horror roles. Clare Kramer was great, all of the supporting cast was great. I'd like to spotlight Tom Lenk (another "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" veteran), whose part was much too small in this film -- though he had enough time to make a gay reference about himself, which seems to be a running theme with Lenk.

Who picked out the soundtrack? Science bless that individual! A few Rasputina favorites (a remix of "State Fair" and "antique-high-heel-red-doll-shoes") and some other goth and industrial blends. I couldn't have down any better myself (the only man who does a better job with his soundtracks is director Gregg Araki). I now own the DVD, but would gladly purchase the soundtrack so I could listen to this film in my car and be reminded of the great dance club scenes and blood-spraying massacres.

Despite hundreds of vampire films flooding the market every year (okay, a slight exaggeration) this one is not derivative but actually offers a good story. What is more important? Love? Eternal life? Friendship? These issues are explored... that, and the whole idea of overcoming addiction (remember the "Requiem for a Dream" comparison). I highly recommend this film. Next to the other films I've watched recently ("The Hunt", "Heartstopper", "Dark Ride" and "The Odd Couple II"....) this is a panacea for my cinematic ills. Thank you, Starz!

I thought with the actors in it, and it's rating that it might be OK. I was wrong, here is what I though of it: Film Quality - Same quality as the Airwolf series (after they lost J.M.V.) Sound - Was OK, but you better keep the remote in your hand, so you can turn it up for the dialog scenes, and turn it down for the music scenes. Acting - The lead male sucked, the others I can't fault because the script sucked so bad. Special Effects - Not so special, unless blood really is that orange, and if all humans spray it from small skin injuries. Plot - What plot, it's certainly not what is listed for plot, because that scene was 15 seconds long. The whole movie is like a mix of a late-night Cinemax low budget movie, soft porn movie, and a Rob Zombie video. Wardrobe sucked (although the clothing seemed to magically shed the huge amount of blood that is was constantly being soaked with).

If I were a 15 year old Goth-obsessed boy or girl with a confused sense of sexual self, and thought about hurting myself or others, I might have liked this movie.

It's not the worst movie I've seen, but it's most certainly not a 6.7. Always remember to look at the total number of people who have voted for a movie, before trusting the rating.

MacGyver

This film is really awful.

The acting is bad, ... the writing is bad, ... the directing is bad, ... even the cutting/editing is bad. And it does take a lot for a film to be so dismally bad that even as a layman you can literally witness each and every one of the bad editing decisions.

I like vampire films; and I do know that there are some films that can be good even though they are bad.

But this film here has absolutely no redeeming features.

It isn't trashy cult, ... it isn't unintentionally funny, ... nothing of the sort.

--> It is just plain bad.

I love all genres, but horror films have a special place in my darkened heart. I don't know why Starz didn't release this film in theaters, they should have. So many horror movies on the big screen haven't come close to the entertainment factor that THE THIRST provides.

Let me start by saying that anyone who rents or buys this movie expecting a deep thoughtful drama will surly be disappointed. You have to know what you're getting into and appreciate the film for what it is. THE THIRST is a 70's grind-house throwback with over-the-top gore and crazy characters that are much larger than life. Jeremy Sisto as Darius is the perfect example. The is not "Six Feet Under" nor should it be and his performance completely encapsulates the mood that this film is meant to express.

While many of the reviews I have read complain that the plot is thin, I amply disagree. This is a low budget horror movie people! The plot is great... a girl dying from cancer decides to save her life by becoming a vampire. Her boyfriend follows and they discover that "the cure is worse than the disease". Very simple, perfect for the genre. Too much more and we wouldn't be able to get to the fun stuff, which is what this movie is all about!

Clare Kramer is sexy from her first moment on screen. Her acting is superb.

Jeremy Sisto never disappoints and although I wasn't sure what he was doing with his accent, I found him to be funny and scary all at the same time.

My favorite performance was relative newcomer Neil Jackson. He plays the role of Duke and while I wish he had more screen time, his moments were some of the best!

For those of us who like to see body parts ripped off and blood spurting everywhere, this film doesn't disappoint! And the large amount of nudity was much appreciated and didn't feel too forced.

I laughed a lot during this film and even felt scared a few times (could have been more scares for my taste).

Overall, if you like the genre, I think you will like this movie! If you are one of those people who complain about too little character development in a movie that is 75% blood and guts, get over yourself and go rent "Sideways". But if you want a fun, blood-drenched good time, get THE THIRST!