The Addiction

It's not about vampires, it is about resistance, or lack of it. About what may be right around the corner, about discipline, or about lack of discipline. About being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It can happen to anybody, and it happens to everybody. It's a pyramid scheme.

Beautiful black and white composition by Abel Ferrara tied tightly in a wonderfully creative Joe Delia score. Casting the usual Ferrara/indie suspects: Paul Calderone, Edie Falco, Kathryn Erbe, Lili Taylor, Annabella Sciorra. The theme of the movie presents 4 new questions for every one it answers. Do we have a choice? Can we resist? And just when we think we have it all figured out, Christopher Walken has to show up and throw an entirely new lilt on things.

Such is life.

Abel Ferrara's moody, allegorical vampire tale makes fascinating and pointed statements on sin and redemption, spirituality and the nature of good (there's precious little of it) and evil (no one is safe from it). And unfortunately, but not surprisingly, it was relatively ignored in America.

Lili Taylor gives a brooding, glib and haunting central performance as Kathleen Conklin, a New York University grad student who is pulled into an alley and bitten by a seductive female vampire (Annabella Sciorra), from which she emerges uncontrollably drawn into a world of violence and insatiable cravings for human blood. Ferrara's irredeemable urban hell landscape is more immediate and frightening than a million Transylvanias and by contrasting Taylor's "addiction" to the horrors of the past (war atrocities, the Holocaust) and present (heroine, AIDS), the film has more bite and impact than any fang-bearing, gore or special effects could even attempt to muster up. Nicolas St. John's intriguing philosophical screenplay and Ken Kelsch's gorgeous black and white photography (creating a world solely of light and dark, which is a key element in the plot), are not to be overlooked either.

Call it pretentious for the philosophy references (Sarte, Nietzche...) if you want, but this highly intelligent and disturbing low-budgeter is one of the most accomplished and well-thought out horror films I've ever seen. Don't let over-hyped, attention hogging Hollywood productions like BRAM STOKER'S Dracula or INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE keep you from seeing it.

"The Addiction" is a weird film directed by Abel Ferrara with wonderful black-and-white cinematography and cast with Lili Taylor, Christopher Walken and Annabella Sciorra among others. However the story is boring and pretentious for those that are not connected to philosophy with reference and citations of many philosophers. Therefore recommended only for very specific audiences. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "O Vício" ("The Addiction")

This movie was even scarier for me since I spent 2/3 of my life in New York City and all the settings were in my family's neighborhood!

The acting was first rate, as was the storyline and cinematography, but all the philosophical dissertations annoyed the HELL out of me because it reminded me of some of the intellectual snobs I went to school with who had lower IQ's than my cat.

Upon reading the previous review, it just occurred to me that all the snobbery made perfect sense.

The character was probably in shock for several weeks. In HER mind, a vampire wouldn't resist his or her impulses they would just become feral. As such, to her, this constant internal dialogue of trying to figure out whether or not her addictions are psychological or supernatural somehow proves her normalcy (at least in her universe).

Christopher Walken was GENIUS and so convincing that I never EVER want to meet him in person! His explanation of his adaptation to his vampirism made it seem so normal (it REALLY felt like he was giving the audience a confession under the guise of acting) that you got the sense that he WASN'T acting!

I have to say that the graduation scene is one of the single most disturbing things that I have ever seen in my life! I saw it coming, but never really acknowledged before seeing this, that horror movies are realistic because all the writers/directors have to do is open up the local newspaper to see what a real monster is!

I haven't seen THE ADDICTION in ten years, but I do recommend it from what I remember. And the list of attractive concepts are, envelope please: Lili Taylor, Christopher Walken, Anabella Sciorra, black and white meta-fictional film, and of course vampires galore! Abel Ferrara has directed other well known movies such as Bad Lieutenant, California, and the Funeral. Of these movies, I mildly recommend the first two but definitely not the third. The Funeral is plain boring and dreary, while the other two entertain by showing the gritty side of human nature.

Caution, if you're the type of vampire fan who must have each actor decked out in fangs and yellow contacts, then steer clear of this movie, since it's really questionable whether the characters in THE ADDICTION are actually vampires or are just plain junkies in nice clothes.

Lastly, there is a very complex philosophical feel to THE ADDICTION, as Lili Taylor muses about life and death in deep conversations in different venues around New York City: a college book store, movie theater, etc. I recommend any philosopher out there to grab THE ADDICTION off the shelves as soon as possible.

Speaking of the mid-90's, that short-lived era was a golden age for indie actors like Lili Taylor and Parker Posey. Taylor got a taste of vampire-hood early on in this movie, and fortunately for us, and for the committee, Posey got her fangs in Blade 3, which I was very happy to see happen. I mean, come on, all those party girls are really vampires at heart.

JY

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