Eternal

I had the pleasure to attend the screening of Eternal during the Fantasia Film Festival, in Montreal. I had been reading bits and pieces in Fangoria and the Dvdvampire.com about the production of this film and, I have to admit, I was expecting another run-of-the-mill, B vamp-flick. Vampire films have come to be quite predictable and it is more and more difficult to find an original offering. We either get a slam-bang SFX extravaganza, a la Blade or Underworld, or we get a period piece, a la Dracula.

I found Eternal to be so unique, that I have a hard time calling it a vampire film or even defining its genre. But this is one damn'd sexy thriller! It has been a long time since anything related with vampirism turned me on, kept me on the edge of my seat and even legitimately scared me a couple of times (although this is certainly not a horror film). It has even been longer since I got to see a serious erotic thriller, with a seductive serial killer thrown in as a bonus.

Elizabeth Kane, played by Canadian actress Caroline Neron can rip my throat any time. So can her lovely assistant, Irina, played by the dark and sensual Victoria Sanchez. Conrad Pla, as the twisted detective Ray Pope, is riveting in his portrayal of a bad seed with morbid hidden sexual desires. Not an easy or typical role.

Because of its original take on the genre, I have no idea what mainstream media will say about Eternal when it hits the screens, but, take it from me and the crowd at Fantasia: This is one thriller you don't want to miss!

It's a disappointing and clichéd movie that uses the name of Elisabeth Bathory to call attention, but completely fails about the true historic essence of that sadistic woman which lived in Royal Hungary in the beginning of the XVII century.

Of course that when I decided to watch this movie I wasn't expecting a documentary or even a historic movie about Elisabeth Bathory, even because it's set in present times, but I wasn't expecting such lame pseudo-detective plot either! Elisabeth Bathory is not "Catherine Tramell" from BASIC INSTINCT! But at many parts of the movie I thought I was watching some cheap imitation of BASIC INSTINCT instead of some story related to the Bathory legend! Another lousy imitation is done from the movie EYES WIDE SHUT, when in this fantastic film occurs the weird/bizarre party. ETERNAL cheaply imitates that too!

This film is really just a mixing of other movies' imitations, distrustful description of Elisabeth Bathory's tale, bad acting and, to culminate, the "great" plot of some 80's bad Hollywood cop action movie! Even the supposed erotic scenes were disappointing!

The premise of creating a story related to a "21th century's Elisabeth Bathory" was quite good, and it was what called my attention, but the way this movie was done was truly bad! If you want to watch a better movie related to Elizabeth Bathory myth, search for Walerian Borowczyk's CONTES IMMORAUX (1974). At least this one is more accurate!

Sometimes you tend to say you like films because they're entertaining. Doesn't mean they're good. But you liked them. This one falls under that category. Entertaining, but not "good".

Canadian horror movies are rare. Quebec horror movies are even rarer. Vampire movies though, are common. So is this common or new? New in Quebec, old elsewhere, perhaps.

Dracula's a woman. A sexy woman. She's a lesbian. She doesn't seem to have any special powers other than being sexy. Guys fall for her, girls can't resist her and she likes her dog(?!).

I have to say it was elegantly filmed, the locations were very beautiful, the acting is good, but the characters are hard to believe. The policeman, Ray, is cliché after cliché.

It is not scary, it is not new, but i've been turned on since the beginning. So i guess it works...

I saw the movie at the fantasia film festival. It was an astonishing display of imagery and it explored the far corners of sensuality.

Though the story takes place in the present, it does not distort the integrity bathory's history. Consequently eternal demonstrates a sophisticated, distinct, and emotionally involving twist.

If there are any movies i can compare this to, I would have to say, basic instinct and silence of the Lambs (suspense); Eyes wide shut (imagery).

Appartently this is the first of a trilogy and now I am hooked for the second installment.

So this may not be the best acted movie, the storyline is a bit weak, and the flow can be disjointed at times, but I still really enjoyed watching this movie. It it's beautifully filmed, atmospheric, creepy, suspenseful and the character Elizabeth Kane is great. She is believable. Other characters, a little less so. It's well worth watching.

Again, don't expect an Oscar-worthy movie but this is far better than it's current general rating of 4.8. For a horror/suspense/vampire movie, this is a solid 6 - better than average. And the beautiful scenes and creepy atmosphere are among it's best attributes.