Vampire's Kiss
Encyclopedia
- Not to be confused with the SNES remake Castlevania: Rondo of BloodCastlevania: Rondo of BloodCastlevania: Rondo of Blood, known in Japan as is a platform video game developed by Konami for the PC Engine. The tenth installment of the Castlevania video game series and a 2D side-scroller, it acts as a middleground between the earlier, typically linear Castlevania games and the later...
, which has this as a subtitle in Europe and Oceania.
Vampire's Kiss is a 1989 American dark comedy/psychological horror
Psychological horror
Psychological horror is a subgenre of horror fiction that relies on character fears, guilt, beliefs, eerie sound effects, relevant music and emotional instability to build tension and further the plot...
film. It was written by Joseph Minion
Joseph Minion
Joseph Minion is an American film director and screenwriter, best known for Martin Scorsese's After Hours .Born in New Jersey in 1957, Minion briefly attended NYU Film School before finishing his studies at Columbia University, then renowned for its screenwriting program...
, who also penned Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's darkly humorous After Hours
After Hours (film)
After Hours is a 1985 American black comedy film, written by Joseph Minion and directed by Martin Scorsese. Paul Hackett , a New Yorker, experiences a series of adventures and perils in trying to make his way home from SoHo.-Plot:...
, and stars actors Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...
, María Conchita Alonso
Maria Conchita Alonso
María Conchita Alonso , better known as María Conchita, is a Venezuelan Grammy Award-nominated singer and actress.- Early life :...
, Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals is an American actress and a former teen model. She is known for her roles as Alexandra "Alex" Owens in the 1983 film Flashdance, and as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word. She earned an NAACP Image Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination for the former...
and Elizabeth Ashley
Elizabeth Ashley
Elizabeth Ashley is an American actress who first came to prominence as the ingenue in the Broadway play Take Her, She's Mine, which earned her a Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Play.-Early life:...
.
Plot summary
Vampire's Kiss is the story of Peter Loew (Nicolas Cage), a driven yuppieYuppie
Yuppie is a term that refers to a member of the upper middle class or upper class in their 20s or 30s. It first came into use in the early-1980s and largely faded from American popular culture in the late-1980s, due to the 1987 stock market crash and the early 1990s recession...
literary agent
Literary agent
A literary agent is an agent who represents writers and their written works to publishers, theatrical producers and film producers and assists in the sale and deal negotiation of the same. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwriters and major non-fiction writers...
, who is slowly and inexorably going insane
Insanity
Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations of societal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves and others, though not all such acts are considered insanity...
.
Loew plays the consummate businessman by day, and club hops
Pub crawl
A pub crawl is the act of one or more people drinking in multiple pubs or bars in a single night, normally walking or busing to each one between drinking.-Origin of the term:...
by night, with little in his life of any importance but one night stand
One Night Stand
One Night Stand is an HBO stand-up series that first aired on February 15, 1989. The half-hour series aired weekly and featured stand-up comedy specials from some of the top performing comedians. The series originally comprised 55 specials over the course of its four years on HBO...
s and the pursuit of money and prestige.
As the film opens, Loew tells his therapist (Ashley), whom he sees frequently, about his latest sexual conquest. During these sessions at the psychiatrist
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
's office, the viewer is first introduced to Loew's declining mental health
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
through a series of increasingly bizarre rants that eventually begin to scare even his psychiatrist.
Early in the film, Loew meets Rachel (Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals is an American actress and a former teen model. She is known for her roles as Alexandra "Alex" Owens in the 1983 film Flashdance, and as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word. She earned an NAACP Image Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination for the former...
) at a night club, and takes her home. It is never made clear whether the entire encounter with Rachel is real or solely a figment of Loew's deranged mind, but she pins him down, reveals vampiric fangs, and feeds on him. At home, Loew's fits of rage gradually reduce his apartment
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...
to shambles. Throughout the movie the apartment's decline mirrors
Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing or adumbrating is a literary device in which an author indistinctly suggests certain plot developments that might come later in the story.-Repetitive designation and Chekhov's gun:...
the protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
's own increasingly chaotic mental state. In one scene, perhaps the film's most infamous, Loew catches and eats a cockroach
Cockroach
Cockroaches are insects of the order Blattaria or Blattodea, of which about 30 species out of 4,500 total are associated with human habitations...
in his apartment. Soon thererafter, Loew begins to believe that he is changing into a vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
. He stares into a bathroom mirror and fails to see his reflection; he wears dark sunglasses during the day; and, when his "fangs" fail to develop, he purchases a pair of cheap plastic vampire teeth and uses them to attack a woman at a nightclub. All the while, his sexy vampire girlfriend, Rachel (possibly) visits him nightly to feed on his blood.
A subplot concerns a secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
working at Loew's office, Alva Restrepo (María Conchita Alonso). Loew torments her by forcing her to search through an enormous file for a 1963 contract. When she fails to find the contract, he at first browbeats and humiliates her, then visits her home when she calls in sick to avoid him, and finally attacks and attempts to rape her. The movie spends some time showing a small slice of the lives of the working poor
Working poor
- Definition in the United States :There are several popular definitions of "working poor" in the United States. According to the US Department of Labor, the working poor "are persons who spent at least 27 weeks [in the past year] in the labor force , but whose incomes fell below the official...
immigrant through Alva's character.
Towards the finale of the movie, Loew has a brief, ambiguous encounter with Rachel in a dance club: she admits to knowing him, but gives the impression they've not been in contact for a long period. He accuses her of being a vampire, and is expelled from the club. By the film's conclusion, Loew is so far gone he is one of New York City's walking crazies; wandering the streets in a blood-spattered business suit, talking to himself, and using his now disastrous apartment as a vampire's cave where he hides from the sun by crawling under an upturned sofa. Loew may have murdered someone the night before, and he may have raped his secretary. However, he mentions both "achievements" to his therapist, who is not really present, in a hallucinatory exchange. Loew has by this time become so deranged that it's difficult for the viewer to separate fantasy from reality. Alva, however, also believes she's been raped, and the film ends with Loew's fitting yet curiously pitiful death at the hands of Alva's brother.
Critical reception
Critical responses have been mixed, but mostly positive, with a 68% "fresh" rating on RottenTomatoes.com, with many critics praising Cage's unhinged performance.Allusions
- Loew's fireplace, with a small clock placed on top, is reminiscent of the one in René MagritteRené MagritteRené François Ghislain Magritte[p] was a Belgian surrealist artist. He became well known for a number of witty and thought-provoking images...
's painting La Durée Poignardée or Time TransfixedTime TransfixedTime Transfixed is an oil on canvas painting by the Belgian surrealist René Magritte. It is part of the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago and is usually on display in the museum's new Modern Wing, though currently it is on loan to the Tate Liverpool as part of their Magritte...
.
- The band Say Hi To Your MomSay Hi To Your MomSay Hi is a Seattle-based indie rock band. Formed by Eric Elbogen in Brooklyn 2002, Say Hi's albums are mostly recorded at Elbogen's home, with him playing all of the instruments and providing vocals.-Background information:...
referenced the movie in their song "Poor Pete is A Bit Self-Conscious" on the album Ferocious Mopes.
- The band in the opening scene is ESGESG (band)ESG are a band that emerged from the South Bronx, New York, U.S. in the early 1980's. Trouser Press called it "one of the most dynamic bands that New York could offer at the top of the '80s." ESG have been influential across a wide range of musical genres, including hip hop, post punk, disco,...
. All of the individual band members appear in the cast list as "Band Member", except for Leroy Glover, who failed to sign a release form on the day of the shoot.
Cast
- Nicolas CageNicolas CageNicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...
as Peter Loew - María Conchita AlonsoMaria Conchita AlonsoMaría Conchita Alonso , better known as María Conchita, is a Venezuelan Grammy Award-nominated singer and actress.- Early life :...
as Alva Restrepo - Jennifer BealsJennifer BealsJennifer Beals is an American actress and a former teen model. She is known for her roles as Alexandra "Alex" Owens in the 1983 film Flashdance, and as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word. She earned an NAACP Image Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination for the former...
as Rachel - Elizabeth Ashley as Dr. Glaser
- Kasi LemmonsKasi LemmonsKasi Lemmons is an American film director and actress, most notable for her work on the films Eve's Bayou, The Caveman's Valentine and Talk to Me....
as Jackie - Bob Lujan as Emilio
- Jessica Lundy as Sharon
- Johnny Walker as Donald
- Boris Leskin as Fantasy Cabbie
- Michael Knowles as Andrew
- John Michael HigginsJohn Michael HigginsJohn Michael Higgins is an American actor whose film credits include Christopher Guest's mockumentaries, the role of David Letterman in HBO's The Late Shift, and a starring role in the American version of Kath & Kim....
as Ed - Jodie Markell as Joke Girl
- Marc CoppolaMarc CoppolaMarc A. Coppola is a resident of the Town of Tonawanda, New York and a former member of the New York State Assembly, where he represented the New York 60th Senate district which includes parts of the Cities of Buffalo and Tonawanda, the City of Niagara Falls and the Town of Grand Island.Coppola...
as Joke Guy - David Hyde PierceDavid Hyde PierceDavid Hyde Pierce is an American actor and comedian best known for playing psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom Frasier, for which he received many accolades including four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.-Early life:Pierce, the youngest of four siblings,...
as Theater Guy (as David Pierce) - Amy StillerAmy StillerAmy Stiller is an American actress. She is a stand up comedian, in New York City, and also a Bikram Yoga instructor.She was born in New York City, New York, the daughter of the comedy duo Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara , and the older sister of actor Ben Stiller.-Filmography:* Lovers and Other...
as Theater Girl - Helen Lloyd Breed as Secretary in Ladies Room
- Sol Echeverría as Alva's Mother
- Jill Gatsby as Victim Girl
- Rex Robbins as Sidney Langdon
- Robert Dorfman as Editor #3
- William De Acutis as Editor #2
- David HolbrookDavid HolbrookDavid Kenneth Holbrook was a British writer, poet and academic. From 1989 he was an Emeritus Fellow of Downing College, Cambridge.-Life:...
as Editor #1 - Yanni Sfinias as Cursing Cabbie (as Yanni Sfinnias)
- Rogerio Triandade as Dr. Glazer's Lover
- Robyn Knoll as Friday Secretary
- Jorgen Schiott as Coffin Bystander
- Christopher Sluka as Hanger Out
- Stephen Chen as Fang Vendor
- Jennifer Butt as Marriage Girl #2
- Jennifer Spinner as Marriage Girl #1
- Paul Sansone as Waiter
- Cheryl Henry as Judy
- Herschel Rosen as Man in Diner
- Phil Ballou as Black Crooner
- Reggie Rock BythewoodReggie Rock BythewoodReggie Rock Bythewood in The Bronx, New York City, New York, is a film director, writer, actor and producer. His credits include serving as the writer for Spike Lee's Get on the Bus, the writer/director for Biker Boyz starring Derek Luke and Laurence Fishburne, and the writer/director/producer for...
as Church Bystander (scenes deleted) - Mark Oates as Apache Dancer
- John Epperson as Apache Dancer
- Jerry Rector as Larry
- Pamela Dean Kelly as Bar Girl
- Jonathon Gentry as Boy
- Renee Scroggins as Band Member
- Helen Scroggins as Band Member
- Valerie Jean Scroggins as Band Member
- David Miles as Band Member
- Jacques Sandulescu as Ukrainian (as Jacques Sandlescu)
- Scott Pastore as Bouncer (uncredited)
- Debbie RochonDebbie RochonDebbie Rochon is a Canadian B-movie actress and former stage performer, best known for her work in Troma films.-Biography:...
as Bar Girl #2 (uncredited)