Wednesday 9 June 2010

Vampyr

The Dreyer classic (1931), which isn't silent but does make a great use of cue cards. It is rarely a scary film, it is an odd, dreamy film that has an atmosphere of its own.
The uses of shadows and of uncertainty just creates an atmosphere that is downright odd. As does the blankness and sneering, fat, wide lips of our 'hero', the man always referred to as 'Allan Gray'. It is difficult to tell what is going on. He wanders about, meets people. Who is a vampire and who is not remains uncertain. What a vampire is remains uncertain.
This all does get a little bit samey, and it is easy to lose concentration as the lights and interiors rather fade into one. A few images do resonate, as they are repeated. The disembodied shadows, the complete looks of blankness each character gives to one another. As the plot gallops on who is who and what is what turns the whole thing into someone elses dream, where parts are skipped out and things might reverse back where they were at any moment.
Not a particularly satisfying viewing experience, but probably just about worth the trouble.

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