NEWS
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Only Lovers Left Alive: Review
Other | Monday 9th December 2013 | dommill
It’s pretty evident at this point that Jim Jarmusch is a fan of the slightly weird. Whilst he has occasionally over-stepped the bounds of quality in favour of all-out strangeness, the likes of Mystery Train and Broken Flowers prove that when he wants to he can make one hell of a movie. Only Lovers Left Alive, with its brilliantly bizarre take on the lately overegged vampire genre, sees the auteur back at his best.
Tom Hiddlestone and Tilda Swinton respectively play Adam and Eve–both modern day vampires whose burden of immortality has seen them live for centuries. Adam is holed up in downtown Detroit with nothing but his vast collection of vintage instruments for company, whilst Eve shares resides in Morocco with John Hurt’s Shakespeare-despising Christopher Marlowe.
It’s a novel take on a genre that has fallen into disrepair in a post-Twilight world, bringing back the pulpy sensibilities of the old Hammer films with a humorous and self-referential twist. Everything is said or done with a wry smile, and Hiddlestone and Swinton are both in their element, hamming it up without ever stepping on the wrong side of overacting. There are some terrifically clever pieces of comedy, and the sight of Hiddlestone walking around a hospital in full doctor’s scrubs and a massive pair of sunglasses is worth the price of admission alone.
The film is also blessed with some great visuals ticks, the clinical whites and creams of the Moroccan townships contrasted perfectly by the muddied clutter of Hiddlestone’s Detroit homestead. It feels like every set’s been crafted with a minute attention to detail, reflecting the personalities of the various characters and their attempts to cope with a rapidly changing world. The sound design is of an equal quality, with a squalling soundtrack reverberating through stuffy rooms and echoing streets. It’s a thoroughly well-made and intently crafted piece of cinema, made with typical Jarmuschian flare.
There are occasional issues, the script –whilst mostly very strong- occasionally becomes a bit too high-concept for its own good and ends up shoving themes and concepts in the faces of the audience when they should really just be left to lie. On top of that it sometimes feels like the film is trying a little too much to be different, pushing too hard to get a weird idea or clever joke across. But these are minor quibbles with a film that is above all an artfully made piece of fun.
It’s hard to quite hit the nail on the head as exactly to why Only Lovers Left Alive is so enjoyable. It’s a strange mix of comedy and melancholia; a thoroughly different kind of romance and that rarest of cinematic beasts –a true slice of uncorrupted originality. It’s not the best film you’re going to see all year (Don’t get me wrong, it is still very good) but it’s something truly different –and for that it should be cherished.
Dominic Mill
