The Addiction

One sentence can dismiss The Addiction as a failed experiment. The effort to look at the vampire theme differently and utilize creative approaches typical for the alternative and independent scene is in itself sympathetic (and, to a considerable extent, I think it contributes to a fairly decent evaluation). The fact that the creators evidently do not understand or ignore the laws of the horror genre is also not a problem. From my point of view, the film actually has only one, albeit fundamental, drawback - practically nothing works in it and it doesn't make sense. The whole thing resembles a hallucination of a philosophy student after consuming heavy drugs the evening before a difficult exam. The dialogue, in the context of the action in front of the camera, would say nothing even to a university professor and would lead an ordinary viewer far beyond the threshold of despair. The behavior of the characters is bizarre, the plot is non-existent, and the actors have nothing to do, partly because they don't even know how... this is especially painful for the talented Lili Taylor, who naturally gets the most space, but doesn't have any way to use it. The script doesn't bother with integrating vampires into the real world, or how they can survive and hide their nature without being noticeable. If vampirism spread at the same speed as Kathleen spreads the infection around her, the entire population would turn into vampires within a few weeks. Walken's abstaining vampire character appears without making sense and equally senselessly disappears shortly after... An awkward trip for festival or club audiences. Overall impression: 10% for the interesting cinematography and decent music. (08/24/2009)