QUEEN OF THE DAMNED
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Panavision)
Sound formats: Dolby Digital / DTS / SDDS
At the end of the 20th century, the vampire Lestat (Stuart Townsend) rises from his undead slumber and adopts the guise of a rock star, which draws the attention of a beautiful vampiress (Aaliyah) who wants to conquer the world...
Forsaking the introspective melancholy of its highbrow predecessor (INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE: THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES), this ill-conceived sequel plays like a Gothic MTV fantasy with delusions of grandeur. But what grandeur! Combining elements from two of Anne Rice's celebrated 'Vampire Chronicles' ('The Vampire Lestat' and 'Queen of the Damned'), the narrative is anchored by Townsend's ultra-sexy turn as anti-hero Lestat. Flamboyant without ever seeming camp, he strikes a more dynamic figure than Tom Cruise's foppish blade in the previous film, and it's all too appropriate that he should locate himself within the modern music industry, with its outlandish characters and overzealous visual style (several of Lestat's music videos - inspired by German expressionist cinema of the 1920's - are convincing down to the last detail). However, while most of the songs - co-written by Richard Gibbs and KoRn vocalist Jonathan Davis - encapsulate the spirit of Lestat's heartbroken worldview, their aggressive fatalism will alienate some viewers and date the movie pretty quickly.
As in the original, director Michael Rymer (IN TOO DEEP) downplays the homoerotic undercurrent which forms a significant aspect of Rice's literary style. Nevertheless, the script - written by Scott Abbott (INTRODUCING DOROTHY DANDRIDGE) and Michael Petroni (THE DANGEROUS LIVES OF ALTAR BOYS) - actively celebrates the 'outsider' lifestyle (vampires, Goths, rock fans, members of secret societies, etc.) and tips a knowing wink to the initiated when Lestat exhorts his fellow vampires to: "Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Aaliyah makes the most of her extended cameo as the Queen of the Damned - she even manages to steal some of Townsend's erotic thunder! - and her final sequence includes one of the most visually stunning vampire disintegrations ever captured on film. Sadly, the singer-actress died in a plane crash shortly after completion of principal photography. Also starring Vincent Perez (THE CROW: CITY OF ANGELS) and Lena Olin (ROMEO IS BLEEDING) in secondary roles.
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Panavision)
Sound formats: Dolby Digital / DTS / SDDS
At the end of the 20th century, the vampire Lestat (Stuart Townsend) rises from his undead slumber and adopts the guise of a rock star, which draws the attention of a beautiful vampiress (Aaliyah) who wants to conquer the world...
Forsaking the introspective melancholy of its highbrow predecessor (INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE: THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES), this ill-conceived sequel plays like a Gothic MTV fantasy with delusions of grandeur. But what grandeur! Combining elements from two of Anne Rice's celebrated 'Vampire Chronicles' ('The Vampire Lestat' and 'Queen of the Damned'), the narrative is anchored by Townsend's ultra-sexy turn as anti-hero Lestat. Flamboyant without ever seeming camp, he strikes a more dynamic figure than Tom Cruise's foppish blade in the previous film, and it's all too appropriate that he should locate himself within the modern music industry, with its outlandish characters and overzealous visual style (several of Lestat's music videos - inspired by German expressionist cinema of the 1920's - are convincing down to the last detail). However, while most of the songs - co-written by Richard Gibbs and KoRn vocalist Jonathan Davis - encapsulate the spirit of Lestat's heartbroken worldview, their aggressive fatalism will alienate some viewers and date the movie pretty quickly.
As in the original, director Michael Rymer (IN TOO DEEP) downplays the homoerotic undercurrent which forms a significant aspect of Rice's literary style. Nevertheless, the script - written by Scott Abbott (INTRODUCING DOROTHY DANDRIDGE) and Michael Petroni (THE DANGEROUS LIVES OF ALTAR BOYS) - actively celebrates the 'outsider' lifestyle (vampires, Goths, rock fans, members of secret societies, etc.) and tips a knowing wink to the initiated when Lestat exhorts his fellow vampires to: "Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Aaliyah makes the most of her extended cameo as the Queen of the Damned - she even manages to steal some of Townsend's erotic thunder! - and her final sequence includes one of the most visually stunning vampire disintegrations ever captured on film. Sadly, the singer-actress died in a plane crash shortly after completion of principal photography. Also starring Vincent Perez (THE CROW: CITY OF ANGELS) and Lena Olin (ROMEO IS BLEEDING) in secondary roles.