Release Date: February 13, 2015 | DVD Release Date: July 21, 2015
The Movie, What We Do in the Shadows (2014) is a Mockumentary following four vampires who share a flat in Wellington, New Zealand. Three-hundred-seventy-nine-year-old Viago (Taika Watiti), 862-year-old Vladislav (Flight of the Concords actor, Jermaine Clement), 183-year-old Deacon (Jonathan Brugh) and the feral, basement dwelling, 8,000-year-old Petyr (Ben Fransham) are roommates and friends. Unable to go out during daylight hours, they have Deacon’s servant, Jackie (Jackie Van Beek), to run errands for them and in return, they’ve promised to turn her. To her dismay, they’ve delayed keeping their promise and when she brings her ex-boyfriend, Nick (Cori Gonzalez-Macuer), as food for her vampire friends, he’s actually turned in a mishap with Petyr. When Nick is accepted into their fold, he brings his friend Stu (Stu Rutherford), a computer professional who turns the housebound ghouls on to the internet and their vast world made a little smaller. What ensues is a battle with werewolves, a supernatural masquerade ball and adjustment to modern life.
What We Do in the Shadows is a work of horror genre genius. The brilliant script is wonderfully acted without any hint of irony on the part of its cast. The house meeting about chores led by the uptight Viago is perhaps the funniest thing I’ve seen on screen in a long time. Anton’s (Flight of the Concords actor, Rhys Darby) somewhat West-Side Storyish leadership of the werewolves is inspired. “We’re werewolves, not swearwolves,” he admonishes his followers when they get a little too excited to be facing off with the vampires.
Jeremie Clement is undoubtedly the star of the piece. There’s a focus on his hesitance to once again face his greatest enemy, “The Beast” (which doesn’t turn out as one might think). Vladislav is the most powerful of the vampiric quartet. While each fits a particular pop culture subgenre of vampire films, where Petyr is Nosferatu, Vladislav is one of the smoother, sex-obsessed archetypes. None of the vampires are fully homogenized by the documentary crew, there is still death and conflict. The film sets a scene of men who know each other too well, so when Nick and his friend Stu are thrown into the mix, they are fish-out-of-water with the wonder of children.
The trailers for What We Do in the Shadows don’t do this work of brilliance justice. Do not let this Halloween season pass without picking up this masterfully funny film. If you, like me, adore the films of Christopher Guest and Monty Python, you will not be disappointed.
What We Do in the Shadows is available as a DVD, Blu-ray and on Amazon Instant Video
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| Title | What We Do in the Shadow |
|---|---|
| Director | Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi |
| Actors | Stuart Rutherford, Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement, Jonny Brugh, Ben Fransham |
| Length | 1 hour and 25 minutes |
| Rating | R |
| DVD Release | July 21, 2015 |