So, what name was on eeevverrryyybooodddyyy’s lips this fall after Thor: Ragnarok came out? Taika Waititi. The New Zealander who wrote and directed it…
Well, the first thing I did after watching that movie was look him up, and the FIRST thing that came up once I did was this film I’d never heard of: What We Do In The Shadows. And once I’d checked out Shadows, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t heard of it. Jemaine from Flight of the Conchords?! A mockumentary about vampires living in New Zealand, just trying to get through life like normal people? Hell yes!
It didn’t disappoint, guys. Read on.
THE BLURB:
Vampire housemates (Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Jonathan Brugh) try to cope with the complexities of modern life and show a newly turned hipster (Cori Gonzalez-Macuer) some of the perks of being undead.
WHAT WORKED:
Good lord. Pretty much everything. Jemaine, of course, was a major draw for me. I’ve loved everything I’ve seen him in, from singing crab in Moana, to the oddball comedy Eagle vs Shark. But, wow…it was actually the other two actors in Taika Waititi and Jonathan Brugh that stole the movie for me, along with Cori Gonzalez-Macuer as the younger, newcomer vampire. Taika Waititi was especially incredible as the most self-conscious, sweet, and inpet one of the trio, and I mean he was really, really, REALLY funny and subtle, and charming, and goofy and just overall fucking perfect. In a cast and a premise that all excelled, he really stood out.
I was worried, honestly, that the premise was only going to be as thick as the opening gags, which were “morning” in a vampire house as Taika walks around waking everyone up now that the sun has gone down, and then they all assemble in the kitchen for a flat-mates meeting because Jonathan Brugh hasn’t been doing his share of the dishes. But there is so, sooo much more. Every time I was worried they’d run out of ideas, there was some other everyday-life-turned-funny-because-they’re-vampires plot thread for them to pull out to its logical conclusion. Seriously. They pushed it for 90 minutes and it never got stale.
The MUSIC was faasssccinating. It sounded to me like gypsy music, but whatever its actual origins, it was frenetic, old-world sounding, and whimsical all at once.
The art direction was rather incredible given that it was obviously made for very, very little money. It was Wes Anderson on a budget, and I don’t mean that in a negative sense in any way; it lent a very charming, very light feeling to the entire movie, despite it actually being DARK lightwise for the entire movie…because, duh…they’re vampires.
I seriously freaking LOVED all the wire work they did. Every freaking chance they got to get themselves up off the ground, because you know, damnit, vampires can FLY, they did it. I’d have done the same thing if I were making the movie. It was hilarious. They also had some neat, low-budget film visual effects that were fun, like having them turn into and out of bats, and some fun make-up for a pack of werewolves (led by Rhys Darby who, oh my god, is the funniest fucking man alive…”we’re werewolves not swearwolves”).
They all had accents, and they were amazing and hilarious. I loved that they chose for each of their characters to have come from the old world. That carried over into their clothes and fashion sense, which was delightfully old and off (they can’t see themselves in mirrors, after all, so we explore how they handle that obstacle to ‘going out’).
It was pitch perfect. Especially Taika. Dude’s a star.
WHAT DIDN’T WORK:
The singular gripe that I had with the movie was that the reveal of Jemaine’s nemesis who, until its reveal, is referred to simply as “The Beast.” It sounds awesome, right? They did a fantastic job building anticipation meeting this person or thing…but in the end, it was a little bit of a let-down. I won’t spoil it, because it’s still fun and funny, but not quite what I’d been hoping for, especially given the images they use to build anticipation.
But, damn…that’s about it. Even Peter, the 8,000 year old vampire that just hangs out in their basement was hilarious.
Both the Ho and I really, really enjoyed watching this movie. It’s that offbeat humor that’s not one conventional sharp-witted joke after another, but much rather like the more understated pace of The Office, but with the silliness of Reno: 911 instead of Gervais’ scathing and uncomfortable sensibilities. It’s silly, ridiculous, sweet, and very, very smart. SO smart. That ‘vampires don’t have a reflection, so how do they get ready for a night out on the town?’ thought process is only one tiny, tiny example of the razor sharp wit of Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement, who penned the script. It was directly up my alley in terms of the kind of humor I love…and in this case, I think it’s funny enough that kind of humor doesn’t even HAVE to be your kind of humor…I think everyone will find something to laugh at in this charming fucking movie.
8/10 – watch it ASAP. It’s currently free on Amazon Prime.