The Queen of the Damned

"Good"

The Queen of the Damned Review


Most horror movies are all flash, action, and plenty of screaming. The Queen of the Damned is no exception to the rule, despite attempts to become something more, but it still manages to deliver a fair bit of vampire fun.

The Queen of the Damned stars Stuart Townsend as the vampire Lestat, a character first made popular in film by Tom Cruise in the engaging Interview With the Vampire. This time around, Lestat has risen from his slumber again, intent on making his mark. Tired of hiding in shadows, he starts a career as a rock star, much to the ire of his maker Marius (Vincent Perez). But the anger of the world's vampire covens is the least of his problems when his music awakens the mother of all Vampires, the all-powerful Queen Akasha (Aaliyah).

While it is true that both Interview With the Vampire and Queen of the Damned are based on Anne Rice's series of popular novels, they really share little else in common. Interview is a thoughtful and intelligent film, punctuated with terror and violence. Queen of the Damned is only a step above your typical horror flick. Its characters are frequently one-dimensional, lacking the sense of power and charisma that Rice's vampires so richly deserve.

Townsend however, is quite capable in his role as the engaging Lestat. He is wholly unable to match the electricity and life that Cruise originally brought to the character, but he does a great job of pumping out a "produced on a budget" second best. Townsend oozes disturbing sexuality, his lines delivered with the lust of Shakespeare and the darkness of Poe. His nipples too perform wonderfully, under the most difficult of circumstances. Normally, the performance of a man's chest is not worth comment, but Townsend goes through so much trouble to continually display them, it's almost impossible not to notice.

Marius too, played by Vincent Perez, really brings life to the screen, though with an admittedly limited performance. Though his motives are frequently puzzling and poorly explained, Marius is instantly likable, perhaps even more so than Lestat. The movie might have been better served had he been used as some sort of wickedly intentioned protagonist, yet Marius himself is well defined.

The film aims for rich styling and dark hearted violence. At times, Queen of the Damned reaches out for something deeper in the heart of Lestat and almost catapults itself to a higher status, but it inevitably gets lost in the gore of the Hollywood vampire world. Sadly, this is most obvious in the case of the film's weakest link, the Queen of the Damned herself. Forget for a moment that the character is little more than an afterthought in a film that could have and should have been about Lestat's redemption. Instead consider the work of Aaliyah herself. She was undoubtedly a talented and beautiful artist, with a lot to give the world. Few have had anything to say about her that wasn't filled with lavish praise. Yet, the truth is: She's not exactly an actress. It may not feel good to say it, but Akasha is just a prop, sent in to set things on fire and give the vampires something to do. Aaliyah adds no substance to her character with her performance, though clearly her heart was in it.

Visually, Damned is solid, if not particularly inspiring. The vampires tend to move in a slightly annoying manner, but clearly when it came to effects, budget crunching was in play. Several of the fight scenes are well done and enjoyable, and while there is little to point out as a specific fault, I doubt this Anne Rice outing will exactly wow audiences with mind blowing effects.

Anne Rice obsessives will probably eat up the DVD, with tons of extra footage (how many scenes did they delete anyway?), commentary track, and the obvious documentaries. The good news is that the even more obvious "Aaliyah remembered" short is no more offensive than the utterly bizarre gag reel.

Damned if ya do...



Facts and Figures

Box Office Worldwide: $45.5M

Production compaines: Village Roadshow Pictures, NPV Entertainment, Warner Bros Pictures

Reviews

Contactmusic.com: 3 / 5

Cast & Crew

Director:

Producer:

Starring: as Akasha, as Lestat de Lioncourt, as Jessica ‚Jesse‘ Reeves, as Marius de Romanus, as Maharet, as Pandora

Contactmusic


Links


New Movies

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

After the thunderous reception for J.J. Abrams' Episode VII: The Force Awakens two years ago,...

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Like the 2015 original, this comedy plays merrily with cliches to tell a silly story...

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

There's a somewhat contrived jauntiness to this blending of fact and fiction that may leave...

Ferdinand Movie Review

Ferdinand Movie Review

This animated comedy adventure is based on the beloved children's book, which was published in...

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Director Dave McCary makes a superb feature debut with this offbeat black comedy, which explores...

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

A dramatisation of the real-life clash between tennis icons Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs,...

Shot Caller Movie Review

Shot Caller Movie Review

There isn't much subtlety to this prison thriller, but it's edgy enough to hold the...

Advertisement
The Disaster Artist Movie Review

The Disaster Artist Movie Review

A hilariously outrageous story based on real events, this film recounts the making of the...

Stronger Movie Review

Stronger Movie Review

Based on a true story about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, this looks like one...

Only the Brave Movie Review

Only the Brave Movie Review

Based on a genuinely moving true story, this film undercuts the realism by pushing its...

Wonder Movie Review

Wonder Movie Review

This film may be based on RJ Palacio's fictional bestseller, but it approaches its story...

Happy End  Movie Review

Happy End Movie Review

Austrian auteur Michael Haneke isn't known for his light touch, but rather for hard-hitting, award-winning...

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Seemingly from out of nowhere, this film generates perhaps the biggest smile of any movie...

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

A Victorian thriller with rather heavy echoes of Jack the Ripper, this film struggles to...

Advertisement
Artists
Actors
    Filmmakers
      Artists
      Bands
        Musicians
          Artists
          Celebrities
             
              Artists
              Interviews