#notswearwolves

You guys know Paranormal Activity? or The Blair Witch Project? I’m going to assume that you do because its been quite popular in terms of the style of the film.  Today, I wanted to talk about some found footage films that I have gazed upon and maybe share it with you guys. First, What We Do In The Shadows.

Its 6 PM In The Night-Time

"And this is when I wake up," said Viago who is currently 379 years old but looks a lot like a young Taika Waititi. That statement might get you kinda confused cause...What? Let me explain. In 2013, a group of cameramen has been granted access to a highly secretive society. They wore crucifixes and were guaranteed protection by the subjects of the film.

What We Do In The Shadows follows three different centuries of vampires. Viago you already know but we also have Deacon (183 years old) and Vladislav (862 years old). The film follows the daily lives of these three very out of date folks in modern New Zealand. Oh, and there is Petyr who is 8,000 years old.

As the film progresses, we learn more about vampires in general. Their relationships with others like them, their enemies and the other creatures of the dark. We also follow Deacon's a human familiar, Jackie. We learn about their personal histories like Deacon's Nazi Vampire background and Vlad's old name; Vladislav The Poker and his rivalry with The Beast. We also learn about Viago's human crush.

In the second half of the film, we follow a new blood vampire; Nick and his human friend; Stu who got involved in some very interesting antics with this band of the supernatural. Overall, it's a good film about these powerful beings being put into this modern world where the mundane becomes unique and the unique becomes mundane.

There is also a TV show under the same title where it follows four new vampires in modern America but that's a whole other story.

We Decided Not To Eat Stu

Overall, a very good film but what I think is great about What We Do In The Shadows is that the filmmakers know the actual lore about vampires and use it poke fun of how silly they are. The curse of immortality with limitations can be very sad for the core three characters and the fact that they are far more understanding about the mundane human mortality, mainly Stu's is perhaps the most interesting of them all. The characters may be cold-blooded killers but they are also understanding and plain fun.

from a film-making standpoint, it's highly praised for taking the genre and poking it (no, not like Vlad.) to death in a playful way. They reference classics like The Lost Boys, Bram Stoker's Dracula and Interview with the Vampire and also isn't afraid to take jabs and inspirations from Blade, Twilight and Buffy The Vampire Slayer. So, yeah. This film is great!

You're Dead and Out of This World

Final note, What We Do In The Shadows takes the dark supernatural elements and paints them in a very mundane and silly light where the serious tones are done in a "not try too hard" way. It pokes fun of (no, not like Vlad! You idiot!) the classic and modern vampire shows which I think would generate laughs all around for everyone.

Often times we see these shows as dark and gloomy. But in truth, they are just like everyone else who is actively trying to live and find meaning to live in this modern world that no longer believes in supernatural monsters and magic.