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ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE pulls no punches with its audience; it expects us to take note of the literary references peppering the script, to figures old and new, making us away of the transhistoricity of the love-affair between Adam (Tom Hiddleston) and Eve (Tilda Swinton). In a world becoming increasingly disheveled and uninhabitable - the shots of a desolate Detroit are especially affecting - their love remains the only constant. However director Jim Jarmusch suggests that they need an outside transfusion of perfect blood to keep their affair going, something that can only be provided through a few sources, notably through Christopher Marlowe (John Hurt), who lives in a dark, dingy café in Tangier (another place deliberately chosen by director Jarmusch as the symbol of a place where trade and/or exchange has historically always occurred). When the blood runs out, so Adam and Eve have to resort to more direct methods of sustaining themselves. The ambiances evoked through this film are memorable; the zombie culture populated by Adam and Ava (Mia Wasikowska), the labyrinthine streets of Tangier, where sellers on every corner offer "something special" - which is not special enough for Adam and Eve. Within this ambiance the love-story is strangely haunting: we care for the two protagonists and their future, even though we are aware that their affair has continues for centuries. The film doesn't necessarily offer an optimistic conclusion, but at least it suggests that Adam and Eve will continue stay alive, at whatever cost.

Yes, Only Lovers Left Alive is another vampire movie. Yes, the characters are very pale and old and romantic. Yes, it is very much full of clichés and stereotypes. However, it is also wickedly smart, beautifully shot, filled to the brim with talent and full of cultural witticisms.

Tom Hiddleston is Adam, Tilda Swinton is Eve and Jim Jarmusch is a genius. This is a director that tells us all we need to know without doubting our intelligence. He allows us to fall into the depths of the film without worrying about a perfectly neat beginning, middle and end. He even stops his characters from following tedious and predictable patterns, because after all, they're too old for that.

This is a movie for film lovers and pop culture enthusiasts. It is a vampire film that takes advantage of its time span; cultural references dating back hundreds of years can be found at every corner. Only Lovers Left Alive does not focus on blood and gore, it is not a thriller nor a horror, it doesn't even truly focus on the world of vampires. Instead, Jarmusch studies the eternal, he explores the quiet, perhaps boring, every day life of a modern, intelligent and ancient being who has, quite literally, seen it all.

• Sinann Fetherston.

You can find a full review at MoviefiedNYC.

One knows that a Jim Jarmusch movie about vampires is not going to be like any other vampire film. In fact it would be unkind to class this as a vampire movie. Only Lovers Left Alive is a highly stylized and atmospheric film bemoaning the passing of the great rock n roll and Hippy era. Here we have a vampire couple (Swinton & Hiddleston - both excellent and perfectly cast) living an isolated life in an abandoned house in Detroit, USA. Hiddleston used to be a famous rock n roll artist who has become a recluse collecting old guitars and records. They survive by purchasing blood samples from a corrupt doctor. We also have one of their old vampire friends (John Hurt) living in Tangiers where the blood is specially pure. Things take an unexpected turn when Swinton's mischievous sister (Mia Wasikowska) visits them. Only Lovers Left Alive has cult film written all over it. The music is great too and blends perfectly with the atmosphere. Essential for Jarmusch fans and recommended to others too!

In a world of vampires, Adam (Tom Hiddleston) is a reclusive musician with a helper Ian (Anton Yelchin). Eve (Tilda Swinton) finds old friend Christopher Marlowe (John Hurt). Eve reconnects with Adam. They are both evolved beyond their bloodlust. They roam the deserted streets of Detroit. However they are interrupted by her wild little sister Ava (Mia Wasikowska).

It's an interesting take on the vampires. It's certainly a nice break from all the young adult vampire fares. It's got Jim Jarmusch's style of a slow deliberate indie. Tilda makes a great vampire. Tom Hiddleston fits quite nicely with Tilda. This is not a big studio churning out another vampire movie. It's moody. It has a few funny touches. It's outside the box. Mia doesn't come in until after halfway through the movie. The first half has this dreamy ethereal quality about it. I'm not sure Mia is good at playing the wild child. She is very much playing a spoiled child but she needs to be more dangerous. The movie needs to see her violence. Maybe Jarmusch thinks that actual violence would conflict with the tone of the movie. I just felt that could have been better.

This has been heralded as a return to form for Jarmusch but, frankly, I liked his last two films a lot better. The big problem here is that there is absolutely nothing left to say about Vampires. Jarmusch just uses the genre to create a gorgeous mood piece, but it's hard to deny the fact that we've seen it all before. Really, the plot here is almost identical to Xan Cassavetes' 2012 film Kiss of the Damned. Much like that film, Only Lovers Left Alive tries to spice of the genre with artiness, and it succeeds (as did Kiss of the Damned) up to a point. Really, Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston are so engaging the film comes off pretty good. Swinton's awesome hairdo alone makes the film worth watching. I am a little perturbed that Jarmusch glamorizes heroin chic in this film - the vampires are very rock-star like and, when they drink blood, it's depicted very much like heroin use. And it's depicted quite romantically. Tom Hiddleston's music even sounds like The Velvet Underground (I found it hilarious when characters tell him how brilliant his work is). The film co-stars John Hurt, Anton Yelchin, Mia Wasikowska and Jeffrey Wright. Wright's scenes with Hiddleston are by far the highlight of the film.