I saw this film at Sitges International Film Festival and was pleasantly surprised. This film reminded me of earlier horror classics like Carnival of Souls and especially of contemporary European auteur cinema. This is a different kind of horror film, not a typical vampire horror movie with loud bangs and cheap tricks what we have been used to seeing in recent years.
Vampir takes place in modern times in rural Serbia. We follow the protagonist as he arrives from London to this place and is confronted by local habits, traditions and superstitions.
Tomovic does a great job by telling the story by staying close to the character and showing everything subjectively through the main character's eyes. The lack of subtitles for the Serbian dialogue spoken by the locals enhances the paranoia and fear. The film is very creepy and atmospheric, cinematography and sound design go hand in hand in creating this beautiful yet very haunting picture. The acting throughout is superb as it's very authentic, subtle and naturalistic.
Tomovic as a writer/director succeeds in creating a very Kafkaesque story that has a much deeper meaning than an ordinary vampire movie. It is full of metaphors and has themes of returning as an immigrant child to your ancestor's country and belonging.
