We Are the Night

Vampire films are ten a penny these days. But it's not all the same old crap over and over again. With vampire films, I think you just need to find the right balance between emotional moments that humanise these monsters, and those awesome cool moments. We Are The Night does pretty well in both departments, even if it is in favour of action. The first scene had me absolutely hooked. The camera pans around an airplane where all the passengers and crew have been killed. Still alive are three attractive women that soon reveal themselves to be vampires. After a bit of fun, they open the airplane door and dive out mid-air. From there we are introduced to Lena, a young criminal that soon finds herself involved with the vampires. Unfortunately for them, just before Lena is turned, she catches the eye of a young policeman that's interested in her. Like all vampire films, it starts by showing the luxurious excess. Clubbing, drinking, sex etc. But at the same time the film uses the character of Charlotte as an antidote to all this. She obviously suffers from depression. As the gang go out shopping, she stares longingly at some baby shoes. She also stands in the sunlight causing herself great pain. This character encompasses the strongest emotions, and counteracts the action nicely. We also have Louise. A lesbian vampire that is in love with Lena and feels jealous about Lena's crush on the young cop Tom. It shows that no longer how long you live for, certain human emotions are unavoidable. Towards the end it goes for all out action. With SWAT teams, prison breaks, and a beautifully shot fight that has the vampires moving all over the walls. The music was also enjoyable, but the amount of nightclub scenes did get tiring. Just one less could have made an improvement. We Are The Night is a string Vampire film, with stunning locals and excellent pacing. It was great seeing these girls have fun in a woman only vampire world. Another great example of Gansel's talent.

Germans tried to create their own Vampire franchise with "We are the Night" with mixed results. Compared with any of the TWILIGHT movies; this looks like a masterpiece; but with really great movies like NOSFERATU (in any of its version) this is just a clichéd movie with a few original ideas.

The most interesting things are dialogs which based on my very limited German and subtitles seemed really smart. Another is that even when vampires are only women and there is a lot of lesbian innuendo; the movie is far from exploitative. There is no feminine nudity, no sexual scenes and a very PC moral message (here, nobody is happy to be a vampire). Even violence in the movie is more suggested than shown (there are a few brief strong scenes ; but mostly for the surprise effect ) . Lena, a minor delinquent is converted by Lena; an old bored vampire looking for her great love. Louise has two other vampires girlfriends; all living like "Sex and the City" in Berlin. An excess of glamour and luxury just to cover their empty lives. Lena is not very happy with her unwanted changes; particularly because she has a certain interest in a policeman; something forbidden by Louise for two reasons; he does not want men and even less policemen. There is not much more happening. The first act is strong but after Lena conversion, the second act looks extracted from "SEX AND THE CITY". The drama could have been really interesting if we knew something about each woman; but aside from a few dialogs and little back story about one of them; the others are pretty much a mysteries nobody cares to solve. The third act is more action driven and it is very effective with just the necessary amount of special effects in order to get things realistic. In brief; it is not a bad movie; but considering it comes for the country that re-invented cinema and the vampire genre; it is below expectations.

Wir sind die Nacht - We are the Night – CATCH IT (B+) A German movie deals with deals with a young woman who gets bitten by a female vampire and drawn into her world. She falls in love with a young police officer who investigates a murder case involving the vampires. Wir sind die Nacht took its inspiration from Carmilla rather than Dacula which was a wise decision and it made the movie really interesting and enjoyable. Wir sind die Nacht has a top notch production value and performance by all the leading actresses. Initially it looked like Karoline Herfurth playing Lena took her inspiration from Lisbeth Slander but once she is bitten and becomes Vampire she transforms into this gorgeous young girl. The transition is so drastic that a person like me who have not seen her previously in any movie was completely stunned. Nino Hoss is powerful as the vampire leader and I saw her recently in "The Woman in Berlin" so it was shocking to see her in such urban movie. Jennifer Ulrich is gorgeous; she literally looked like someone stole her from 1920s. Anna Fischer as vamp party girl brought her spunk to her spunky character. Max Riemelt is the hottest German actor alive, darn he sizzles on screen. His chemistry with Karoline Herfurth made the small love story really interesting. We are the Night is one of the best Vampire movie I have seen in recent years, its urban, chic and filled with strong performances. I would love to see a sequel for sure as the ending was ambiguous.

I do wonder why people waste the talent and money on shallow movies like this one? And why they also make the topics even shallower?

If this was an anime (does anyone think the movie was truly inuenced by some anime or manga), it would be an ok piece, but as a movie... Nah!

Female vampires are all that is left. Men typically screwed up and were eliminated. Naturally, when one wants a true love, she is going to be searching for the right female to join her for eternity.

This is really a slick production with good camera work, great music, and lots of action - lots of blood, too.

Karoline Herfurth gives a great performance as Lena, the pickpocket that is transformed. She has a hard time warming up to Louise (Nina Hoss), and keeps a tie to a cop (Max Riemelt) she met when she was a pickpocket. Twilight fans may find this story compelling, and would certainly like the ending, but it's for adults.