Byzantium: Neil Jordan Takes on the Undead Again

Evidently, vampirism is supposed to be an old boys’ club.  Eleanor and her sister Clara are certainly not boys.  At least they are old, but they hardly look it.  Immortality is a strange existence for them in Byzantium (trailer here), Neil Jordan’s worthy return to the world of the undead, which opens this Friday in New York at the IFC Center.

For two hundred years, Eleanor has been a mixed up teenager.  She routinely writes the story she is forbidden from telling, casting her words to the wind.  Eleanor also drinks human blood to survive, but she only “takes” those who are ready and willing to go.  She was whisked away from her orphanage and turned eternal by her “guardian” Clara.  Ever since, they have not-lived on the run, eluding a cabal of male vampires who never sanctioned either woman joining their ranks.

Clara does not have Eleanor’s scruples.  She is a survivor, typically falling back on her old profession—the oldest one.  Even though she haunts the sleazier spots in town, she finds a decent enough chap to shack up with in Noel.  He happens to have a vacant hotel they can use as a base of operations—the Byzantium.  Despite Clara’s insistence on secrecy, Eleanor feels increasingly compelled to share her story, which is a dangerous proposition.

Adapted by Moira Buffini from her stage play, A Vampire Story, Byzantium offer some intriguing twists on the familiar vampire mythos (the hat tips to Byron and Polidori are also nice touches).  Yet, it is driven by the telling of the tale, which establishes quite a compelling fairy tale vibe.  Jordan masterfully handles the flashbacks, while maintaining the eerie mood.  He also deftly incorporates music into key scenes.  There is an elegant lushness to Byzantium, much in the tradition of Jordan’s previous supernatural films and the better Hammer Horror productions.

Somehow, Saoirse Ronan projects both teen angst and world-weary resignation.  It is a rather soulful portrayal of the soulless.  A fully committed Gemma Arterton impressively vamps it up in every way possible as Clara.  Sam Riley adds a dash of Twilightness as the mysterious vampire Darvell (revisiting the seaside locale of Brighton Rock) with Thure Lindhardt (from Eddie the Sleepwalking Cannibal) and Uri Gavriel (the blind prisoner of the pit in Dark Knight Rises) bringing some global genre cred in supporting roles.

By supernatural genre standards, Byzantium is unusually engaging on an emotional level.  It is a stylish production, bolstered by some evocative sets and locations.  Highly recommended for those who prefer their vampire films moody and brooding rather than gory, Byzantium opens this Friday (6/28) at the IFC Center.

Tribeca ’13: Byzantium

Evidently, vampirism is supposed to be an old boys’ club.  Eleanor and her sister Clara are certainly not boys.  At least they are old, though they hardly look it.  Immortality is a strange existence for them in Byzantium (trailer here), Neil Jordan’s return to the world of the undead, which screens as a Spotlight selection of the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival.

For two hundred years, Eleanor has been a mixed up teenager.  She routinely writes the story she is forbidden from telling, casting her words to the wind.  Eleanor also drinks human blood to survive, but she only “takes” those who are ready and willing to go.  She was whisked away from her orphanage and turned eternal by her “guardian” Clara.  Ever since, they have not-lived on the run, eluding a cabal of vampires who never sanctioned either woman joining their ranks.

Clara does not have Eleanor’s scruples.  She is a survivor, typically falling back on her old profession—the oldest one.  At least she finds a decent enough chap to shack up with in Noel.  He happens to have a vacant hotel they can use as a base of operations—the Byzantium.  Despite Clara’s insistence on secrecy, Eleanor feels increasingly compelled to share her story, which is a dangerous proposition.

Adapted by Moira Buffini from her stage play A Vampire Story, Byzantium offer some intriguing twists on the familiar vampire mythos (the hat tips to Byron and Polidori are also nice touches).  Yet, it is driven by the telling of the tale, which establishes quite a compelling fairy tale vibe.  Jordan masterfully handles the flashbacks, while maintaining the eerie mood.  He also deftly incorporates music into key scenes.  There is an elegant lushness to Byzantium, much in the tradition of Jordan’s previous supernatural films and the better Hammer Horror productions.

Somehow, Saoirse Ronan projects both teen angst and world-weary resignation.  It is a rather soulful portrayal of the soulless.  A fully committed Gemma Arterton impressively vamps it up in every way possible as Clara.  Sam Riley adds a Twilishness as the mysterious vampire Darvell (revisiting the seaside locale of Brighton Rock) with Thure Lindhardt (from Eddie the Sleepwalking Cannibal) and Uri Gavriel (the blind prisoner of the pit in Dark Knight Rises) bringing some global genre cred in supporting roles.

By supernatural genre standards, Byzantium is unusually engaging on an emotional level.  It is a stylish production, bolstered by some evocative sets and locations.  Highly recommended for those who prefer their vampire films moody and brooding rather than gory, Byzantium screens again this afternoon (4/26) and tomorrow (4/27) during this year’s Tribeca Film Festival.

Jordan’s Ondine

Life as the only admitted alcoholic in a small coastal Irish village is difficult for Syracuse, especially with his mean-spirited ex-wife constantly belittling him in front of his wheelchair bound daughter, Annie. It is easy to see how both father and daughter would welcome a bit of fantasy into their lives in Neil Jordan’s Ondine (trailer here), which opens theatrically this Friday in New York, following its high-profile run at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival.

Syracuse made a hash of his life through binge drinking. Now on the wagon, he uses the church confessional as his surrogate AA meeting. Barely eking out a subsistence living, one day he pulls up his fishing nets and finds a beautiful woman tangled up inside. Adamant that she not be seen by anyone, Syracuse lets her recover at his recently deceased mother’s ramshackle cottage.

Though Syracuse tells Annie about the mystery woman calling herself Ondine as if it were a fairy tale, the bright young girl automatically assumes it to be the truth. Inevitably, Annie soon meets the woman she believes to be a selkie, a mermaid like creature from Celtic mythology, half convincing her father and perhaps even Ondine herself with her ardent conviction. Yet, Jordan periodically drops hints that Ondine’s origins might be darker and worldlier than Annie’s romanticized version of reality.

The human need to believe in something good and edifying lies at the heart of Ondine, but Jordan also deftly incorporates themes of family and personal responsibility. Completely shedding his movie star persona, Colin Farrell is thoroughly convincing and undeniably likable as Syracuse, despite the character’s myriad of faults. Indeed, he is the lynchpin of the movie, serving as the tragically flawed moral center of this emotionally deep film.

Ethereally beautiful, the Polish Alicja Bachleda powerfully combines both an exquisite sensitivity and an earthy seductiveness as Ondine. In a small but meaningful role deliberately written with him in mind, Stephen Rea again displays his talent for projecting world-weary dignity as the village priest. Jordan also makes the picturesque village of Castletownebere (where he maintains a home away from Hollywood), conveying both the good and the bad aspects of life in such a tight-knit community.

While likely to be compared to John Sayles’s The Secret of Roan Inish, the last notable selkie film, Ondine takes the legend in a drastically different direction. Yet, both are films of quiet beauty in their own distinctive ways. Indeed, they suggest the selkie movie might be a subgenre worth further exploration.

Jordan masterfully balances Ondine’s fantastical sense of wonder and its intense climatic scenes. With Christopher Doyle’s evocative cinematography soaking up the rugged beauty of the sea and coastline, the film is a rich visual feast. Honestly touching, but scrupulously free of any cheap sentiment, Ondine is a tiny miracle of a movie. One of the best films this year at Tribeca, it opens Friday (6/4) in New York at the Sunshine Cinema.

Tribeca ’10: Ondine

Life as the only admitted alcoholic in a small coastal Irish village is difficult for Syracuse, especially with his mean-spirited ex-wife constantly belittling him in front of his wheelchair bound daughter, Annie. It is easy to see how both father and daughter would welcome a bit of fantasy into their lives in Neil Jordan’s Ondine (trailer here), which screens at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival.

Syracuse made a hash of his life through binge drinking. Now on the wagon, he uses the confessional as his surrogate AA meeting. Barely eking out a subsistence living, one day he pulls up his fishing nets and finds a beautiful woman tangled up inside. Adamant that she not be seen by anyone, Syracuse lets her recover at his recently deceased mother’s ramshackle cottage.

Though Syracuse tells Annie about the mystery woman calling herself Ondine as if it were a fairy tale, the bright young girl automatically assumes it to be the truth. Inevitably, Annie soon meets the woman she believes to be a selkie, a mermaid like creature from Celtic mythology, half convincing her father and perhaps even Ondine herself with her ardent conviction. Yet, Jordan periodically drops hints that Ondine’s origins might be darker and worldlier than Annie’s reassuring version of reality.

The human need to believe in something good and edifying lies at the heart of Ondine, but it also deftly incorporates themes of family and personal responsibility. Completely shedding his movie star persona, Colin Farrell is thoroughly convincing and undeniably likable as Syracuse, despite the character’s myriad of faults. Indeed, he is the lynchpin of the movie, serving as the tragically flawed moral center of this emotionally deep film.

Ethereally beautiful, the Polish Alicja Bachleda powerfully combines both an exquisite sensitivity and an earthy seductiveness as Ondine. In a small but meaningful role deliberately written with him in mind, Stephen Rea again displays his talent for projecting world-weary dignity as the village priest. Jordan also makes the picturesque village of Castletownebere (where he maintains a home away from Hollywood) a supporting character in its own right.

While likely to be compared to John Sayles’s The Secret of Roan Inish, the last notable selkie film, Ondine takes the legend in a radically different direction. Yet, both are films of quiet beauty in their own distinctive ways. Indeed, they suggest the selkie movie might be a subgenre worth further exploration.

Jordan masterfully balances Ondine’s fantastical sense of wonder and its intense climatic scenes. With Christopher Doyle’s evocative cinematography soaking up the rugged beauty of the sea and coastline, the film is a rich visual feast. Honestly touching, but scrupulously free of any cheap sentiment, Ondine is a tiny miracle of a movie. Enormously satisfying, it screens during Tribeca on Wednesday (4/28), Thursday (4/29), and Saturday (5/1), in advance of its early June theatrical opening.