Only Lovers Left Alive (2014) Review

                                                   "That certainly was visual."

In a world where the vampire genre has been plagued by some more ‘sparkling’ additions, Jim Jarmusch arrives to rescue us all from the suffocating teen infatuations that we have all had to endure. Only Lovers Left Alive is not content to adhere to normal standards and provides a uniquely artistic cinematic experience, with Jarmusch showing that he is a certain flair for the indie aesthetic that he has created.

(You can read this review online via I'm With Geek, here.) Assuming the role of the undead leads are the suave and sophisticated Tom Hiddleston and the elegant Tilda Swinton, who portray Adam and Eve, respectively. The decades-old vampires show a sense of weariness to the modern day world, greatly populated by ‘zombies’, as Adam describes them, and the two conduct themselves in an elitist manner as the simmer around the outside world in a uneasy fashion. Hiddleston’s Adam is a music visionary, creating wondrous pieces of music that he has no desire to be tied back to, and distancing himself from any people who come knocking, except, of course, for his long-distance lover, Eve, and his seemingly only friend (if you can call him that), Ian. Adam and Eve’s sumptuous paradise is brought abruptly to a halt when Eve’s younger sister, Ava (Mia Wasikowska), arrives in a brazen manner. Ava is impulsive and doesn’t calculate things quite like her older sister, and it’s clear that Adam and Eve are in a state of trepidation. Whilst Adam has Ian (Anton Yelchin), Eve finds comfort in companionship with Marlowe, portrayed by John Hurt, who supplies Eve with her blood supply (which all vampires seem to consume in a drug-like manner).

It’s true that the film benefits greatly from the leads’ performances, with Hiddleston managing to capture the overall dark aura of Adam, who feels outdated in his current world, as he adorns his walls with vintage records and relics from golden eras gone. Swinton is not one to be cast aside and shines as Eve, a distinctly odd character with a passion for literature (that she literally carries everywhere) and her dearly beloved Adam; her calming aura soothing his tormented persona. It sounds like the characters could be difficult to endure, with their typical hipster mannerisms and clichéd styling (all vampires seem to have a penchant for leather gloves), but there is something oddly endearing and intriguing about the way in which Hiddleston and Swinton perform as whimsical Eve and the depressing Adam.

It’s not only the characters that possess an air of charm, the film relies heavily on its artistic visuals, with atmospheric lighting being key to the overall ancient feel of the film, which reflects its characters rather appropriately. Only Lovers Left Alive has the traditional look of your average indie film, but with a distinct despondent nature that underlines its seemingly never ending narrative, which seems entirely intentional. It is this witty, almost self-knowing manner that propels the film above your typical vampire flick, and creates something that manages to feel effortlessly timeless and deeply sensual.

With grand set designs that reference the cultural items that will no doubt be nostalgic for some, Only Lovers Left Alive combines its somber nature with enchanting visuals and thoroughly beguiling characters that draw you in with every sensuous dance movement, striking gaze, or thought-provoking line in the dialogue. Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive is an elegant love story that is steeped in just the right amount of heartache and sadness to offset its drier, humorous moments.