Byzantium (2012)
- Director:
- Neil Jordan
- Runtime:
- 118 min
- Genre:
- Drama, Fantasy, Horror
- Writer:
- Moira Buffini
- Starring:
- Saoirse Ronan, Gemma Arterton, Sam Riley
I didn't know much about this movie going in, and honestly I'm glad of that. That let me watch how the film itself tells the story. That's the idea anyway, right?
Despite being a bit predictable at the end (more on that in a minute), the bulk of the movie is a nice surprise. It really does do something different with the myth of vampires. Their origins, strengths and weaknesses, how they interact with people, and even their goals are all tweaked a bit in this story.
I noticed they did keep one trope (I won't spoil it with which), and found it to be an interesting choice.
As for the ending: Yeah. It's not bad, but after being pleasantly surprised by the characters and their actions to that point, it's a bit disappointing to end with "oh yeah, I bet they're going to..." and be right about it. There are also a couple of plot holes, but nothing terribly massive.
Still, I highly recommend it. In my opinion you can't go wrong with Saoirse Ronan,. Gemma Arterton and Sam Riley are both really good as well.