What We Do In The Shadows (2014)

I honestly didn't mean for it to become Unconventional Vampire Movie Week on the blog, it's just that both this one and Only Lovers Left Alive had been on my must-watch list for a while and by the time New Year rolls around, I've always gorged myself on traditional family films to the point where if I see one more flicker of brightly-coloured CGI, I might just puke all over the carpet.

What We Do in the Shadows is something of an antidote to all the Disney-sponsored conventionality - in a nutshell, it's a mockumentary in the classic Christopher Guest mould, about a coven of vampires living in downtown Wellington, New Zealand. Viago (Taika Waititi), a former 18th century dandy, is our gatekeeper, introducing us to his flatmates Vladislav (Jemaine Clements), once the scourge of the Middle Ages, Deacon (Jonathan Brugh), one of Hitler's elite brigade of Nazi vampires, and Petyr, (Ben Fransham) who's been around for so many thousands of years that nobody quite knows what he's thinking, or if he's thinking at all. 

We follow them in the run-up to the Unholy Masquerade, the biggest event in the undead social calendar. Viago and Deacon are both anxious to look their best, while Vladislav, as one of the senior vamps in the vicinity, is hoping to be named guest of honour over and above his old adversary, The Beast. Newly-turned Nick, meanwhile, just wants to hang out with his old human pal, Stu.  Will their wishes be realized? Will their age-old enmity with the local werewolves be resolved? Just how do you make sure you're looking your best when you're unable to see your own reflection, anyway? The film provides the answers to these vital questions and many, many more.

The good

Not even going to pretend to take an unbiased stance on this one. I've loved it since the first time I saw the trailer, and in the week since I laid hands on the entire movie I've watched it twice, enjoying it immensely on both occasions. 

I've always been a huge fan of the mockumentary format; up until now, there's been nobody to touch Christopher Guest, but Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement have really given him a run for his money here. This is the sweetest comedy I've seen in years, not so much a comedy of embarrassment as one of empathy, where we're constantly charmed by our protagonists even as we laugh at their pretensions and, frequently, their crashing ineptitude. It's there in the script and the performances; singling any one player out would be criminal. Waititi, Clement and Brugh have the most screentime, though, and they're all delightful, with Deacon's tough guy persona only slightly undermined by his addiction to knitting.

Visually things are solid, if not spectacular - exactly the sort of thing you'd expect of a low-budget documentary about a bunch of people who only go out at night. The effects are a little on the ramshackle side, but in some ways that only adds to the general charm.

The bad

If I listen to the voices in my head and watch this one until I know the script by heart, it may have a negative impact on my marriage

The verdict

If you do not enjoy this film immensely, it can only be because you are an irredeemably bad person. Just sayin'.