The film attracted a sizable audience in Italy. The Fascist government sawthe film(s) as a condemnation of Soviet misery but when it became aware thatthe movie(s) implied a condemnation of all totalitarian states, left andright, it withdrew them from distribution.

They were not seen again and were thought lost until the early 1960s whenAyn Rand’s attorneys located prints in Rome. Ayn Rand liked the movie(s) agreat deal, while having reservations about certain liberties that had beentaken with dialog and situations. She died in 1982 and did not live to seethe re-issue of the film, which was brought about under the auspices of theAyn Rand estate. The original two-part 4-hour version was edited down to a170-minute one-film version. One major speech (of Fosco Giachetti) wasredubbed to assert Randian philosophy, and the ending (with the death ofKira in the snow as she is shot trying to escape from Russian) waseliminated, rendering the film more optimistic.

We are glad that the film was made available in some form after having beenlost for decades. After all, how many films from Fascist Italy get picked upfor commercial distribution in America these days? But we also regret thatAlessandrini’s complete artistic achievement was truncated and tamperedwith. Wasn’t creative integrity the theme of Rand’s novel "TheFountainhead"?

Having had the good fortune of seeing the uncut integral two films on videoin Italy, I can vouch for them as being more satisfying, less disjointed inthat format. Let’s be clear. This new version is NOT a "restoration" assome are calling it. It is, rather, an "adaptation." We are ambivalentabout it but pleased to have it. And the 35mm print material is firstrate.

As much as anything else, WE THE LIVING is a whopping good love story, of"Camille"-like intensity and "Anna Karenina"-like grandeur. The stunningAlida Valli as Kira and Rossano Brazzi as her wastrel lover Leo, devour thescreen in their scenes together. Fosco Giachetti as Andrei, head of thesecret police and willing to sacrifice honor and ideals for Kira, ispoignant and unforgettable. As is this film, or as are these films.

2) I haven't watched that many Italian films made prior to the neo-realistmovement but I knew of this film from "Leonard Maltin's Film Guide", soI taped it when shown on late-night TV some years ago. Though it hadlain in my "VHS To Watch" pile since that time, I decided to give it awhirl now as a tribute to its leading lady Alida Valli – who died onlylast week!

The film's history is as convoluted as that of its narrative, which isclose to 3 hours in length: the story takes place in Russia and theplot (an unauthorized adaptation of the Ayn Rand novel) naturally dealtwith Communism; being a wartime production (if still handsomelymounted), it was deemed to be critical of the Fascist regime andsubsequently banned! Only in 1986 was the film restored to its currentform – and distributed in the U.S. to considerable success – but,unfortunately, the source print wasn't perfect (with the result thatthe video version suffers from some distracting fuzziness, particularlytowards the end)…

Despite its epic scope, the film is decidedly talky and necessarilyheavy-going in nature; but the acting (featuring perhaps romantic idolRossano Brazzi's finest performance) is terrific and, as a whole, thenarrative anticipates another troubled wartime epic – Marcel Carne''smasterpiece CHILDREN OF PARADISE (1945), particularly in the way Valliis pursued by a number of suitors throughout the film but ends up aloneby the end of it.

The only other film by director Goffredo Alessandrini I've watched isABUNA MESSIAS (1939), another historical piece but – ironically enough- a propagandist one! In the end, with all the celebrated classics thathave emerged from Italy along the years by any number of influentialauteurs, WE THE LIVING remains – with good reason – an important filmand, undeniably, one of the most impressive (if largely unsung) evermade in that country.

3) Whoopsie.

I stand corrected; the title here is indeed the part II title for theoriginal release in WW2 Italy, not a later, alternate, earlier orrenamed title. Other facts are accurate to the best of my currentknowledge.

Although still pretty expensive (still at this writing about twice theprice of, say, "Ayn Rand: A Sense Of Life"), and not to my knowledgereleased in DVD yet, it’s still a great buy. This film is, in additionto its unique specifics, an artifact of what I judge the superiorartistic sensibility of an earlier, more civilized time. Obtain andenjoy!

4) This was an alternate title for "Noi Vivi" ("We The Living"), the Italianwartime filming of the 1936 novel of Ayn Rand’s, which dealt with thesocialcosts of the ‘noble experiment’ of Stalin’s Russia. Rossano Brazzi isremembered in the States for "Three Coins In The Fountain" and "SouthPacific", while Valli did at least one film with Orson Welles and CarolReedand had a supporting role in Dario Argento’s "Suspiria" (althoughprimarilyworking in Italy, practically to the present day).

• Billie Whitelaw was cast after seven high profile US leading ladies passed.
• Joe Mantell was offered a key role.
• Topol was offered a major role.
• Patricia Phoenix was on the shortlist for Mrs Zero.
• Paul McCartney was offered Shrdlu, as was Alan Bennett.
• Muhammad Ali was suggested for Lt. Charles.
• Ringo Starr was sought in vain for a major role.

2) I had been searching for this movie for over a decade after seeing iton late night TV in the 1980’s. I finally had the opportunity to see itagain on one of my satellite’s movie channels. Although my memory wassketchy, I remembered it as an odd but intriguing commentary on life.

This movie stars Milo O’Shea as Mr. Zero, a man who lives on theperiphery of life. Phyllis Diller, in a rare dramatic role, plays hisharpy of a wife. Mr. Zero’s only distraction from her shrewish tyrannylies in his fascination with the woman of ill repute working in a roomacross from their bedroom window. When Mrs. Zero finds him spying onher, she forces him to report her to the police. Thus, he is forced topersonally cut off his only avenue of escape.

At work, he has spent 25 meaningless years adding columns of numbers,with the aid of Daisy Devore, played by Billie Whitelaw. Zero has beenso shrunken by his life that he can’t even admit to himself that he isattracted to Daisy.

His boss, who can’t remember Zero’s name even after being reminded ofit, announces that Zero’s reward for his years of faithful service isto be replaced by an adding machine. Later that evening, during adreary gathering of acquaintances in their apartment, Zero is arrestedfor the murder of his boss.

After his trial and conviction, Zero is executed and finds himself inHeaven. Nothing is as he expects it to be in the afterlife and Zeromust now examine his beliefs and his own character. Has he learnedanything from his experiences, or will he spend eternity constrained byhis own shortcomings?

3) This movie is different in so many ways from anything I have ever seen.Set in the 1930’s, it has a modern feel with the "hippie" in heaven,etc. Phyllis Diller’s performance is Oscar caliber and totally out ofcharacter. Her shrewish monologue is probably the greatest in moviehistory. Milo O’Shea aptly conveys the meaninglessness of Mr Zero. Hisreaction to the introduction of the adding machine is shocking, and thecontrast with the following banality of typical party conversation(relevant even today) is most effective.

The movie suggests the vanity of human wishes as well as the despair inwhich the ordinary man spends life. Don’t look for consistency orlogic, as the movie creates an emotional rather than a rationalreaction in the viewer through the presentation of a melange ofphilosophical ideas. Very interesting. "How Small We Are" packs a punchat the end of the movie.

The central character, Addie Mills, is an adult artist recalling herchildhood in the 1940s. Addie, in the series, is skinny and awkward, withlong brown hair and glasses. Her mother is dead, and her father is verystrict. Addie’s sympathetic grandmother lives in the household, butAddie’sstern father is clearly in charge, denying Addie many of the privilegesenjoyed by other girls.

In this last episode Addy and the King of Hearts, Addy has grown to ayoungteen.Addy has a crush on her Teacher, and does everything she can think ofto gain his favorable attention. In the end, she settles for a boy her ownage at the Valentine Dance.THIS HAS NEVER BEEN PUT ON VIDEO

THE VIDEOS IN THIS SERIES ARE:

The House Without a Christmas Tree (1974)(Book-same name) Addie’s fatherwon’t let her have a Christmas tree, because it is a painful reminder ofhappier Christmases spent with his wife.

Holiday Treasure(1974)(Book called Thanksgiving Treasure),Addie befriendsanelderly recluse at Thanksgiving time.

Easter Promise(1974) (Book called A Dream for Addy) This had Addiebefriending an actress who is fighting alcoholism.

EPSIODE BY EPISODE, THIS SERIES DEALS WITH THE FOLLOWING:GRIEF,ALCOHOLISM,TEENAGE CRUSHES, AND GRUDGES

2) Kathleen Conklin was just a normal student attending college. While walking home one night she is dragged off the street and bitten by a strange woman. Soon Kathleen goes from being a normal student to being a vampire. Kathleen’s need for blood is similar to a drug addict’s need for drugs, and we watch as she goes from one fix to the next.

New York University. Walking home after viewing a disturbing lecture documenting atrocities from the Vietnam War, doctoral candidate Kathy Conklin (Lili Taylor) is singled out to receive a vampire’s ‘kiss’. However, Casanova (Annabella Sciorra) is an atypical vampire in that she gives Kathy a chance to save herself by simply saying "Go away" like she means it. But Kathy can only mutter, "Please," so she ends up in the infirmary with a bite on her neck and a policeman telling her she’s lucky her assailant didn’t slit her throat.

"One aspect of determinism is manifested in the fact that the unsaved don’t recognize the sin in their lives."

Kathy starts to feel ill during one of her lectures, and rushes to the lavatory where she vomits blood. She winds up back in the infirmary where the attending physician diagnoses "chronic anemia exacerbated by this traumatic event." The next day she meets her friend Jean (Edie Falco) for lunch but merely picks at her food and feels ill watching Jean scarf down a hamburger.

"The old adage from Santayana, that those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it, is a lie. There is no history. Everything we are is eternally with us."

Kathy has begun covering her mirrors in her apartment, and wearing sunglasses to class to protect her eyes from the sun. Her hunger for blood starting to grow, she uses a syringe to extract blood from the arm of a sleeping homeless man, but it doesn’t help. She makes arrangements to meet with her advising professor to show him what she’s done so far on her dissertation, which is nothing. They wind up back at her apartment, where he becomes a victim. The next day, while in the university library, Kathy invites an anthropology student to her apartment to study and have coffee. The student becomes a victim when she doesn’t say, "Get out of here."

"All men counting stars are equivalent in every way to God." [Feuerbach]

Kathy’s appetite for blood is becoming insatiable. She feeds on a young black guy looking for some "white tail". Kathy even corners her friend Jean in the ladies room at a local bar, challenging her to "look sin in the eye and tell me to go," but all Jean can do is blubber, "Please," so Kathy makes another victim of Jean.

"Mankind has striven to exist beyond good and evil from the beginning." [Nietzsche]

Now, rapidly descending deep into her addiction, Kathy tails a possible victim whose first words to her are, "Why don’t you just tell me to leave you alone…like you mean it." He turns out to be Peina (Christopher Walken), a old vampire who invites Kathy to his loft. Peina tells Kathy that he has been "fasting" for four years and has learned to live without blood through the strength of his will. Peina tries to advise Kathy on living as a vampire without having to give in to the addiction. "The point is to blend in," he says, "not to stand out like a sore thumb." He then proceeds to feed on Kathy. Suffering from the pangs of her addiction, Kathy attempts to slit her wrist, but "you can’t kill what’s already dead," says Peina. She begs him to help her, but he refuses. Instead, he tells her to read the book The Naked Lunch.

"I felt the wind…the wings of madness." [Baudelaire]

Kathy weathers it through the day but gives in to the pangs that night. She walks the streets, stumbling along, holding her stomach and looking for a "fix." When a passerby sees her lying on the sidewalk, he offers help, but she leaps at his neck like a hungry cat. Claiming that she now understands what all this is about, Kathy begins to work again on
her dissertation.

"Our addiction is evil," she writes. The propensity for this evil lies in our weakness before it. Kierkegaard was right. There IS an awful precipice before us. But he was wrong about the leap. There’s a difference between jumping and being pushed. You reach a point where you are forced to face your own needs. And the fact that you can’t terminate your
situation settles on you with full force. There is a dual nature to the addiction. It satisfies the hunger, but it also dulls our perception so we’re helped to forget how ill we really are. We drink to escape the fact that we’re alcoholics. Existence is the search for relief from our habit, and our habit is the only relief we can find."

To celebrate the completion of her dissertation and attainment of her Ph.D., Kathy decides to invite the dean, her professors, and some of her friends to a party at her apartment. On her way home, Kathy meets a prostelytizer who hands her a pamphlet. She invites him to come inside, but he refuses, the only one who has refused to let ’sin’ in. As her
hunger grows again, Kathy rolls on the floor in agony, screaming repeatedly, "I will not submit!" But submit she finally does when, as the guests start arriving, she asks Jean, now a vampire herself, to bring her a girl on which to feed.
Feeling satiated, Kathy attends her party and, after a short speech during which she thanks the faculty and offers to share with everyone what she has learned during her years of study, she leaps at the dean’s neck. Thereafter begins an horrific orgy in which Kathy and her vampire friends feast on the humans.

After drinking her fill and then some, Kathy begins to feel ill and, like a sick drunk, wanders the streets, talking to herself, covered with blood, and barfing on the sidewalk. She winds up in the hospital again. In an attempt to end her existence, she asks the nurse to open the blinds. As the sunshine slowly descends over Kathy’s body, the blinds are suddenly
closed and Casanova is standing there. "We’re not evil because of the evil we do," Casanova says. "We do evil because we ARE evil."

"Bleeding trees waiting for Judgement Day when we can all hang ourselves from our own branches." [Dante]

A priest stops by to visit and Kathy begs for absolution. He does and she apparently passes on. In the very confusing final scene, Kathy places a rose on her own grave in broad daylight and walks away, having repented her bloodlust and is reborn as human flesh once again.

"In the end, we stand before the light and our true nature is revealed. Self-revelation is annhilation of self." [Kathy Conklin]

Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.

• Shot in twenty days.
• Film critic Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian placed the film at #1 in his top ten films of all time (as submitted for the 2002 Sight & Sound Poll)

Lili Taylor gives a brooding, glib and haunting central performance asKathleen Conklin, a New York University grad student who is pulled intoan alley and bitten by a seductive female vampire (Annabella Sciorra),from which she emerges uncontrollably drawn into a world of violenceand insatiable cravings for human blood. Ferrara's irredeemable urbanhell landscape is more immediate and frightening than a millionTransylvanias and by contrasting Taylor's "addiction" to the horrors ofthe past (war atrocities, the Holocaust) and present (heroine, AIDS),the film has more bite and impact than any fang-bearing, gore orspecial effects could even attempt to muster up. Nicolas St. John'sintriguing philosophical screenplay and Ken Kelsch's gorgeous black andwhite photography (creating a world solely of light and dark, which isa key element in the plot), are not to be overlooked either.

Call it pretentious for the philosophy references (Sarte, Nietzche…)if you want, but this highly intelligent and disturbing low-budgeter isone of the most accomplished and well-thought out horror films I'veever seen. Don't let over-hyped, attention hogging Hollywoodproductions like BRAM STOKER'S Dracula or INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE keepyou from seeing it.

2) ‘The Addiction’ is one of the most original vampire movies ever made. Infact, I can’t think of another one quite like it. Abel Ferrara has made somestrange and disturbing movies in his time, and this one is as strange anddisturbing as any. Lili Taylor (‘I Shot Andy Warhol’) is brilliant as atroubled, soul searching philosophy student who has an unexpected andlife-changing encounter with a mysterious stranger (‘Cop Land’s AnnabellaSciorra). Dark, deep, sometimes blackly humorous, and frequently too obscurefor its own good, this can be heavy going at times, but is never less thaninteresting. Christopher Walken, who did some superb work for Ferrara in hisclassic ‘The King Of New York’, has only a cameo here, but what a cameo!Walken is terrific and unforgettable. The rest of the supporting castincludes ‘The Sopranos’ Edie Falco and (briefly) Michael Imperioli, PaulCalderon (‘Girlfight’), and Kathryn Erbe (‘Stir Of Echoes’). This is aunique movie that will be appreciated by those with an open mind andpreference for "difficult" viewing. Recommended.

3) This movie was even scarier for me since I spent 2/3 of my life in NewYork City and all the settings were in my family’s neighborhood!

The acting was first rate, as was the storyline and cinematography, butall the philosophical dissertations annoyed the HELL out of me becauseit reminded me of some of the intellectual snobs I went to school withwho had lower IQ’s than my cat.

Upon reading the previous review, it just occurred to me that all thesnobbery made perfect sense.

The character was probably in shock for several weeks. In HER mind, avampire wouldn’t resist his or her impulses they would just becomeferal. As such, to her, this constant internal dialogue of trying tofigure out whether or not her addictions are psychological orsupernatural somehow proves her normalcy (at least in her universe).

Christopher Walken was GENIUS and so convincing that I never EVER wantto meet him in person! His explanation of his adaptation to hisvampirism made it seem so normal (it REALLY felt like he was giving theaudience a confession under the guise of acting) that you got the sensethat he WASN’T acting!

I have to say that the graduation scene is one of the single mostdisturbing things that I have ever seen in my life! I saw it coming,but never really acknowledged before seeing this, that horror moviesare realistic because all the writers/directors have to do is open upthe local newspaper to see what a real monster is!

4) I haven't seen THE ADDICTION in ten years, but I do recommend it fromwhat I remember. And the list of attractive concepts are, envelopeplease: Lili Taylor, Christopher Walken, Anabella Sciorra, black andwhite meta-fictional film, and of course vampires galore! Abel Ferrarahas directed other well known movies such as Bad Lieutenant,California, and the Funeral. Of these movies, I mildly recommend thefirst two but definitely not the third. The Funeral is plain boring anddreary, while the other two entertain by showing the gritty side ofhuman nature.

Caution, if you're the type of vampire fan who must have each actordecked out in fangs and yellow contacts, then steer clear of thismovie, since it's really questionable whether the characters in THEADDICTION are actually vampires or are just plain junkies in niceclothes.

Lastly, there is a very complex philosophical feel to THE ADDICTION, asLili Taylor muses about life and death in deep conversations indifferent venues around New York City: a college book store, movietheater, etc. I recommend any philosopher out there to grab THEADDICTION off the shelves as soon as possible.

Speaking of the mid-90's, that short-lived era was a golden age forindie actors like Lili Taylor and Parker Posey. Taylor got a taste ofvampire-hood early on in this movie, and fortunately Posey got herfangs in Blade 3, which I was very happy to see happen. I mean, comeone, all those party girls are really vampires at heart.

JY

Jimboduck-dot-com

5) It’s not about vampires, it is about resistance, or lack of it. About whatmay be right around the corner, about discipline, or about lack ofdiscipline. About being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It canhappento anybody, and it happens to everybody. It’s a pyramidscheme.

Beautiful black and white composition by Abel Ferrara tied tightly in awonderfully creative Joe Delia score. Casting the usual Ferrara/indiesuspects: Paul Calderone, Edie Falco, Kathryn Erbe, Lili Taylor, AnnabellaSciorra. The theme of the movie presents 4 new questions for every one itanswers. Do we have a choice? Can we resist? And just when we think wehaveit all figured out, Christopher Walken has to show up and throw anentirelynew lilt on things.

Such is life.

6) Spoilers( I state this just in case although i don’t think there are any)

A film of pure audio visual beauty, and unquenchable honesty. To be born ahuman being is to be addiction.The vampire metaphor (draining others in the pursuit of immortality) isusedbrilliantly here for the curse we humans are to each other and ourenvironment. We humans are sucking out life on a day by daybasis.Religion was partly invented to stop humans from committing suicide, forthe truth of humanity is addiction with only a beginning, birth, and anend,death. For the period in-between, a human being’s quantifiable success /failure depends on her / his addiction. This is the heart of AbelFerrara’sFilm. Watch this again and take a look at all the obvious and not soobviousaddictions the film checklists.To struggle against your addiction, is to struggle against your ownhumanity. To deny our addiction is to deny our own existence. Many humansonthis planet seek to exorcise their addiction, through the destruction orenslavement of other humans. Capitalism, Communism, Totalitarianism,Elitism- (cultural / intellectual / spiritual / physical) are all addictions areall human are all vampiricThere is no pretension in evidence within this film, only honesty.Overwhelming and debilitating for some, liberating forothers.All human behavior is addiction, life is an addiction death is anaddiction, there is no escape from addiction. There is no escape fromourselves. If you like this film then read William S Burroughs or view thefilms of David Cronenberg.My rating 10 / 10

7) I loved this film. I was an NYU grad student and the process of gettingmy doctorate and writing the dissertation and dealing with thecommittee were perfectly captured by all the aspects of the vampire’sexperience and transformation. The hunger she felt was so accurate. Irecall those days of struggle and grad student doubts about everfinishing and feeling as if no one would appreciate what I had written.The writers captured all that perfectly in the scenes of her trying towrite and focus, all while something else was pulling on her andtransforming her.

The film itself was well acted and the emotional atmosphere wascaptured perfectly. The street scenes incorporated the neighborhoodbeautifully, especially in the way people in the village actually livethere. It was a dark wonderful film and I have recommended it to manypeople, especially those currently in grad school, writing theirdissertations. I hope it is released on DVD soon. I keep looking.

Sublime, intriguing vampire flic from the very weird mind of Abel Ferrara,the man who brought the world The King of New York, Driller Killer, and NineLives of a Wet Pussy. This moody, stylish, esoteric treatise mixesvampires, drug addiction, and Kierkegaard. A bit too talky for some, andmore than a little pretentious, The Addiction nonetheless delivers some verydisturbing imagery and beautiful b/w cinematography. For those who prefertheir vamps with more of a philosophical..bite. Lili Taylor is wonderful asthe bookworm innocent drawn into a world of hopeless addiction andbloodletting. But Ferrara’s night children are not Anne Rice’s brooding,romantic loners – they are as brutal and savage as any street addict,jonesing for another fix. Christopher Walken provides yet another classycameo, this time as a ray of vampire hope, showing Taylor’s character thatthe addiction can be controlled, that humanity, while not restored, can beat least mimicked. This moovie will not be for all…tastes, but the MooCowsays show it to yer artsy-fartsy friends & watch them recoil. :=8)

9) I have watched this film twice now and am after the last viewingslightly less confused than I was, but still rather baffled.

In magazine reviews that I have read of this film the emphasis isalways on the use as vampirism as a metaphor for addiction – the firsttime I watched the film I was surprised as the majority of the filmseemed to be about philosophy that I didn’t understand and theaddiction metaphor, though resulting in two extremely powerful scenes(when the main character is in withdrawal and kills the man trying tohelp her and also when she is fighting against her addiction in acloset…) seemed overwhelmed by all the talking! Now I think Iunderstand it a little better; addiction can mean how we are addictedto hurting other people because of our own selfishness. The end struckme as strange – at first I presumed the Christian symbolism must meansomething else that I couldn’t fathom: I suppose I think that peoplewho direct these kinds of films must be entirely nihilistic and nothave much time for religion! After some thought I concluded that theonly way for Katherine to be redeemed, and for us all to be redeemed isto completely lose our own identity (tying in with Christopher Walken’searlier comment about how one has to blend in and not stick out) -however this is rather too troubling for a girl of little brain such asmyself to cope with and I still haven’t decided whether I think the endwas positive or not! The film’s flaw is I think the endlessphilosophical babble – if one hasn’t studied the people Katherine isstudying for her course, you will have a hard time keeping up. Howeverthe extremely good acting and direction makes up for this. The choiceto film it in black and white arguably makes it more disturbing, andthe graduation scene is truly scary. The highpoint is undoubtedlyChristopher Walken’s superb cameo but there is much to enjoy besideshis brief appearance.

10) In the sister film to the Funeral philosophy student Kathleen Conklin isdragged into an alley and bitten by Casanova and left to bleed. Despitehospital care she begins to change and have strange desires. With herdesires controlling her turns to Peina for help.

A sister film in that both film share a crew, a writer and some of the cast. The genres are very different but the themes are the same – religion andredemption. The vampire thing isn’t played like it usually is – stakesthrough the heart etc, these are mentioned but not laboured. Instead thestory is about the origins of sin and the extent it controls us and how wecan be redeemed. It cleverly uses the vampire myth as an allegory for widerhuman evil – `We are not sinners because we sin, we sin because we aresinners. We aren’t evil because we do evil, we do evil because we areevil’.

At times it gets a little heavy – the ending in particular takes someinterpretation and the message can be easily misunderstood. Howeverignoring the message this also stands up as a great vampire film – the partywhich turns into a massacre is as good (if not better) then the nightclubopening of Blade, and much more meaningful to boot. Ferrara is a masterdirector who has never followed the money to blockbusters – here he is intotal control of his themes and the film rarely loses focus. His clever useof music is also good – a blend of all styles. The theme song feels likeit’s going to be a 1980’s romantic comedy, but this blends straight intohip-hop and others to create a mix that never feels strange – in fact abaseline seems to run under the whole film like a heartbeat.

Lili Taylor is on top form as Conklin and commands attention the whole time. Walken and Sciorra are both good but have less screen time than in theFuneral, however here, as there, they have key lines of dialogue that carrytremendous weight. Sopranos co-stars Falco and Imperioli are both good butare no more than bit players. The real stars are Ferrara and writer NicolasSt John, who wrote this and The Funeral after the death of hisson.

Overall this is a great film that serves up more for thought than foraction. To this end it won’t please those expecting a Blade style vampirefilm but to fans of Ferrara used to his themes this will be veryenjoyable.

The first little segment is about a man named Bobby (Frank Franconeri)who pretty much has a good life. He has a beautiful wife and a decentjob .Things seem pretty copesetic. Even with all of this he’s still alittle stressed so Bobby and his wife Lisa (Mim Granahan) plan a tripto just, ya know, get away for a bit . Really the only down-falls Bobbymight have is that he’s sort of a pushover and always has been or,hiscousin Frankie (Joshua Nelson, also the writer) who is addicted toheroin, and just got out of the joint keeps coming around . He begs Bobto help him out a little, and Bob shuns the idea that Frankie might beback on Heroin, but helps him anyways. One night after getting off workon his way home Bobby gets mugged. He fights with the guy and ends upkilling him. Not knowing what he should do he runs back to his officeand site for a while to think things over. Bobby freaks out with hisfirst brush with this new experience, he has a rush of feelings he’snever felt before, and he doesn’t know how to handle them.

On deciding to keep it to himself he returns home to a very differentlife than when he left that morning. Bobby finds he’s become aninsomniac, and the only way for him to sleep is to quench his newundying thirst for murder. So he get’s up and goes to the park. Whilethere he talks to a bum who is complaining that he doesn’t want to liveanymore, Bobby asks him " are you sure you wanna die" the man agrees soBobby obliges. Bobby is slowly loosing control of his life at thispoint and everyone including his wife believes that there is somethingseverely wrong with Bobby.

Frankie takes the money he got from Bobby and pays a visit to hisdealer. Begging for more time to get the rest he’s just put himselfinto a hole he may never be able to crawl out of. These guys meanbusiness. Frankie comes up with all sorts of crazy stuff to get out ofhis debts. He even whores his girlfriend out to the pusher to buy moretime. Throughout addiction we meet Ruthie (Lydia Fiore). Ruthie can’tseem to hold a job very long due to her gutter mouth, and doesn’t knowwhat she’s going to do to support her daughter. She talks with a friendone night about watching her daughter so she can pull tricks again..She feels like that’s all she’ll be able to do from now on, that ,that’s all she’s good at. I believe Ruthie holds a very dramatic partto this film and was pretty much the turning point within.

So as you can see addiction is not what you’d first perceive it to be.O no it’s much better than just what the the title says. This movie hadmy attention the entire time; as I was butt firmly planted in the chairwith eyes wide open. The acting was so superb; it only made the storythat much more enjoyable, which was tremendous to begin with. Justwatching Bobby go further down the spiral, and see his life spinningout of control was just pure creepy . Slowly he’d get snappier, andmore restless, until he reached his breaking point where there was noreturn. Addiction is full of tension and eerie thought provokingscenes. I’ts been nice to watch a movie where you didn’t have yourtoken slasher of much blood. Just a plain eerie twist of events thattie each other together. I guess the thing that makes addiction such agreat movie is with the exception of Bobby’s actions these are allpeople we either know or have heard of. That addictions can be in everyhousehold in one way or another. Even the supporting cast would makethis movie worth the watch. The superb team of James Tucker and JoshuaNelson’s effort of Addiction just shows us what we can expect fromthese guys in the future.Murder becomes ones passion. Ones obsession.Ones compulsion.

NOTE: Sequel to Addicted to Murder (1995). This sequel is unusual in that it doesn’t pick up where the first film leaves off; rather it attempts to fill in a gap in the first film. In Addicted to Murder, we followed the first 31-years of serial killer Joel Winter’s life. At 5 years of age, Joel was introduced to Rachel, a vampire who befriended him and taught him to hunt and kill by having him "kill" her over and over again. Between 1990 and 1992, Joel’s mother died, Rachel abandoned Joel, and he moved to New York City where he married and tried to live a normal life. In 1995, however, his marriage broke up and he was befriended by another vampire, Angie, who fed on Joel’s anger and turn him into a vampire. By the time Joel finally caught up with Rachel (@2005), he had become a vampire hunter, and he destroys her. Addicted to Murder: Tainted Blood tries to fill in the years between Joel’s move to New York in 1992 and the point where he has become a vampire hunter.

Arbor Hills, Michigan: It’s three weeks from Christmas, 1992. Joel Winter’s mother has died, so Joel decides to move from his hometown to New York City, hopefully to find others like himself — vampires. Unbeknown to Joel, the woman for whom he has been searching, the woman who made him what he is, the vampire Rachel, has also moved to New York City, where there is a small but thriving community of vampires.

New York City: Karen [Cloud Michaels] is upset. Rachel has returned to New York City and won’t follow the rules when it comes to making more vampires. One of Rachel’s "strays" has found out where Karen lives and come looking to be turned completely. After killing him, Karen rings up Angie and lodges a complaint. It’s dangerous, says Karen, to mix our blood and let it go unsupervised. Rachel needs to be stopped, and Angie, as one of the elder vampires (Angie is over 600 years old), has the duty of stopping her, so Angie calls in a Hunter [Joe Moretti] to find Rachel.

Angie also has problems of her own. Tricia [Sarah K. Lippmann] is one of Angie’s blood, but Tricia is having a hard time learning to function as a vampire. Naturally timid, Tricia has tried placing ads in the Personals column of the newspaper in order to lure victims, but she can’t kill them even after biting them, so Angie has to finish Tricia’s kills. When Tricia finally succeeds at her first kill, Angie coerces Jonathan [Ted Grayson], one of Rachel’s more successful turns, to train Tricia. Angie also puts a tail on Jonathan, hoping that he will lead her to Rachel, but Jonathan succeeds in warning Rachel, and Rachel goes deeper into hiding. When Jonathan also disobeys the rules and feeds on someone of high profile, Angie sends out the Hunter to straighten him out by pulling his fangs so that Jonathan must go for several months without feeding.

Meanwhile, still on his way to New York, Joel is having car trouble. A local redneck stops to help and offers Joel a ride to a gas station. The redneck turns out to be a demon sent by Rachel to kill Joel. He tells Joel that Rachel considers him a toy and that his blood is "tainted." Joel kills the redneck, takes his car, and continues on to New York. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.]

2) Kevin Lindenmuth is a truly talented filmmaker who can do more with asmaller budget than Joel Schumacher could do with all the money in theworld. The Addicted To Murder series proves this beyond a shadow of adoubt.

Addicted To Murder: Tainted Blood finds serial killer turned vampireslayer,Joel Winter, hunting the streets in search of his lost love Rachel. Huh?Youmake ask. Didn’t Joel kill Rachel in part one.

When the film opens it seems confusing to anyone who may have seen theoriginal film. At the end of that Addicted To Murder, if you recall, Joelhas killed Angie and goes on to kill Rachel in an attempt to redeem hisdamned soul. So when the second one picks up, it doesn’t make any sense.However, if you recall in the original, it jumps ahead from the pointwhereJoel realizes that he is a vampire to the point where he has appointedhimself a slayer. Tainted Blood attempts to fill in the blanks.

It succeeds, incredibly, in doing something that I wonder has ever beendonebefore in film history. I’ve seen prequels and sequels, but never a filmthat fills in the years between one point and another, in a completelydifferent film. Usually filmmakers place this extra footage at the end ofaDVD or video in a sick attempt to tease the audience. But this is originaland it works.

The ending has already been shown to the audience in the original film,it’sjust a matter of going along for the ride and watching our makeshifthero’stransition from prey to hunter.

What a grand ride it is, indeed! Kevin Lindenmuth I saluteyou!

NOTE: Sequel to Addicted to Murder: Tainted Blood (1999).

It is 1999. Joel Winter, now a vampire hunter, is living in New York. He still hunts vampires in retaliation for them making him into a killer, but he has gained a higher purpose. Through nightly conversations with demons, "the true creatures of the night", Joel is methodically killing vampires in order to pave the way for demons to return to earth. Vampires all over New York are hiding in fear of him. He has even managed to destroy Angie Karnstein, one of the oldest and most powerful vampires of them all.

Still, vampires are coming forth to be interviewed for a documentary about the supernatural. For example, Karen tells the TV screen about her most recent relationship with another vampire, which ended with her killing him after she learned that he’d been "doing it" with Tricia. Tricia, who became a vampire seven years ago, still prefers the company of humans to that of cliquey vampires. Tricia tells the interviewer how, after rejecting the request of one of her human pets to be made into a vampire and then not killing him, she was horrified to find several months later that Dan [Joe Zaso] had become a demon, thanks to Joel. It took a sprinkling of salt to destroy Dan. In a twist upon a twist, Karen and Tricia end up feeding on the interviewer but find that the entire interview itself was a trap when Joel suddenly appears, machete in hand.

His job finished in New York, Joel follows a trail to Chicago where the master vampire Enrique [Frank Lopez], who goes by the name Santana, is incarcerated in the State Penitentiary. Santana actually chooses to be incarcerated. And why not? He has a deal with Captain Klostermann [Reid Ostrowski]. Each night, Klostermann lets Santana out so that he can find food and commit a few robberies, bringing back the spoils to share with Klostermann. Supposedly in prison, no suspicion ever falls on Santana. Occasionally, for appearances sake, Santana has to bunk with another inmate. This time it’s Dorian Maxwell [Nick Kostopoulos], sent up for murder but reputed to have killed for moral reasons. Santana figures that he can count on Dorian. Besides, Santana knows about the one person Dorian cares about — his daughter Karen — and Santana isn’t above using Karen to ensure Dorian’s silence.

Unfortunately, Dorian begins to suspect that Santana is a vampire. Perhaps it’s because Santana dislikes religion. Or because Santana’s mattress is filled with soil. Or when Santana sprouts fangs and kills two inmates who are threatening Dorian. Dorian puts it all together and decides to confide in Reverend Fulton [Steven Jon White], who relays the information to the warden. When Klostermann gets wind of it, however, he gets Santana to kill the warden and threatens to blame it on Dorian. That night, Santana picks up Karen Maxwell [Deneen Sherman] from her place of work and walks her home. Unbeknown to Santana, Reverend Fulton is watching him. The Rev follows Santana and Karen back to Karen’s house, where he tells Karen that Santana is an escaped convict and cell-mate of her father and that Santana has come to harm or even kill her in retaliation for being crossed by Dorian. Rev Fulton fires 12 bullets into Santana, but he transforms into a vampire and kills them both. Meanwhile, Dorian has been fashioning a stake from a broom handle. When Santana returns to his cell, Dorian has rigged his bunk so that Santana is impaled on a stake when he lies down.

One year later: Santana is back on the streets, and Joel is watching him. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.]

2) Well, it’s not very easy these days to come up with an original idea in agenre that’s as tired and worn out as the vampire genre, but directorKevinJ. Lindenmuth’s ADDICTED TO MURDER is a quirky little opus that stylishlyblends vampires and serial killers to create an interesting andentertainingflick.

Joel Winter (Mick McCleery) is a quiet and seemingly normal guy who has anuncontrollable desire for murder. His world gets turned upside down whentwovampires, Rachel and Angie, get thrown into the mix. With Rachel (LauraMcLauchlin), he finds a relationship that satisfies both his murderousdesires and, in turn, helps to remind her of what it’s like to be human.When Rachel leaves him, Joel vainly tries to recapture that "special"relationship that he found with her. He soon meets Angie (Sasha Graham),whose evil intentions lead him to question the nature of his life.

First of all, I was impressed with the above-average production values ofthe movie. Even though it was shot on video, a lot of effort wasobviouslyput into this by everyone involved. It’s intelligently written anddirected, it boosts good lighting and editing, it features a great scorefrom Steve Maruzzelli and Hector Milia, and has some well-executed goreandmakeup effects from Derek Becker and Ron Chamberlain.

The movie also featured some good performances. Laura McLauchlin andSashaGraham were definite standouts in the cast. The only real problem was thelead, Mick McCleery. His lack of screen presence really started to tax mynerves after awhile. He’s not completely awful, but he sticks out whencompared to the rest of the cast.

Despite a few other minor problems (the "interview" device used in themovieslowed the pace down a little and some of the dialogue was hard tounderstand), this has got to be one of the best shot-on-video movies outonthe market today, next to SAVAGE HARVEST and SHATTER DEAD! Check itout!

3) Great drama, bad horror. Although the film is lacking hereandthere, I still liked it. Addicted to Murder does feature somegoodacting by Sasha Graham, Laura McLauchlin, and BernadettePauley.At times I felt like I was watching a soap opera, which is oneofthe reasons I liked it. The film doesn’t have much blood andguts,which might be a turnoff for alot of horror fans, but one thingthatcan’t be ignored about Addicted to Murder is that it is unique.

Love it or hate it, YOU decide!!!!!!!!

4) Addicted to Murder is a triumph for low budget film-maker Kevin J. Lindenmuthwho manages to combine elements of the serial killer sub-genre, with thoseof the more conventional horror genre, in particular the vampirefilm.The performances in the film are generally pretty good, with the only lowlight being the appearance of the film’s "star" Mick McCleery, whosesomnambulistic style and lack of screen presence would be better suited to azombie film.The make-up effects by Derek Becker and Ron Chamberlain are competentconsidering budget restraints, and overall, enormous potential is displayedby the young cast and crew, who, unlike many other aspiring film-makers, haveput their money where their mouth is…Check it out!

• Continuity: When Anton attacks Sam, the wooden brace supporting the cast on his right arm is broken in different places.
• Continuity: The support brace holding up Anton’s arm after the fight scene is broken, but the location changes. Also, when Anton enters the front door to his apartment, his arms are at his sides (he has trouble getting through the doorway), but inside the apartment his arms are in front of him.
• Factual errors: There’s a lot of bad astronomy packed into the opening minute.

• Continuity: When Sam goes into his girlfriends building for the first time it is daylight. He is in the building for no more than a few moments (Anton is still yelling) when Sam is suddenly back out on the street and it is long past sunset.
• Continuity: When Sam is on the plane looking at pictures of himself and Maggie, one of them has him kissing her cheek and her making a surprise face. However, when they did this pose at the diner, Maggie’s grandmother didn’t take a picture of the pose. She told them to change it.
• Continuity: When Sam paints the wall, he paints the same (unpainted) spot twice.
• Continuity: When Maggie and Sam go to bed after planting the incriminating items in the apartment, Sam’s beard is fairly light, with stubble on his neck. When they wake up the next day, his beard appears darker, with no stubble on his neck. Like he just shaved.
• Revealing mistakes: Maggie and Sam use a “camera obscura” to spy on Linda and Anton. The images they watch frequently are panned and zoomed, much like a modern video camera. But when we see Maggie and Sam, they are watching the images and not controlling the camera obscura. It is simply in a fixed position.
• Continuity: Near the end of the movie, when Maggie is consoling Anton, she takes the strawberries from his pillow with her right hand, shows them to him, then throws them away. Next, in reconciliation, she scratches his head and face with her right hand, spreading strawberry juice all over him again.
• Continuity: When Maggie and Sam walk into Anton’s apartment, Maggie throws her scarf off, and in the next shot her coat is already removed as well.

Cassie is the dramatic centre of the movie, whereas the romances of theother ladies has a comic edge, and Purl brings a pathos to her shycharacter. Her disbelief at Larry’s duplicity is demonstrated by herrepeating a line of denial as she walks away, and Purl freezes in reactionto Larry’s return after standing her up at their proposed wedding – thepainof her humiliation recalls silent movie acting.

The teleplay by Ronni Simon describes Larry as `like an animal stalkinghisprey’, and has Vivian moralise with `He took the one thing we can’t listona police report – our pride’. There is a funny line `A woman at 40 is morelikely to be shot by a terrorist than get married’, and a funny exchangein`He wasn’t even that good. He wasn’t that bad either’. Although the climaxwhere the women gather to entrap Larry is more silly than amusing, thebestscene is at a restaurant where Larry has to move from sharing a table withBetty Ann and Jenny.

Director Arthur Allan Seidelman uses the music score by Richard Bettiswithit’s saxophone jazz for the comedy, and opens with an AmericanGigolo-stylemontage of Larry dressing. It’s just a pity that Boswick’s kind ofsincerityis the type nobody would believe. Bergin has a campy drag queenappearance -at one point she wears a huge fur coat – and her face turns into a grimaceafter she speaks her lines, but Gray’s voice has an unusual resonance, andeven Wallace Stone has some schoolgirl-ish charm.

2) It is unclear if the writer was aware but the central character is apsychopath and the incidents in the film are to be seen in thetextbooks illustrating psychopathic behaviour*. Had this been a betterproduction especially had it had a better lead the extraordinary natureof the (in this case) man would have been more apparent. The psychopathis likely to be be the most charming, most charismatic apparently mostsincere and trustworthy person one has ever met. Hence as correctlyshown in the film, the woman in complete denial of reality. They arealso completely devoid of conscience or empathy – utterly indifferentto the consequences of their actions no matter how serious. Lacking acore reality they spend their lives acting hence it is first nature tothem – and they are able to seamlessly act whatever part will get themwhat they want. One of the cheated women speaks of him "stalking herlike an animal" – that is one of the characteristics along with anintense stare at those they would con and manipulate – they arewatching and reading. Notwithstanding their superficial appearancetheir inner self is reptilian in its utter cold indifference to others.

If only an actor of the calibre of for example Martin Sheen had playedthe lead with his capacity for charm, charisma and intensity this wouldhave been a disturbing and memorable film. Jailing a psychopath wouldnot change his behaviour – it would continue in prison and fully resumeafter release – as the text books attest.

This is a serious topic which merits better handling and widerrecognition.

*authors Hervey Cleckley and Robert D. Hare