The Hunger (1983)

Director:

Tony Scott

Writers:

James Costigan (writer)
Ivan Davis (writer)

Release Date:

29 April 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Romance

Tagline:

Nothing Human Loves Forever

Plot:

The Egyptian vampire lady Miriam subsists upon the blood of her lovers. In return the guys or girls don't age...

Plot Keywords:

Sex | Goth | Sexual Attraction | Lesbianism | Atmospheric

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Catherine Deneuve	...	Miriam Blaylock
David Bowie	...	John
Susan Sarandon	...	Dr. Sarah Roberts
Cliff De Young	...	Tom Haver
Beth Ehlers	...	Alice Cavender
Dan Hedaya	...	Lieutenant Allegrezza
Rufus Collins	...	Charlie Humphries
Suzanne Bertish	...	Phyllis
James Aubrey	...	Ron
Ann Magnuson	...	Young Woman from Disco
John Stephen Hill	...	Young Man from Disco
Shane Rimmer	...	Jelinek
Douglas Lambert	...	TV Host
Bessie Love	...	Lillybelle
John Pankow	...	1st Phone Booth Youth

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:R21 (cut) | Iceland:16 | Finland:K-18 (1983) | Finland:K-16 (1989) | Australia:M (re-rating) (2000) | Australia:R | France:-12 | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 | Brazil:18

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Alan Parker was Richard Shepherd's first choice to direct, but Parker convinced Shepherd to hire Tony Scott after seeing his commercials.

Quotes:

[first lines]
John Blaylock: No ice.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Best! Movies! Ever!: Sex Scenes (#1.5)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Piano Trio No. 1 in C

Gother Than Thou

"The Hunger" opens with the by now familiar Goth anthem "Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus. Not a bad way to open a vampire film, though nowadays it would seem almost a parody. "Undead undead undead" indeed. Enter Cathy and Bowie into a slick, sleek, neon nightclub, filled to the rafters with post-punks & pre-Goths playing dead. Too bad they weren't as ready for the real thing as they thought they were. You see, Cathy and Bowie are vampires.

This is a visually stunning film, making up for in effects what it sometimes lacks in coherence. It seems that lovely, immortal Cathy, called Miriam, is a vampire queen who has been around since the Sphinx was built, apparently. Bowie is her consort, a once mortal man whose two hundred-odd year lifespan is suddenly winding down at a frighteningly rapid rate. Desperate to find a cure, he seeks out scientist Susan Sarandon, who at first disbelieves Bowie's claims, but is soon convinced when the young and handsomely androgynous man suddenly ages over the course of a few hours time into a decrepit ruin. Miriam, who has had countless lovers over the centuries, gives Bowie the heave-ho and turns her attention to lovely young Sarandon. But Sarandon, though initially easy to seduce (in an erotic lesbian scene) proves to have a will stronger than Miriam's, and Miriam's habit of keeping her collection of ex-lovers cadavers close at hand, proves to be a mistake.

This is a strange film, almost as cold and dispassionate as one might well imagine a vampire to be. It seems to hold the viewer at arms length, not allowing them to experience the emotions of the characters...but the characters, for the most part, are severely lacking in emotion anyway, so the stark emptiness of the film becomes a brilliant mirror. Some vampire enthusiasts might find this boring and confusing, but it's a good effort and not a total loss.

The three main characters are worth watching simply for their amazing beauty and grace. Tony Scott (brother of Ridley) has made a nice, if somewhat bizarre and chilling, work of art here and, like most works of art, it's up for interpretation.