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[Suck]
Plot:Suck is a rock'n'roll vampire comedy about a group of musical wannabees in search of immortality and a record deal. The rock band The Winners have sunk so low, they will do anything to make it big. After a life-changing encounter with a vampire, they rocket to stardom only to discover that fame and fortune are not all they're cracked up to be.
Cast:Moby,
Iggy Pop,
Alice Cooper,
Henry Rollins,
Carol Pope,
Malcolm McDowell,
Jessica Pare,
Dave Foley,
Dimitri Coates,
Paul Anthony,
Mike Lobel,
Chris Ratz,
Barbara Mamabolo,
Nicole DeBoer.
My Thoughts:Decent vampire picture.
Review:"Suck" takes the vampire/comedy hybrid sub-genre, and blends it with the rock n' roll horror movie subgenre. Although as of late, we've seen many more vampire comedies than rock n' roll inspired horror films. Nonetheless, the blend works on some levels, but the formula itself is still quite stale. When a failing rock bands lead singer Jennifer leaves a recent gig with a mysterious stranger, she returns to her bandmates, who're led by her ex boyfriend, as a vampire.
Although her bandmates don't catch on to her "change" very quickly, it soon begins to become apparent, what has happened to Jennifer when the bodies begin piling up. And Jennifer is caught in some very..."comprimising" positions. But Jennifer's vampire mojo has caused the band to skyrocket to stardom. So when they find out her secret, they're left with two choices...either throw her out of the band, or continue to enjoy their recent success, and overlook Jennifer's new "tastes".
But as Jennifer begins to turn members of the band into vampires like her, soon...the decision whether to continue on or not, falls solely on the shoulders of her ex/the band leader. "Suck" works for awhile, as it's a different kind of vampire movie, and it pokes fun at itself often -- for example, Malcolm McDowell's role in the film, as a vampire hunter last named Van Helsing...so that's always good. But the movie can become annoying and tedious at times. Especially when it continues to delve into the whole rock music scene, which consists of groupees, sleazebag producers and agents, and the other usual stuff.
As a person who would rather not concentrate on the behind-the-scenes aspects of rock band life, and as a person who's seen enough of these kind of documentaries and films on MTV, and other channels, I found this part of the movie to be quite boring, and just a hinderance. It's mostly because these days, between youtube and television, we get so many behind-the-scenes look at real-life rock bands and their lifestyle, that when it's done in a movie, it just seems flat and hyper-exaggerated. "Suck' does however manage to spice things up a bit with some cameos by familiar faces such as Moby, Alice Cooper, and Henry Rollins. Among others.
Cooper's role in the movie is a very cool one, and plays a big part in the overall scheme of things, and how it all concludes. Rollins role should be entertaining to most people, as he plays a radio DJ who is very politically-incorrect. Moby's role meanwhile is a bit outside of his typical personality, which is always cool, seeing someone play a film character opposite of themselves in real-life. The acting by the actors who play the aforementioned band in "Suck" is pretty decent, and the film pokes fun at the vampire genre, and vampires in general. But not in an annoying, overdone kind of way, but in an 80's, "Fright Night"-revisited style.
It works for the majority of the film, and keeps things interesting when it seems like the movie is losing steam in some of it's less exciting areas and spots. There's not a ton of blood in this movie, which viewers might find odd for a vampire flick. But what blood that there is, makes the movie work. I think the film was written not to be super bloody, but instead use the blood as a function of the overall story. Not a pander to horror fans who just love gratuitous blood and gore. Not much violence in the film either, except a few scenes which you can count on one hand.
But again, this movie aims as high for with it's comedy content, as it does it's horror content. So extreme-violence need not apply really. The conclusion of "Suck" is quite funny, and in the end, makes more sense when you look at the overall story and where it first begins, and then ends up. "Suck" is now a flawless experiment in trying something new with the vampire subgenre, but it's a good effort.
Positives:Nice performances and cameos, decent story, the blood, gore, and violence are worked into the film well, and are a part of the story. Instead of dominating and overshadowing it. Great ending.
Negatives:There are times where the movie gets too bogged down by showing that seedy underbelly of the music business, that we all know about but prefer to not see. Those scenes are predictable and too overdone.
Overall:Three out of four stars.
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