Dead and Beautiful

The beauty and dread of the vampire myth is well worn, though not worn out was we see in David Verbeek’s visually stunning take on vampiric glamour. Set in Taiwan it’s the story of five super-rich young people who have nothing to do but give each other turns to indulge as they see fit, on the condition that the others do what’s asked without question.

This can be in the form of a prank that brought them all together at the start of the film when the group recall Mason (Gijs Bloom) back from America to reunite with Anastasia (Anna Marchenko), Alexander (Yen Tsao), Lulu (Aviis Zhong) and Bin-Ray (Philip Juan). It’s in very bad taste but indicative of the arrogant boredom of these people.

The next turn is Anastasia’s who takes the group out of the city to a shamanic ceremony during which the consumption of various chemicals knocks them out for the night. Waking up the shaman is dead and they all have fangs. Panicked a helicopter picks them up, taking them to a hotel that Alex’s father is still developing. It’s here that the group begin to assess the situation and working on the vampire lore that we are familiar with, where they stand. So its mirrors, crosses, daylight and night. And the latter is where this film comes alive as the group stride through the streets in a quest to live the life of the undead.

The background is the breath-taking beauty of Taiwan at night: a vast collage of metal, concrete, glass and light that mesmerises through Jasper Wolf’s cinematography. The group split up as they and we become familiar with them, their situation and their drives. Because as much as boredom hangs over them collectively, these are still individuals and they have their own issues to resolve or live with. These come into play as they variously try to come to terms with their transformation.

Naturally they have to get used to blood and its taste which they experiment with, though not really out of the need for nourishment more out of curiosity; because that is what you are supposed to do according to convention. Those vampiric conventions however are soon twisted and stretched as they adjust and we get to the denouement.

Co-written with Hugh Travers Dead and Beautiful is slow in parts (though not glacial) and you want things to move on a bit. The characters themselves aren’t that interesting though some empathy is built for a couple, if fleetingly. The vampire as metaphor for the idle rich suckling on others for life only goes so far as these people don’t need to suck on anyone to live.

Indeed are they better people once turned? Their preening, privileged awfulness is cast early in the film when they needlessly attack other drinkers in the bar, which they assumed was hired for them. It’s during this sequence that Verbeek frames their wealth, at the same time feeding the prejudices (maybe jealousies) of the viewer.

Dead and Beautiful will be available on Shudder from 4 November.