Review of What We Do in the Shadows (2014) by Edmund P — 22 Jul 2015

I don't really expect that I'd have much to say about this film other than it is pretty damn excellent. The thing is that I wouldn't actually know how to go into an in-depth review without spoiling some of the best bits in the entire movie.

I'd most definitely make a shitty professional movie critic, as I'd have to review all types of films even if I cannot accurately describe the film without giving some of the best bits away. It's almost like the blurbs that appear in the poster, they all say the same thing.

And that's really all you need, honestly, when it comes to this film. It lampoons, yet also pays great respect to, the vampire genre and all its tropes and silliness. I think the closest we can compare it to is, honestly, Young Frankenstein.

Though I think the latter was definitely more a loving tribute to not just Frankenstein films but the entire Universal horror films from the 20s and 30s. Young Frankenstein is one of my favorite comedies of all time, so I don't make this comparison lightly.

Stylistically, of course, they are two different films, but that's what I can compare it to if I had to. The film takes a look at these 4 roommates, vampires of course, and their difficulties in adjusting to the modern world and all its differences from the world they knew.

One of the roommates accidentally, Petyr (or Nosferatu) turns a guy, Nick, into a vampire and so the roommates have to guide Nick through this transition whereas Nick helps them adjust to modern life.

It sounds simple, but it definitely gets results. There's a lot of really funny visual gags, lines and exchanges that are simply too many to mention. It's a smartly written film on top of that and the cast is pretty damn great, top to bottom.

With that said, I do think that the film, near its climax, just before the Unholy Masquerade, slows down a little bit. I don't wanna say that the film ran out of material, but it just slows down. It doesn't last long, of course, and it gets right back on track, but it is something that is definitely a negative in the film.

Perhaps the only negative of the entire film to be honest. I'm trying to find out if there's anything else about the film that I disliked and I'm having a hard time coming up with one. I think that, unless I missed some other film, this might be the best comedy I've seen in 2015.

It's really that great of a comedy. Very little to complain about and I highly recommend it.