Review of What We Do in the Shadows (2014) by Ben B — 13 May 2015

For far too long has the vampire subgenre been given the darkly romantic treatment complete with questionable dialogue, gratuitous sex scenes, and bloodsuckers who all look a bit too similar to each other.

Vampire spoofs have also been made a number of times, but none of them have sunk their teeth deep enough into the source material in order to turn these dark creatures into hilarious characters. Enter New Zealand's greatest talents since Peter Jackson: Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement.

The duo behind the comedy band Flight of the Conchords have created a genre masterpiece that puts the efforts of most professional filmmakers to shame. 'What We Do in the Shadows' is simultaneously one of the funniest genre spoofs in a long time, and one of the greatest vampire films to have graced the screen in years.

Waititi and Clement, who also star as two of the mockumentary's bloodthirsty flatmates, waste not one second of their audience's time in delivering comedic gold. Unlike most genre spoofs, jokes and gags aren't enough for Waititi and Clement.

Their clever ideas and neat spins on horror tropes give each laugh a sense of true originality. The best jokes happen throughout the film's first half, which brilliantly introduces the characters, sets up the world in which they live, and hilariously explains why vampires prefer virgin blood.

As with most comedies, however, the film's narrative is a bit shaky. It falters just a bit towards the end, causing the jokes to become less frequent, but never unfunny. Beneath all the blood-drenched mischief, Waititi and Clement are sure to keep in touch with the emotional context of the characters.

The joys of living forever and drinking human blood are explored in hilarious detail, but the sadness behind it all is never ignored, giving the film a fair and surprising amount of sentimentality. If the film's humor is icing on the cake, then its emotional heft is what Waititi and Clement sprinkle on top of it to make it look all the more delicious.

The result is an unmissable feat in comedic filmmaking, uncommonly fun genre fare, and quite possibly the best horror comedy since 'Shaun of the Dead'.