Taglines: A comic tale of horror and seduction.
Vampire in Brooklyn movie storyline. Maximillian is the only survivor from a race of vampires on a Caribbean Island, and as a vampire, he must find a mate to keep the line from ending. He knows that a child had been born to a woman who had a vampire father, and he searches for her in Brooklyn. Rita’s mother, who has died in an asylum, was that woman and Rita has nightmares that she does not understand.
Not knowing that she is part vampire, Max woos her and attempts to bring her to her blood sucking destiny. Even though Rita has strange dreams and actions, Justice, her partner, has feelings for her and does not want her involved with this stranger Max. But it is Rita who must decide her destiny.
Vampire in Brooklyn (also known as Wes Craven’s Vampire in Brooklyn) is a 1995 American comedy horror film directed by Wes Craven. Eddie Murphy, who also produced and stars in the film, wrote the film’s script, alongside Vernon Lynch and Murphy’s older brother Charles Q. Murphy. Vampire in Brooklyn co-stars Angela Bassett, Allen Payne, Kadeem Hardison, John Witherspoon, Zakes Mokae, and Joanna Cassidy. Murphy also plays an alcoholic preacher and a foul-mouthed Italian gangster. The film was released in the United States on October 27, 1995. Despite negative reviews, the film became a cult film among fans.
About the Production
In the retrospective book Wes Craven: The Art of Horror, the author John Kenneth Muir said, “Given the fact that A Vampire in Brooklyn is an entry in an over-exposed horror genre (the vampire film) and an uneasy mix of humor and horror, it is amazing that it is successful at all. The chemistry between Bassett and Murphy is strong, Kadeem Har[d]ison and John Witherspoon are adept at comedy, the special effect sequences and transformations are startling, and the overall 1930s-’40s mood is charming.” He also praised J. Peter Robinson’s musical score, calling it “delightful”.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Murphy gave a reason Vampire in Brooklyn was a failure. “The only way I was able to do Nutty Professor and to get out of my Paramount deal, I had to do Vampire in Brooklyn. But you know what ruined that movie? The wig. I walked out in that longhaired wig and people said, ‘Oh, get the fuck out of here! What the hell is this?'”
In an interview with director Mick Garris, Wes Craven stated that the movie was difficult to make because Murphy did not want to be funny, instead aiming to play his character totally straight.
In an interview with The A.V. Club, John Witherspoon stated Vampire in Brooklyn was “one of my favorite movies. I had the chance to holler and scream.” About Craven, he said, “Wes Craven, oh my God, he’s funny; he’s hilarious. But so, they let me ad-lib. But the worst thing about ad-libbing is that when you shoot it again, you don’t remember what you said. So he would take notes and tell me what I said. I said, “I said that?”
So many lines that you say you forget that you say anything—you’re just ad-libbing, you’re not committing it to memory. So it was kind of difficult working with him, because he shot a lot of scenes, you know, instead of shooting one scene and get the genius of it all, he’d shoot it from different angles. So now I gotta think about what I said. He had a little pencil and he wrote it down, he came up to me said, “I want you to say that again, that was so funny.” That was kind of a difficult movie. But by the end of it, I just stuck with the script.”
Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)
Directed by: Wes Craven
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Angela Bassett, Allen Payne, Kadeem Hardison, Zakes Mokae, Joanna Cassidy, Messiri Freeman, W. Earl Brown, Vickilyn Reynolds
Screenplay by: Charles Q. Murphy, Michael Lucker, Chris Parker
Production Design by:
Cinematography by: Mark Irwin
Film Editing by: Patrick Lussier
Costume Design by: Ha Nguyen
Set Decoration by: Bob Kensinger
Art Direction by: Cynthia Kay Charette, Gary Diamond
Music by: J. Peter Robinson
MPAA Rating: R for strong language and vampire violence.
Distributed by: Paramount Pictures
Release Date: October 27, 1995
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