Jim Jarmusch Only Lovers Left Alive

Cast: Tom Hiddleston, Tilda Swinton, Mia Wasikowska, John Hurt, Anton Yelchin
Director: Jim Jarmusch
Genre: Drama, Horror, Romance
Rated: MA
Running Time: 123 minutes

Synopsis: Set against the romantic desolation of Detroit and Tangiers, an underground musician, Adam (Tom Hiddleston), deeply depressed by the direction of human activities, reunites with his resilient and enigmatic lover, Eve (Tilda Swinton).

Their love story has already endured several centuries at least, but their debauched idyll is soon disrupted by her wild and uncontrollable younger sister, Ava (Mia Wasikowska).

Can these wise but fragile outsiders continue to survive as the modern world collapses around them?

Only Lovers Left Alive
Release Date: April 17th, 2014

 

Director's Statement

Only Lovers Left Alive is an unconventional love story between a man and a woman, Adam and Eve. (My script was partially inspired by the last book published by Mark Twain: The Diaries of Adam and Eve - though no direct reference to the book is made other than the character's names.) These two lovers are archetypal outsiders, classic bohemians, extremely intelligent and sophisticated - yet still in full possession of their animal instincts. They have traveled the world and experienced many remarkable things, always inhabiting the shadowed margins of society. And, like their own love story, their particular perspective on human history spans centuries - because they happen to be vampires.

But this is not your usual vampire story. Set in the very distinct cities of Detroit and Tangier, and taking place almost entirely at night, Adam and Eve must have human blood to survive. But they now live in the world of the 21st century where biting the neck of a stranger would be reckless and regressive - for survival, they must be certain the blood that sustains them is pure and free of disease or contamination. And, almost like shadows, they have learned long ago to deftly avoid the attention of any authorities.

For our film, the vampire is a resonant metaphor - a way to frame the deeper intentions of the story. This is a love story, but also the story of two exceptional outsiders who, given their unusual circumstances, have a vast overview of human and natural history, including stunning achievements and tragic and brutal failures. Adam and Eve are themselves metaphors for the present state of human life - they are fragile and endangered, susceptible to natural forces, and to the shortsighted behavior of those in power.

 

Characters

Adam is pale and thin and appears to be in his early or mid 30's, but with an ageless, almost preserved quality. He possesses a strong personality with tendencies towards a moody and brooding, Hamlet-like disposition. Adam's clothes are a time-warp from the mid -60s London rock'n'roll style, with dark, messy hair (ala Sid Barrett). In contradiction, his delicate white hands may cradle a renaissance lute across his lap, or a vintage electric guitar: he surrounds himself with stringed instruments as well as a wealth of vintage electronics and recording equipment. Though particularly highly perceptive of sound and music, Adam's interest and knowledge in the arts, science, literature, history, medicine and mathematics is expansive even for someone of his age - at least several hundred years old. While he is a true believer in the gifts of human expression, Adam feels that the greatest tragedy is humanity's lack of a true appreciation for the imagination and its many manifestations, as well as its inability to apply and develop some of mankind's most innovative discoveries.

Slightly older than Adam, Eve appears to be in her late 30's or early 40's but, like Adam, there is something ageless about her. They both appear as eccentric outsiders, from another place, time, or even planet. She
is the irreplaceable yin to Adam's yang, bringing his mood up when he grows weary or depressed, and restoring his faith in the human imagination when he is in doubt. She also possesses the uncanny ability to determine the age of any object with a brief touch of her delicate fingertips. Eve is graceful, luminous and impeccably dressed. She wears western boots and hats, and vintage white denim jackets with matching slim jeans. Her hair is pale blonde, her skin nearly translucent white, and her lips often colored deep red with lipstick. Several thousand years older than Adam, Eve possesses an exuberant appreciation for eternal consciousness. She believes their immortality is a great gift not to be squandered and that life, though precarious and fragile, is too far precious to be wasted.

Ava is Eve's younger 'sister". She is extremely pale, and appears 'related" to Eve. She is at least a decade younger, with a petulant, mischievous face. She is big trouble. She wears very trendy and somewhat
revealing clothing including a very short polka-dot dress and platform shoes. She is from the UK but has been living in Los Angeles prior to appearing at Adam's house and has picked up some almost 'Valley-girl"
attributes, which Adam finds very annoying. Ava acts childlike as a way to manipulate others, especially Eve. Ava did something very bad in the past (in Paris in 1926) implicating Adam and Eve, which neither have forgotten, and which Adam will never forgive.

Marlowe is an older man, but striking; his eyes assured, but cautious. He is thin and wears a trimmed beard and an odd mixture of clothing representing both the late Sixteenth and late Twentieth centuries. He is in fact the great poet and playwright, Christopher Marlowe, having evidently been turned into a vampire at his present age some three and a half centuries ago. Marlowe is wise and extremely loyal, but also opinionated and volatile. In his surly way he clearly adores Eve and Adam. Marlowe has lived a bohemian existence in Tangiers for a very long time, where he owns a bar/café, and has a devoted and longtime Moroccan lover, a male. It is revealed that Marlowe continues to write, and is secretly the author of much of the works the world erroneously attributes to Shakespeare.

Only Lovers Left Alive
Release Date: April 17th, 2014