Germany’s 2010 vampire film We Are the Night is an action-oriented feminist vampire film about four lady vampires in modern day Berlin. Louise (Nina Hoss) is the leader of a vampire coven of sorts, whose job it is to initiate Lena — the coven’s newest member, played by Karoline Herfurth — into a life of vampirism. The coven uses a rundown nightclub as a front for its nocturnal activities, and Lena soon finds herself at home in her new life. However, the conflict arises from the discovery that Louise might have initiated Lena into this life only because she is in search of an ages-lost love, and that the non-stop partying lifestyle of a 21st-century vampire is not all that it’s cracked up to be.
The movie starts off in a big way with the three lady vampires on board an airplane bound for Berlin… an airplane filled with passengers and crew whom they’ve drained of blood. In dramatic fashion, the trio leap from the plummeting airplane in time (one thinks) to gracefully sail back to earth. Count these three in with the Twilight-era vampire with multiple superpowers: flight, acrobatics, super strength, etc. This pace is maintained through most of the film — from parkour-style chases through Berlin, to knife and gun fights. Little is left to the imagination in this gory stylized romp. So, if you’re looking for a more serious entry into the vampire canon, you might do well to look elsewhere.
The film is very stylish and features a thumping techno music soundtrack. There are a number of grisly and violent scenes strung together to keep one’s interest; however, there is little in the way of character development. Each of the three lady vampires (along with Lena, the fourth and newest member) are given a back-story of sorts. Each has some reason for regretting their life as an immortal and nocturnal bloodsucker. Save these bits (which aren’t all that bad, really) all that the rest of the film has going for it is beautiful photography. And this is not an exagerration. I am hard-pressed to think of a more beautifully filmed horror film in recent memory. All in well, it was an enjoyable film — albeit not a very smart one — that is worth the time of horror film fans, particularly those with an interest in the aesthetics of urban vampirism.
We Are the Night is in limited theatrical release in the U.S. through IFC Films and is available through numerous video-on-demand outlets throughout the summer.