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Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)
Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins
Synopsis: Eddie Murphy is Maximillian, the last of a race of vampires from the Caribbean who travels to New York in search of Rita (Angela Bassett), an NYPD officer whom he considers to be the perfect woman to carry on his dying bloodline. Once he hits Gotham, Maximillian has a series of fish-out-of-water... Eddie Murphy is Maximillian, the last of a race of vampires from the Caribbean who travels to New York in search of Rita (Angela Bassett), an NYPD officer whom he considers to be the perfect woman to carry on his dying bloodline. Once he hits Gotham, Maximillian has a series of fish-out-of-water adventures, which include posing as a street preacher, finding a slum apartment that he magically turns elegant, and dropping plenty of one liners. When Maximillian finds Rita, he must compete for her affections with her partner Justice (Allen Payne), which he does with the help of his faithful and decomposing sidekick Julius (Kadeem Hardison). Wes Craven (SCREAM, NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET) directed this offbeat mix of comedy, horror, and romance, which could be seen as a genre flipside to Murphy's COMING TO AMERICA. [More]
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Angela Bassett, Allen Payne, Kadeem Hardison, Zakes Mokae
DVD Info
Release:
May 1, 2004
DVD Features:
- Region 1
- Keep Case
- Widescreen
Audio:
- Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
- Dolby Digital Surround - English
- Dolby Digital Surround - French
Additional Release Material:
- Trailer - 1. Original Theatrical
Interactive Features:
- Interactive Menus
- Scene Selection
Reviews
Never funny enough to pass muster as a comedy and never scary enough (if at all) to make it as a horror movie.
Given the talent involved, it's almost impressive how much of a misfire the film is.
Is it comedy? Is it horror? Uneven film that never lives up to its potential as either.
Vampire in Brooklyn is neither funny nor frightening and comes up a tedious middle-road hybrid from veteran scaremeister Wes Craven, who directed.
Essentially little more than a romantic triangle with a 'good versus evil' twist, it's not a bad film, but it is also neither winningly funny enough to exploit Murphy's talents nor bitingly scary enough to exploit Craven's.
The horror relies on special effects so obvious that the scares are compromised.
The bottom line is that Vampire in Brooklyn is funny and gross, but saddled with a pedestrian storyline that denies any real magic in its premise and sinks its potential as a dark fantasy.
Murphy's performance is pretty good most of the way, but he needed a stronger director than horrormeister Wes Craven to keep him in check.
News
posted by Jen Yamato September 28, 2006
Horror auteur Wes Craven has announced his return to making his original horror films, and is currently writing his...


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