Interview with the Vampire

Neil Jordan's 1994 adaptation of Anne Rice's novel arrived amid considerable controversy, chiefly over the casting of Tom Cruise as the vampire Lestat. Rice herself publicly objected, only to reverse her opinion after seeing the finished film, taking out a full-page ad in Variety to praise Cruise's performance. The movie went on to gross more than $223 million worldwide from a $60 million budget, proving that a brooding, philosophical horror film could connect with a broad audience.

Brad Pitt plays Louis, a guilt-ridden plantation owner turned vampire against his will, who recounts his two centuries of undead existence to a cynical San Francisco reporter. Kirsten Dunst, then eleven years old, earned a Golden Globe nomination for her role as Claudia, a child trapped forever in a young girl's body. The film's visual language, shot by Philippe Rousselot and scored by Elliot Goldenthal, established a gothic romanticism that influenced vampire fiction for decades afterward. [edit]

In present-day San Francisco, a jaded reporter named Daniel Molloy meets a pale, elegant stranger in a dilapidated hotel room. The stranger, Louis de Pointe du Lac, claims to be a vampire and offers to tell his story. Molloy, skeptical but intrigued, records the confession.

Louis begins in 1791 on his Louisiana indigo plantation, where he is consumed by grief over the death of his wife and unborn child. He wanders the New Orleans streets at night, hoping for death, but instead attracts the attention of Lestat de Lioncourt, a flamboyant and predatory vampire. Lestat offers Louis a choice: die as a mortal or become a vampire. Louis accepts, and Lestat drains his blood, replacing it with his own.

Almost immediately, Louis regrets the transformation. While Lestat kills humans with relish, Louis refuses to take human life, subsisting on animal blood. This moral rift strains their relationship. To bind Louis to him, Lestat turns a young orphan girl, Claudia, into a vampire. Claudia is physically a child but mentally an adult, and she quickly adapts to the kill. Over decades, she forms a deep bond with Louis, while growing to hate Lestat for cursing her with an eternal childhood.

Claudia eventually plots to murder Lestat. She and Louis flee New Orleans, traveling across Europe in search of other vampires. In Paris, they discover a coven led by the ancient, enigmatic Armand. Armand's Théâtre des Vampires stages performances where real killings are part of the show. Louis is drawn to Armand, while Claudia grows suspicious of the coven's intentions. The story builds toward a violent confrontation that will determine the fate of all involved.[edit]