Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)

A depressed musician reunites with his lover. Though their romance, which has already endured several centuries, is disrupted by the arrival of her uncontrollable younger sister.

Director:

Jim Jarmusch

Writers:

Jim Jarmusch, Marion Bessay (adaptation)

Stars:

Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska

9 wins & 42 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tilda Swinton	...	Eve
Tom Hiddleston	...	Adam
Anton Yelchin	...	Ian
Mia Wasikowska	...	Ava
Jeffrey Wright	...	Dr. Watson
Slimane Dazi	...	Bilal
John Hurt	...	Christopher Marlowe
Carter Logan	...	Scott
Aurélie Thépaut	...	Flight Attendant
Ali Amine	...	Taxi Driver, Detroit
Dave W.	...	White Hills
Ego Sensation	...	White Hills
Nick Name	...	White Hills
Fouad El Achaari	...	Man on Street, Tangier
Hawchi Mustapha	...	Man on Street, Tangier

Storyline

Adam (Tom Hiddleston), an underground musician, reunites with his lover for centuries (Tilda Swinton) after he becomes depressed and tired with the direction human society has taken. Their love is interrupted and tested by her wild and uncontrollable little sister (Mia Wasikowska).

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Plot Keywords:

vampire | musician | tangier morocco | abandoned city | detroit michigan | 

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Taglines:

Cool people never die

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and brief nudity

Did You Know?

Trivia

Michael Fassbender was in talks to play a role.

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Goofs

Dr. Watson makes a comment about the stethoscope around Adam's neck. The ear pieces are hanging on Adam's left side. In the shot in the hallway, the stethoscope is now hanging with the ear pieces on his right side.

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Quotes

Eve: Tell me now about entanglement. Einstein's spooky action at a distance. Is it related to quantum theory?
Adam: Hm. No I mean, it's not a Theory it's proven.
Eve: How does it go again?
Adam: When you separate an entwined particle and you move both parts away from the other, even at opposite ends of the universe, if you alter or affect one, the other will be identically altered or affected.
Eve: Spooky. Even at opposite ends of the universe?
Adam: Yeah.

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Connections

Referenced in Late Night with Seth Meyers: Tom Hiddleston/Maisie Williams/Rooney (2016)

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Soundtracks

Little Village
Written and Performed by Bill Laswell
Courtesy of Invasion Group Limited

User Reviews

A beautifully understated take on the saturated Vampire subgenre

From the moment I heard that Jim Jarmusch was working on a vampire film I was intrigued and was desperate to see what the result would be. It did not disappoint for a second.

Enchantingly atmospheric, it centres around Adam and Eve, two age-old vampires whose marriage has endured centuries of humanity's slap-dash efforts at building worthwhile civilisations.

It strikes a very unusual tone for a film in this genre, although fans of Jarmusch will be used to a certain amount of genre-straddling and refusal to make easily pigeon-holed films. Don't come into this expecting a plot driven film, or especially not a CGI gore-fest akin to a lot of the lazily produced horror/fantasy material that seems so abundant at the moment. The focus is much more on creating an authentic feel and intriguing characters. Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton are virtually infallible in convincingly playing world-weary characters who have lived through plagues, inquisitions and the development of a flawed modern society.

Mia Wasikowska's arrival as Eve's volatile sister Ava is foreseen with a palpable sense of foreboding, providing an uneasy counterpart to Adam and Eve's relative level-headedness, and steps up the stakes for the final act.

John Hurt also deserves a mention for his typically assured and accomplished performance, albeit in a relatively small part.

Overall, an extremely adept piece of filmmaking, which has revitalised a genre which I, for one, was about ready to call time on.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

UK Germany Greece France

Language:

English French Arabic Turkish

Release Date:

25 December 2013 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Only Lovers Left Alive

Filming Locations:

Detroit, Michigan, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$87,989, 13 April 2014

Gross USA:

$1,879,534

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$7,609,187

Company Credits

Production Co:

Recorded Picture Company (RPC), Pandora Filmproduktion, Snow Wolf Produktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Surround 7.1 Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1