The Curse of Styria (2014)

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Excellent but underrated film

Did you people see the same film I saw?

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

An interesting Gothic film that is more creepy than outright terrifying. There's quite a bit of blood, and it should be remembered that in Styria as well as other parts of the Old Country there is no difference between a vampire and a witch. The word used for both, interchangeably, is 'striga', plural 'strigoi'. This is a great study for anyone even remotely interested in vampire lore, but more questions are asked here than are answered--something some like, I however do not. The plight of abused women seems to be the primary theme, and what an abused woman can do about her predicament. Familial love, though, wins out in the end and the striga is forced to leave because of the intensity of that love. J.S. Le Fanu wrote quite a different story, but this is a nice adaptation or inspired piece, and the lesbian theme is really downplayed and made to look more like what Le Fanu intended and wrote as opposed to what today's critics like to repeat for the masses. The cinematography and acting are excellent. I only give this film a seven because the phantasmagoria wasn't phantasmagoric enough, possibly because the reality scenes were too real and interspersed with the nightmare far too often.

I've read the original J.S LeFanu novella written in 1872 and putting it in a modern setting doesn't seem like a bad idea (the key word being "seem") and the castle they rented out as the location looks amazing even when measured against other, higher budgeted versions of Carmilla. My problem with it is that it seems a little disjointed in terms of what works and what doesn't.Being that Dracula was the 19th Century vampire book that caught on I'll assume that you don't know the plot. Lara (or Laura as she's known in the book) stops a car accident (or carriage) from killing a woman named Carmilla. Friendship blossoms between them, with lesbian subtext (although in the movie it's shot in a way which there's no mistake) but soon young girls start dying and a general tries to stop Carmilla from killing more people.Here's what I didn't like. Stephen Rea being the most bankable star looks like he's sleepwalking through the entire movie. Kind of like a "I'm clueless about my daughter in this movie. Okay, Where's my paycheck?". Being that the emotional core of the novella and this movie is Carmilla and Lara's relationship as she's forced to kill a lover thanks to her being a vampire (I assume it was written with a different mindset in the 1870's but that's definitely an interpretation) and it's rushed. It's kind of like "BAM! They've just met and now they're having a romantic night under the stars!" and I mean the day they meet! Elanor Tomlinson as Lara doesn't do well either and it half-translates the novel to a 1989 setting. Meaning half of it has moments that would have worked better in the 1800's. Parts like the townspeople referring to Carmilla as a "gypsy girl" and The General saying something like Lara is of the devil due to her dodging questions and making her uncomfortable. Oh and making Lara a 1980's emo just doesn't work.Onto what I liked. The cinematography and the locations make this seem like it was shot on a much higher budget then it is. The castle especially looks brilliant even by the standards of other adaptations. Then there's Julie Pietrucha as Carmilla, she is brilliant in the role and I do like how this movie portrays vampirism. I also don't mind the change of having The General know and help Carmilla to stop from killing people and it also managed to throw in themes of feminism and it actually blends seamlessly with the story.So is this the Carmilla adaptation I wanted? No. But it's a damn shame considering how close this was to being a good movie for me. So far, if you want a good Vampire movie with lesbian subtext and themes of feminism, I'd suggest something like We Are The Night. This however is worth a look but it just doesn't do it for me as a fan of the book.

This film's DP should have been given every award out there. It was so beautiful the way it was shot. It felt like you moved quietly through every corner of the castle with each character in the film. I thought it was one of the most creative vampire thrillers I've seen in a while. It was dark and mysterious and kept me glued to the screen the whole film. I kept trying to guess how it was going to end and I couldn't which is so nice to see a surprise ending like that. Stephen Rea gives an excellent performance of this tortured Father and Art Historian and Eleanor Tomlinson as his daughter. I'm truly surprised that this film wasn't playing in every theater in America. I think anyone who loves a good thriller will like this film.

Styria comprising all the elements of a renown film, and it will stay on the collective unconscious of those who know which are the real condiments so difficult to achieve, practically, its not only an excellent work of direction of Mauricio Chernovetzki and Mark Devendorf, its an impeccable work of production design, an exquisite photography, and the art work its nothing less than a luxury. With actors like Stephen Rea, Eleanor Tomlinson and Julia Petrucha make the shape for a classic work and one of the few that will stay on the memory of people that really appreciate art works like Styria. Its a shame that always be the movie dealers or business mans that chose the target, most of the time a commercial one. But nonetheless, its classic work