Anne hated Tom Cruise being cast, she took out full page ads saying how much she was against the movie. Then they sent her a finished cut, She ran more ads praising the movie and admitted how she was wrong. that's class when you can admit when you are wrong.
It's funny - I always find Tom Cruise the MOST likeable when he's playing unlikeable bastards. :) And Kirsten Dunst is brilliant in her ability to play a devious woman trapped in a child's body.
I wouldn't call Claudia du lac "devious," because she simply was a woman trapped within a five year old girl. I would label her predatory and cunning due to her vampirism, but she had a good side to her as well who loved Louis genuinely, and had a love-hate relationship with Lestat.
Anne Rice wrote this book as a way to channel her own grief from the death of her daughter. The girl died young, around Claudia’s age, and Louis’s eternal grief is Rice’s own. Her husband read the manuscript, looked at her and said, “Our lives will never be the same.” And he was right.
I, like Maldraek , also didn't know this. It's so great to still be able to learn new information about these dark, macabre, mysteriously-enticing things I've come to love. 😊
@@RLucas3000 if you do find the link, I'd LOVE to watch it! If not, I'll definitely have to seek it out for myself. Either way, MUCH appreciation to you and Tonga Dew for the increase of knowledge about these things I love. 🖤
Fun facts: Kirsten Dunst was 11 when the movie was filmed. Due to it been rated "R" she couldn´t watch it in the cinemas when it was released. River Phoenix was originally casted as the reporter Daniel Malloy, but he died a couple of weeks before the shooting started, so Christian Slater got the role. He donated his payment to Phoenix´s favorite charity organisation, according to wikipedia.
@@mojosodope45 It's bad PR for a Production Company to allow their young Stars to watch their own R rated performances. Pretty sure there's a Child Protection law in place to prevent such things, and that it is written into their contracts. Pretty sure it falls under Child Exploitation.
RIP Anne Rice. Her Vampire books were what got me into reading as a young adult. I hope someday somebody does a proper adaptation of The Vampire Lestat and Queen of the Damned.
Same. I discovered her books in high school, when my sophomore English teacher was trying to turn us into "lifelong readers" by making us read shitty books and then asking us to write essays that justified her opinions (she would give us an opinion statement and then ask us to tell her why she was right. Oof). I always rebelled and told her why her interpretations of the stories were sophomoric and explained why the books never impressed me. But Anne Rice, her stories I got into. After reading The Vampire Lestat, I couldn't tolerate Louis' whining either, haha.
Lestat is one of the best books I have ever read. Mind blowing sequel to Interview. These books showed that the vampires kept the same personalities they had as when they were mortals.
Anne Rice and her son Christopher made a deal with AMC to produce The vampire Chronicles and Mayflower Witches. It's going to be like walking dead with multiple tv shows.
@@kcvampire They have completly changed everything. Louis is going to be a black brother owner. the story is set in the early 1900s. Claudia is to be a 19/20 year old... to name just a few of the changes.
"I believe I need no introduction." Man, I love that line! Great movie. Kristen Dunst was fantastic considering her age at the time. I believe this was her first roll. Great reaction.
I read the book before the movie came out and when I found out they casted Tom Cruise as Lestat I was so disappointed because I thought 'he's good looking, but not really a great actor'. I really didn't think he could play Lestat. Then I saw the movie and completely changed my mind. He was so great in this. Also, spoiler to the books if you want to read them - Lestat was more powerful than a lot of vampires. He was made by one of the earliest vampires. I think that was why he was able to survive all the death attempts when the other vampires didn't. And this has one of the best movie soundtracks ever.
@@ded-pihto I don't think he is one of the first or one of the oldest. It's just one of the earliest ones made him so he is really powerful. The vampire that made him didn't give him a choice to become a vampire. He made him one without his permission.
@@Busha69 Nothing, the op talked about a girl getting eaten on stage after being stripped, and I think they called claudia louis lover or something in the movie or books or whatever. I just know things like this happened several times in anne rice stories. however, I may be remembering wrong since it's been so long since I read these books.
Growing up in Louisiana. This movie and book have such a special place in my heart. Rest In Peace to Anne Rice. This movie captures a lot of New Orleans aesthetic that still exists today. I rewatch it so much And the performances are amazing by Tom, Brad and Kirsten…. Ps. Those trees at Oak Alley never fail to give me chills.
@@chermebrownsauce8049 lol I don’t know about that but I wouldn’t be surprised. I mean people still practice hoodoo and superstitions still run strong. So if you ever move don’t be inviting just anyone into your house 👀
"The vampire is an outsider. He’s the perfect metaphor for those things. He’s someone who looks human and sounds human, but is not human, so he’s always on the margins.” - Anne Rice 🖤
Anne Rice gave us an amazing mythology surrounding vampires. She made them so much more interesting than the traditional vampire stories, and I love how she tackled so many deep philosophical questions through her characters. And Lestat is without a doubt her best creation. RIP Anne Rice.
You need to read the subsequent books to understand why they were unable to kill Lestat. He was very powerful and Louis’ point of view was skewed. Anne Rice writes beautifully and her books are wonderful to read. Read the next book in the series, “Lestat”. You won’t be disappointed.
Imho, Interview With The Vampire is a terrible book, but a great movie. BUT, the subsequent books are excellent. Now that you've seen the movie, I would go so far as to say that you don't need to read the book, unless you're a hardcore completionist. Go directly to The Vampire Lestat and Queen of the Damned, two of the best vampire books I've ever read (and I've read a few).
I love how the following books are from Lestat's p.o.v. and he basically says Louis is full of shit and the first book isn't really true to what happened.
Agreed. You simply must read the original novels to understand why Lestat was the way he was. All of these vampires have very complex backstories, and if you love character development like I do you will love Anne Rice's style of writing.
Creepy thing, in the book Claudia was 5 years old. Of course that would be impossible to shoot practically but yeah someone with the body of a five year old and the mind of a 60 year old. Yeesh.
Love this movie!! Very underrated...the cast is badass..Pitt, Cruz, and Dunst....the acting is phenomenal 👏..oh almost forgot.....The myth..the legend...Antonio Banderas!!!!
How about ppl stop saying "underrated" for once? Neither the movie nor the actors are underrated. It´s so annoying. Seems like ppl forgot what the word means.
When I heard Cruise was cast as Lestat I almost died of shock but oh man was I wrong. HE WAS LESTAT! Just seconds after he appeared on screen I just totally forgot it was Cruise. Bonkers experience and what an actor!!!!!! Banderas was fabulous so was Stephen Rea! Aaahhhh they just cannot make them like this anymore.
Same here. Played guessing games with coworkers as to who would wind up getting the role and was so disappointed that it was Cruise, but OMG did he ever deliver! He refused to allow anyone to see him as Lestat off the set in order to keep his portrayal of the character secret until the film was released.
Banderas did a wonderful job except in the book he was more like a Leonardo Dicaprio. But at least Claudia was more age appropriate unlike the current series. Rice denied filming rights to the 1st request because they wanted to make Claudia older. I'm not sure she'd like what they've done w/her character in the current series. She modeled that character on her own daughter who died at age 5 or 6.😢
First, Lestat is VERY hard to kill; it has to do with events detailed in "The Vampire Lestat" novel. Second, I found "The Vampire Lestat" to be a MUCH more enjoyable read than Interview. Third: Interview With the Vampire is one of the 3 greatest vampire films: - Interview With the Vampire: The best hollywood vampire movie - Blade: The most badass vampire movie ever - The Hunger: The coolest vampire movie ever. It has Catherine Deneuve, Susan Sarandon, and David FUCKING Bowie. Oh, and Bauhaus doing a performance of "Bela Lugosi's Dead".
Same here it's almost as if the more she wrote the more her talent just got better. Like her sentence structure and everything in interview you could definitely tell it was her 1st book but that by no means Indicates it's bad.
LMFAO when he dances with the corpse and sings in Italian and you two lose it laughing I about pissed my pants. And then he exclaimed, “there’s still life in the old woman yet!“
They didn't say it, but in the books, Lestat mostly kills people who are bad after reading their minds. His Maker or Master, Magnus turned Lestat, gives the young vampire fledgling instructions and truths about being immortal and their cursed existence, and then basically commits suicide by jumping into a pile of flames, laughing as he burned before leaving his estate, lands, and money to Lestat. He was left alone as a new Vampire, discovering things on his own, and beginning his journey, eventually becoming a very powerful vampire. That's why Lestat says, "Don't be afraid. I'm going to give you the choice I never had." He was turned against his will, but he still lives Louis and Claudia a choice. I hope that helps a little bit. :) I haven't read the book in such a long time, but "Interview With The Vampire" and "The Mummy or Ramses The Damned" are still my favorite books by Anne Rice that started my love for reading and writing when I was 16. The second book "The Vampire Lestat" gives the full backstory into Lestat's life as a mortal and immortal life as a Vampire.
Lestat baby trapping Louis remains the funniest thing in vampire film history. Oh! Another interesting thing, River Phoenix was originally cast as the interviewer but he passed before production began. Christian Slater came on and basically did it for free. He donated his earnings for the movie to Rivers favorite charities.
Such a good movie and I loved Lestat. I understand when Anne Rice first heard Tom Cruise was picked for Lestat she was not happy but after seeing the movie she loved Tom. He’s quite the actor. And Kirsten Dunst was excellent. She made a vicious little killer.
Tom Cruise has been an action star for so long that many younger people don't realize that he did a lot of drama, too. One of his greatest performances was in "A Few Good Men" where he shared the screen with a bunch of Hollywood heavyweights. Check that movie out!
So I just now realized, at the end of this reaction, after seeing this movie numerous times, & several reactions to it, that Claudia & her new "Mother", were killed for nothing. That one Vampire Lady said, "It's time for justice little one." But Lestat was still alive, because they did not succeed in killing him.
The books do much more to flesh out this part of the story, and I do mean more than one book covering just that one scene. To kill one's maker is a major crime in the world of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicle, as is it to sire a vampire as young as Claudia was at the time. In the novels, Louis is imprisoned for helping to sire Claudia but this is all a front because the vampires at the Théâtre des Vampires were afraid that Armand would leave them to travel with Louis if given the chance. Louis could feel that Lestat had heard his pleas and come to rescue them, but Armand told him that Lestat never came to help at all...which was a lie, and Armand knew it was a lie because he threw Lestat out a window and broke both his legs to keep him from Louis because Armand wanted Louis all for himself. Armand was the only one who knew for certain that Lestat was alive at this time, and he hid it because he's honestly quite petty and has a tendency to want whatever Lestat has in canon. The Lestat/Louis/Armand/Daniel/David/Marius polycule/partner swapping that goes on for a while is interesting but very complicated for even the most seasoned readers.
The Interview with the Vampire book is part of a trilogy. I'm glad Lestat found a new friend at the end :) Kirsten Dunst's breakout role & boy was she good. What a great soundtrack too.
Wow. I had no idea Anne Rice Died. RIP. She has a complicated relationship with the fandom, but she awoke my love for writing and gothic horror. This movie and her books changed my life.
After reading the books, I was one of those fans who lost his damn mind learning that Tom Cruise was going to play Lestat. I was enraged. But, after seeing Tom in the movie, his performance, his gravitas, I withdrew my complaints and apologized. He was phenomenal.
Love your conversation at the end. What a movie :) The amount of sex symbols in this picture, I'm amazed the screen doesn't melt. Pitt, Cruise, Banderas. And the awesome concept!
I read the book when I was in my mid-teens, and I have to say that I experienced the most confusing bodily reactions of my life. Anne Rice didn't just write "gothic horror"; she wrote EROTIC gothic horror. And it was beautifully written. Also, I've seen Kirsten Dunst in a number of movies, and this was her best performance as far as I'm concerned. Finally, at 38:49 you discuss Tom Cruise's acting. It was a combination of his talent and the character. Anne Rice once said in an interview that if she ever started experiencing writer's block, she would think, "What would Lestat do?" Because the character was a force of nature in the books.
the reason they sleep in coffins is because as vampires they are able to not only read minds but also hear noises far away and near ofcourse and even your blood flow, the coffins block all of that so they can actually sleep
This, nosferatu 1979, and Dracula 1992 were the first movies that ever made me feel sorry for the vampires as a kid because I never thought about what it must be like to live forever, watch everyone around you die, etc. Side note: if the interviewer didn’t try to get Louis to turn him they probably would’ve become friends since he got him to open up and genuinely felt sorry for him instead of seeing him as a monster
Anne Rice is the GOAT in this vampire game (RIP). Her vampires burn to a crisp when the sun rises and turn to ashes, not a glitter ball. Thanks for the reaction!
This is one of my fabulous favorite movies. It blew me away and stuck with me a long time. Another great film is Legends of the Falls with Brad Pitt. I carried the story and character with me for for years.
The story in the sequel book called "The Vampire Lestat" is better. You get to hear a lot of backstory and more about the shit that went down in this story, but this time from Lestat's point of view. He sees things a bit differently. It's pretty badass. I always wanted them to make that into a movie.
River Phoenix was supposed to be the interviewer if he had lived. :( You should really read The Vampire Lestat after this. Takes you back to the beginning - through the Louie period - and comes into modern day. And the Queen of the Damned is also great. AND - Tale of the Body Thief is another great book. Actually all Anne Rice books are great!
I have the entire book series and I started reading it in the 6th grade. The best scene for me is when Louie finally comes to grips with the fact that he has to drink from humans and possibly kill them. I really wish they would have showed it in the film. He comes across a priest and has a theological discussion in the Catholic Church with him and he ends up well eating him. I was on the edge of my seat reading it in the middle of chorus class when I was supposed to be practicing my scales 🤣🤣🤣 It really just changed my outlook on so many things. She was an amazingly profound writer and she shaped my young adulthood and my teenage years.
Armand was miscast, but considering the casting of the next movie, I am completely fine with that. Also re: the theater vampires attacking. In the book, Lestat owned the theater and is friends with most everybody there and he made it to Paris somehow, and sicced them on Claudia. There's a scene about that they actually filmed but then it got cut out of the film for whatever reason.
I've loved this movie since I was a kid. My cousin and I used to watch it together every time we had sleepovers. Then I got into the books as a teenager. I was so sad to hear about Anne Rice passing away. I spent the next few hours watching interviews of her. She was a terrific writer and an amazing person overall. RIP ❤ Edit: You should watch Queen of the Damned next. It's a bit different than the way she wrote it but it's still a cool movie. Aaliyah is awesome in it.
This is truly a beautiful adaptation of the book. Of course things were changed but that is inevitable. The entire vampire chronicle series is truly amazing and in particular Lestate's book and back story is heartbreaking and eye opening into why he is "The Brat Prince" of vampires.
Anne Rice got me into reading for leisure when few other things did. I really enjoyed her take on vampire lore, which made them less "monsters" and more "more human than human", so to speak. That is, a person became more of themselves than when they were alive; more manic in a sense, but always with emotions they would have had before, just amplified. And I really appreciated her retelling of Christian mythology through the story of Memnoch the Devil, where the Devil was ultimately more sympathetic to the human plight than God. Made more sense to me than the real religion ever did (to paraphrase comedian Jim Jefferies: "Why would the devil torture you if you've done bad things? He's gonna dig you! You're his boy!") They took some liberties with Interview with the Vampire, and Anne Rice herself initially hated Tom Cruise's casting, but Cruise knocked it out of the park embodying the character of Lestat. Rice agreed after seeing the released movie and issued him an apology.
Great reaction... the books are even better, especially 'The Vampire Lestat' which tells his story from his point of view, which is incredible. RIP Anne Rice.
Rice wrote this book when she was mourning someone that had passed away, and it very much shows that she worked through a lot in penning it, because none of the other books in the series really carry the same weight (which good, I hope means she healed more and more as time went on), but it's a really interesting way to explore depression and the ways people try to deal with it, how it affects our relationships with other people, and what becomes of you when loss causes you to displace your self worth onto loving other people (and then losing those people on top of it).
In the books, lestat once tried to watch the sunrise in the Gobi desert, only to wake up several days later beneath the ground and the up part of it was he actually developed a slight tan 😀
I still remember how SCANDALIZED Oprah was by Tom Cruise's involvement in this movie, which she expressed when he was on her show to promote it, and his confusion at having to defend his choice/desire to play a blood-sucking vampire. It was very weird.
Oprah. Classic example of emperors new clothes. People seem to collectively believe she is a powerhouse of power, wealth and intellect and her every opinion commands respect. Just watch Bill Burrs opinion of the Oprah/lance Armstrong interview on Conan O'Brien. Sums her up perfectly.
Lestat is a jerk in this book but you see him differently and understand why by the book the vampire lestat. Anne Rice does a great job explaining the origin of the vampires and their powers which gave vampires the depth and intricacy they deserve as opposed to most vampire movies.
HIS " POWER " WAS FEELING FOR HUMANS / HUMAN CONDITION BECAUSE HE CARED NOTHING OF LIFE AFTER HIS WIFE AND CHILDS DEATH, SO THERE FOR HIS "POWER" WAS HIS CRUISE AFTER BECOMING A VANPIER . HE WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT COULD FEEL AN THAT'S WHAT MADE HIM SO INTERESTING TO ALL VANPIRES. I LOVE THIS MOVIE AS WELL , MUCH LOV
The second book - The Vampire Lestat explains that every victim Tom Cruise's character kills is an evil doer in some way, usually they have committed murder themselves. It give Louis' story a slightly different twist.
Yes. People related more to the Lestat character. Anne set aside a whole chapter in the second book, to "undo" the negative things Louis had to say about him in the 1st book. It was a stroke of genius. Lestat became the Vampire "Hero" everyone was hoping for. Changing his character completely. Another stroke of genius was leaving Louis exactly the same. He represents the lost "humanity" of the Vampires in Anne's stories. Very relatable. (Obviously).
"Queen of the Damned " is supposed to b a sequel to this....lastat is the main character...it's awesome.... RIP Aliyah 🙏 she's Queen...she dies such a great job...u get a little off Lastats background...his maker is in this...def worth a watch..yall will love it...I'd give it a 7 give this one a solid 8....
Daniel didnt miss the point... Louis is just the vampire version of Eeyore. The following book is from Lestat's POV. Then you have another 20 or so books. This series is almost 50 years old, continuing up to Anne's death. Its brilliantly written. Anne ended up loving the film. It did capture the feel. Lestat is the Brat Prince, and main character.
The coolest thing about the books (and this movie as a result) is how they span vast periods of time, and Rice thoroughly researched the different time periods and cities so it feels extremely authentic.
Thats the best thing as well. Time moves on and on without mercy and they are left behind looking and thinking and feeling the same. Theres something very depressing about that. Its like that movie a Ghost Story
Kirsten Dunst, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Antonio Banderas and more's acting in this film was top tier, the sets and camera's and more was done impeccable. great job on and off screen to all. One of my fav Vampire films.
The Vampire Chronicles are my favorite vampire series. This movie was the best adaptation to date. ❤ Tom Cruise is the best Lestat! He's exactly how I imagined Lestat would be like while reading the books. I wish they had made more of the books into movies with Tom.
I'd recommend reading the book if only to experience the section cut out of the film between Louis and Claudia leaving America and their arrival in Paris. Mild spoilers, but it details them travelling Europe and briefly becoming monster hunters. Some fans hate it, but I found it amusing.
45:20 "What makes this movie so captivating is you literally see the life story of a person..." "... Watching this man's life unfold in front of you..." Wow. You hit the nail on the head as to why another Vampire story was so poorly done. So many of the characters in another one were deeply interesting but we only ever got a glimpse, but damn, I'd rather see full stories on those instead.
Lestat survived what otherwise would be lethal to a vampire because of his gift of self healing. Dead blood is enough to kill any other vampire. That's why they stop drinking blood before the victim dies.
Read The Vampire Lestat too, and understand the long isolation that drove him to making and holding Louis and Claudia hostage to stave off the loneliness the tortures him as well. Note the dates so that you can see the centuries that divide them. Thank you for sharing this with us. I'm really glad you enjoyed it.
At first Anne Rice was against Tom Cruise as Lestat. She was adamantly against him being Lestat, because she had seen his earlier roles. But when she saw his performance as Lestat she changed her mind COMPLETELY!
Actually, the concept of drinking a vampire's blood to become a vampire is an old one. If a vampire bites you and sucks your blood to the point of draining you, you die. If, however, the vampire drains you to the point of death and then allows you to drink his/her blood, you will become a vampire. It's called being baptized in the vampire's blood.
I LOVE how Tom Cruise pretty much stuck it to Ann and gave a Performance where she had to pretty much write how much she was wrong and that it turned out he was PERFECT for the role. For me...it is the same when people say they couldn't see Kevin Costner play a badguy and then BOOM....3000 Miles to Graceland came out and Costner took the whole fckin thing! Lol surprised the holy hell outta me and it is BY FAR my favorite film of his!
This movie was put at around the same time as Little Women (that K.Dunst was also in). I was at a movie that had Little Women as a trailer and someone calls out when she' s on the screen, "Kill her, she's a vampire!!" 🤣
6:21 It's moments like these that truly solidify why I watch your channel over other film reactors, the 'Goddamn Tom Cruise sucking him!!!', the identical 'What the fuck!!!!' and the 'really makes you feel like your flying' made me cackle :D Thank you guys for always brightening up my day :)
This is Tom's best and most unique roles! And Anne famously didn't agree with the casting but after the movie she's like oops I was wrong lol. I get it cause of his past roles but he killed it! Anne also was just so in love with Antonio and I agree!! And yes this was Kirsten's best role in my opinion. I also would love a better version of Queen of the damned.. it was my fav book and the movie was just so bad. I also think this is the best vampire movie/ story ever. The only other awesome vampire movie is Bram stokers Dracula just a beautiful movie. Hope u guys check it out.. so glad u liked this I loved it since I saw it in the theater! Also RIP Anne Rice she reinvented the vampire myth!
IIRC . The fans of the book were up in arms when Tom Cruise was announced for the part of Lestat. And I believe Anne Rice wasn't thrilled either. No one thought he would be a good Lestat. When the movie came out the fans were agog at how well Cruise portrayed Lestat and loved the movie.
meh..i don't hate cruise but his accent is inconsistent & goes back & forth, & yet not nearly as bad as Pitt's accent. Cruise was too famous to be albe to fully suspend disbelief.
I don't want to spoil anything for you guys but I found out from a video that the reason why Lestat survive the fire is because Lestat is one of the only vampires that tasted Akasha the mother of all vampires the Queen of the Damned he tasted her blood from the statue of her or basically mummified and her blood is so powerful her being the first he is able to heal and able to be very very hard to kill where most other Vampires will be dead at the burning and I can't remember exactly but I think there is only one way to kill aKasha for that you will have to watch the sequel to this movie called Queen of the Damned
Rutger Hauer, Johnny Depp, David Bowie, Gabriel Byrne, Julian Sands, Sting, Daniel Day Lewis, Nicolas Cage, Adrian Pasdar, Hugh Grant, Rupert Everett, Tom Hanks, John Travolta, Jeremy Irons, John Malkovich, Peter Weller, Alexander Godonuv, Colin Firth, and Hart Bochner were considered for Lestat. Julian Sands was considered at first, but Tom Cruise was chosen.
Here's the thing about immortality. The longer you live, the more chances you'll have to do, well, everything. So living forever essentially guarantees that you will, at some point, do even the most unlikely of things. That includes getting stuck some place you can't get out of and no one will ever find you. Think 127 hours, but forever.
Gents, I was a kid when I first encountered this in the mid-to-late 90's. I watched it EVERY TIME it came on TV, back when you had to have a subscription cable package for movies channels. No streaming. When this shit came on, I never missed it, I never skipped it, I couldn't get enough. It's amazing when you think Pitt did this and Fight Club in the same decade. Lestat has always been the case study for vampire archetypes, since this movie's release. It's a work of art. Praise Anne Rice.
Louis is always the perfectionist. He never tastes human blood again. Really interesting character although the books rarely focus on him once more, ordering to zoom in on Lestat and other ancient vampires
One of my favorites! I used to watch this movie over and over again when it came out and also I was obsessed with Brad Pitt and Antonio Banderas Not so much Tom Cruise or Christian Slater but they are cool to look at anyways lol Love that you guys did this! Also Rest In Peace to Anne Rice. Thank you for a masterpiece 🙏🏻
This movie was the first (and basically only) time I saw tom cruise as "seductive" or "alluring". It completely threw me off lol Especially since it's the more traditional role of vampires instead of modernised like the movie "blade" or shows like "true blood" & "supernatural" Its messed up but I truly believed that he wasn't gonna pull it off but I was pleasantly surprised.
@@flovonnejohnson707 I agree actually if o was ever going to be attracted to Tom it would be in this movie but he does get overshadowed for me by Brad Pitt lol I don’t know what it is maybe it’s the big teeth lol
