Thirst Quenches As A Thoroughly Modern Vampire Film
South Korean filmmaker Park-Chan Wook's film Thirst rewrites the classic vampire myth into an extraordinarily modern tale. The vampire revival is escalating in popularity with the latest movie releases, TV shows, and books based on this beguiling creature of the night. If you're after a blood thirsty fang feast with an original twist and you don't mind the English subtitles this is definitely the film to watch.
In 1922 F.W Murnau directed the iconic silent black and white film Nosferatu. It's commonly believed that this was the first cinematic film shot about vampires, however, in 1913 Robert G. Vignola released the aptly titled film The Vampire, loosely based on a Rudyard Kipling poem of the same title. These films took the first steps into the dark world that has recently taken over popular culture.
The film centers around a priest in a small Asian village, played by Kang-Ho Song, a well-known Korean actor, A deadly virus has broken out in the town and the hospital has called for volunteers to assist in finding a cure. Priest Sang-hyeon (Kang-Ho Song) selflessly gives his body to the cause. After they inject him with the virus he comes close to death before being given a blood transfusion which mistakenly mixes his infected blood with that of a vampire's. He must now fight against his faith and his new carnal desires.
Tae-Joo (Ok-Vin Kim) plays the female lead, married to his long-time friend. She seductively lures the priest into a dark world filled with cardinal sins galore. As innocent as she seems, Tae-Joo falls quite comfortably into deceit and trickery. Her playfully performed naivety catches the priests attention and the web spun creates a mess of bloodshed, lies and questioning.
Priest Sang-hyeon brings a new twist to the modern vampire and it's not just the vampiric allure that makes this movie worth watching, the storyline is so well written it brings South Korean cinema into the forefront of artistic genius.
Director Park-Chan Wook, has already garnered praise and respect within the film industry and this new film has claimed the Jury Prize at Cannes Film Festival. He is one of Korea's most highly acclaimed directors and his 2003 film 'Old Boy' also won at Cannes.
Park-chan's films conjure up original visions that are presented in a style so cool and modern you can't help but watch them all the way to the end. Thirst is no exception. It delivers an unconventional view on the vampiric legend.
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