it was channelling THE LOST BOYS
SUCK
This is the second TIFF film I’ve seen this year that’s done a commendable job of successfully finding a new twist on vampire mythology. It’s a loopy and cartoon-y comedy that combines musical elements, satire, sight gags, stop-motion animation and a truckload of actual rock stars (Iggy Pop, Alice Cooper, Henry Rollins, Moby, Alex Lifeson) to make an hilarious observation about the death of the music industry.
Rob Stefaniuk writes, directs and stars in the story of a failing rock band called The Winners (”it’s ironic!”). One night, after another bad club gig, bass player Jennifer (Jessica Pare) goes off with an ominous-looking groupie who turns her into a vampire. When she shows up the following night pale and with glowing eyes, she captivates the crowd with her new vampiric charisma and soon the popularity of the band skyrockets. The success comes with problems though; Jennifer eats people for dinner, the other band members start to develop vampire envy and beg her to turn them and they’re also being pursued by a vampire hunter (Malcolm McDowell - the film actually integrates footage from his 1973 film O LUCKY MAN for flashbacks of him as a young man) who’s looking for revenge.
SUCK plays like a lost film from the 80s (which is a good thing). There were moments when it was channelling THE LOST BOYS and others when it was paying homage to NIGHT OF THE CREEPS and ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW all while blazing its own extremely amusing path into the Canadian vampire movie hall of fame.
For an opposing viewpoint, check out Owen’s review of the film here.
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