Anni Finsterer Movies
The second and third novels in author Anne Rice's popular book series The Vampire Chronicles provide the inspiration for this horror sequel starring ill-fated actress and recording artist Aaliyah, who was killed in an airplane crash before the film's release. Stuart Townsend is the vampire Lestat, who has awakened from a century-long slumber and turned his considerable energy to rock music. His vampirism identity mistaken for a gothic hard rock publicity stunt along the lines of Kiss or Marilyn Manson, he quickly becomes a pop music sensation. Lestat's powerful music reaches the ear of the slumbering Akasha (Aaliyah), the millennia-old "queen of the vampires" who was the first immortal bloodsucker. Akasha is soon free and embarking on a quest to seize control of the world with Lestat at her side. In the meantime, Lestat becomes an object of fascination for Jesse Reeves (Marguerite Moreau), member of a secret order studying the supernatural called the Talamasca, and a band of ancient vampires come together in an effort to stop Akasha, even though her destruction could potentially cause their own deaths. Queen of the Damned co-stars Lena Olin and Vincent Perez. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aaliyah, Stuart Townsend, (more)
- 1999
Recalling This Is Spinal Tap (1984), this darkly funny Australian mockumentary details the decidedly inglorious rise and fall of Dan Vardy-Cobb, the self-proclaimed "sensitive new age warrior." The film opens with Vardy-Cobb working in his father's lawnmower shop in the suburbs of Melbourne. At a talent show, he is "discovered" by an agency representative while singing "Chrystalized (by Your Touch)," a song inspired by his kind-hearted girlfriend Chrystal. Prodded by the agency, the ambitious Vardy-Cobb hands over a wad of cash to produce his first CD, "Lake of Love." The album goes nowhere and the only gig he can book is a disastrous lunchtime concert at a mall where he is mercilessly heckled by a band of snotty teens. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Dalley, Sally Lightfoot, (more)
Sex and the singles scene is a much explored and exploited subject in cinema, particularly in the 1990's. Strange Fits of Passion tries to avoid clichés in narrating a young woman's desperate crusade to lose her virginity. The result is a bittersweet fable in which the protagonist takes the viewer along on her journey through hilarious sexual and social misadventures as she struggles to discover the meaning of sex, love, and desire in a world which is post-modern and post-everything. The first film of actress and stage director Elise McCredie, Strange Fits of Passion was chosen for the International Critics' Week at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michela Noonan, Mitchell Butel, (more)
- 1996
This Australian melodrama of obsessive love and violence is as humid and brooding as the Papuan jungle in which most of was filmed. Set in a remote town in Papua, New Guinea (some scenes were shot in Northern Australia) the story begins as the bereaved widower Jack gets increasingly drunk with Sal the barkeeper and Steve, an ex-missionary. Rose, his wife has just died under mysterious circumstances. Time passes and Jack, who earns a meager living showing violent action-films to local villagers journeys to Melbourne for new movies. There he meets romance novelist Kate, a woman who uncannily resembles the late Rose. Jack quickly launches a romantic campaign and successfully lures Kate back to his lush jungle home where they spend much time making love and being happy. Unfortunately, Jack slowly changes. First he tries to get Kate to wear Rose's clothing. He then compulsively spends his time staring at films of Rose. It doesn't take long for Kate to see in the films that there was something going on between Rose and Sal. The implications coupled with Rose's sudden demise frightens Kate. Meanwhile, the village youth grow increasingly violent. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tchéky Karyo, Rachel Griffiths, (more)
