The Hunger (1983)

Catherine Deneuve and David Bowie are rich, beautiful, and oh-so chic as denizens of the night. Dressed in sleek outfits and stylish sunglasses, they haunt rock & roll clubs on the prowl for young blood, whom they bring home to their impossibly luxurious mansion for a late-night snack. Being a vampire never looked more sexy, but there's a price: Bowie starts to age so fast he wrinkles up in the waiting room of a doctor's (Susan Sarandon) office. The agelessly elegant Deneuve, evoking Delphine Seyrig's Countess Bathory from Daughters of Darkness, is perfectly cast as a millenniums-old bloodsucker who seeks a new mate in Sarandon and seduces her in a sunlight-bathed afternoon of smooth, silky sex. Tony Scott's (Ridley's brother) directorial debut, adapted from the Whitley Strieber novel, revises the vampire myth with Egyptian inflections and removes all references to garlic and crosses and wooden stakes--these bloodsuckers can even walk around in the daylight--but the ties between blood and sex are as strong as ever. Scott's background as an award-winning commercial director is evident in every richly textured frame and his densely interwoven editing, but the moody atmosphere comes at the expense of dramatic urgency. At times the film is so languid it becomes mired in its hazy, impeccably designed visual style. In its own way, The Hunger is the perfect vampire film for the '80s, all poise and attitude and surface beauty. Sarandon talks candidly about the film in the documentary The Celluloid Closet. --Sean Axmaker Amazon.com

 Art house horror with David Bowie
Directed by Ridley Scott's brother, Tony Scott, this 1980s horror vampire film is not a typical vampire movie and yet at the same time is not even a typical motion picture. There is no mistaking though that The Hunger does look great and the lighting camera combination is very gothic urban.

The story strands involve two vampires played by David Bowie and Catherine Deneuve, who kill people to drink their blood so they can have extended life. However these vampires are not the traditional type. They do not have fangs and they can go out in sunlight. Susan Sarandon plays a scientist who thinks that aging is a disease and can be cured. She is sought after by Catherine Deneuve.

The film is notorious for the lesbian scene between Catherine Deneuve and Susan Sarandon. There are also impressive special effects for Bowie's aging process. He grows old over the course of a number of scenes. Apart from this however the film seems to loose touch with the subject matter, freely roaming towards art for art's sake and sacrifices the story so severely that the ending doesn't make any sense because of it.

If you are a fan of Tony Scott, David Bowie, Catherine Deneuve or 80s horror films then it might be worth checking out. Vampire movie fans may want to reconsider and even vampire film completers may hold back. May 10, 2008

 Poignant with a touch of freak
This had some pretty hot moments in it and just about any time Catherine Deneuve showed up was hot as hell. She just exudes eroticism. I liked the story very much. An interesting take on vampires. I really got into Bowie's pain. I tried to imagine what it would be like to experience what he was feeling and why. Very sad. It was a trip to see Willem Dafoe looking about all of 17 and I've never seen Dan Hedaya looking so young either. March 25, 2008

 One of my all-time favorites...
But then I'm kind of a weirdie.

If you like vampires, sublime actors, stories of love, betrayal and eventual triumph and/or the idea of two incredibly lovely women having one of the most sensual love/sex scenes in cinema history, this is YOUR movie.

Plus the soundtrack is so fabulous, it stands alone... Bauhaus' Bella Lugosi's Dead (Live!), Delibes' Lakme, and Schubert's Trio in E Flat all in one movie? Oh yes indeed. March 7, 2008

 yes!
If you like Vampires, susan sarandon, or you just want to see David Bowie in the shower, buy this movie and you won't be dissapointed. February 26, 2008

 Stylish vampire flick.
The Hunger is a stylishly made gothic horror film that also happens to be a cult classic its also Tony Scott's first feature film, I thought that the film was a nice piece of work that is rich in texture and design and it was very artistic its too bad that Tony Scott doesn't make these type of films anymore. I think it was more of a thriller only this time with vampires which I think is very interesting and it also has a different take on the vampire legend, the film is about two centuries old vampires Mariam (Catherine Deneuve) and John (David Bowie) who are a very rich and sophisticated couple, devoid of fangs they bleed their victims by cutting their jugulars with small blades hidden inside amulets of the Egyptian symbol Ankh which is the symbol of everlasting life for the vampires however there seems to be a problem John is aging rapidly since he is not a pure blood vampire like Mariam and is approaching the same end as the previous lovers of Mariam who have died in the past. In desperation John contacts Dr. Sarah Roberts (Susan Surandon) who is conducting research into slowing the effects of aging to find a cure for his condition. The Hunger had a very interesting plot and some nice and memorable scenes like that goth club and the girl on girl sex scene between Catherine Deneuve and Susan Surandon, yes the film was visually impressive but sometimes it seems like Tony Scott tries abit too hard and starts editing too fast. Overall I would say that it was pretty good and the make-up effects on the ageing vampire was great and looked very realistic I was also surprised by David Bowie's acting he was quite good in this film. February 7, 2008

More reviews at Amazon.com ...