{"id":5601,"date":"2015-07-08T00:34:50","date_gmt":"2015-07-07T23:34:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/?p=5601"},"modified":"2015-07-16T00:47:52","modified_gmt":"2015-07-15T23:47:52","slug":"therapy-for-a-vampire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2015\/07\/08\/therapy-for-a-vampire\/","title":{"rendered":"Therapy for a Vampire"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"der_vampir_auf_der_couch\"<\/a>
Therapy for a Vampire<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n

\nDirector:<\/B> David Rühm

\nWriter:<\/B> David Rühm

\nCast:<\/B> Tobias Moretti, Jeanette Hain, Cornelia Ivancan

\nOriginal title:<\/B> Der Vampir auf der Couch<\/i>

\nAustria, Switzerland 2014

\n87 mins\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

David Rühm’s Therapy for a Vampire<\/i>, which screened at this year\u2019s Edinburgh International Film Festival, is a spry, witty and likable Gothic comedy that puts Sigmund Freud together with a pair of undead shape-shifters in 1932 Vienna. <\/p>\n

Director David Rühm displays an encyclopaedic knowledge of classic horror tropes, with his arch-fiend gliding along with the camera like Lon Chaney Jnr in Son of Dracula<\/i>, or moving out of sync with his shadow like Gary Oldman in Bram Stoker\u2019s Dracula<\/i>. An unusually in-depth familiarity with vampire folklore allows him to include in his film, for the first time that I\u2019m aware of, the vampire\u2019s mythic mania for counting: if objects are spilled on the floor, a vampire must stop what he\u2019s doing to gather them up and count them. OK, I suppose Sesame Street<\/i>\u2019s Count may have exploited this trait previously. But it\u2019s a great device, since it implies that vampirism and obsessive-compulsive disorder may be connected, and suggests that this particular vampire may not be misguided in seeking the help of a therapist.<\/p>\n

Tobias Moretti is both graceful and funny as the lovelorn Count, turning in a physical performance that successfully bridges the gap between supernaturally creepy and funny. Jeanette Hain as his black-bobbed partner embodies the word \u2018vamp\u2019. There\u2019s also an all-too-rare chance to see David Bennent, former child star of The Tin Drum<\/i> and Legend<\/i>, as his disfigured chauffeur and victim-supplier. <\/p>\n

Combining a few simple locations with plenty of fairy tale CGI to create some phantasmagoric settings, the movie manages to look beautiful on a budget.<\/p>\n

This review is part of our 2015 EIFF coverage<\/a><\/A>.<\/div>\n

David Cairns<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n

Watch the trailer: <\/b><\/p>\n