Interview with the Vampire is a
vampireVampires are legendary creatures said to subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, generally by drinking their blood. Although typically described as undead, some minor traditions believed in vampires that were living people....
novelA novel is a long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by
Anne RiceAnne Rice is a best-selling American author of gothic and religious-themed books from New Orleans, Louisiana. She was married to poet and painter Stan Rice for 41 years until his death from cancer in 2002...
written in 1973 and published in 1976. The novel, the first to feature the enigmatic vampire
LestatLestat de Lioncourt is a fictional character appearing in several novels by Anne Rice, including The Vampire Lestat. He is a vampire and the main character in the majority of The Vampire Chronicles, narrated in first person.-Publication history:...
, was followed by several
sequelA sequel is a work in literature, film, or other media that chronologically portrays events following those of a previous work.In many cases, the sequel continues elements of the original story, often with the same characters and settings. A sequel can lead to a series, in which key elements appear...
s, collectively known as
The Vampire ChroniclesThe Vampire Chronicles is a series of novels by Anne Rice that revolves around the fictional character Lestat de Lioncourt, a French nobleman made into a vampire in the 18th century....
. A film version,
Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire ChroniclesInterview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles is a 1994 film, based on the 1976 novel Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice. The film was directed by Neil Jordan, and stars Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Antonio Banderas, and Kirsten Dunst...
, was released in 1994 starring
Brad PittWilliam Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. He has been cited as one of the world's most attractive men, a label that entices the media to report on his off-screen life...
,
Kirsten DunstKirsten Caroline Dunst is an American actress, model, and singer. She made her film debut in Oedipus Wrecks, a short film directed by Woody Allen for the anthology New York Stories . At the age of 12, Dunst gained widespread recognition playing the role of vampire Claudia in Interview with the...
,
Antonio BanderasJosé Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor and singer. He began his acting career at age 19 with a series of films by director Pedro Almodóvar and then appeared in high-profile Hollywood films including Assassins, Evita, Interview with the Vampire,...
,
Christian SlaterChristian Michael Leonard Slater is an American actor who has starred in films such as Heathers, Kuffs, True Romance, He Was a Quiet Man, Broken Arrow, The Legend of Billie Jean and Pump Up The Volume....
and
Tom CruiseThomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known by his screen name of Tom Cruise, is an American actor and film producer. Forbes magazine ranked him as the world's most powerful celebrity in 2006. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and won three Golden Globe Awards...
.
To date, the novel has sold some 8 million copies worldwide.
Published in 1976,
Interview with the Vampire quickly became a
cultCult may popularly refer to a religious group with relatively few adherents whose beliefs or practices are regarded by others as strange or sinister.The term "cult" was originally used to denote a system of ritual practices...
success, and a prominent influence on present
GothThe goth subculture is a contemporary subculture found in many countries. It began in the United Kingdom during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the post-punk genre. The goth subculture has survived much longer than others of the same era, and has continued to diversify...
culture.
I have never seen a vision, nor learned a secret, that would damn or save my soul.
The world changes, we do not; therein lies the irony that finally kills us.
Locked together in hatred. I can hate Lestat. But I can't hate you, Louis. Louis, my love, I was mortal until you gave me your immortal kiss. You became my mother and my father, and so I'm yours forever. But now it's time to end it, Louis. Now it's time to leave him.
Don't be afraid. I'm going to give you the choice I never had.
Evil is a point of view. God kills indiscriminately, and so shall we. For no creatures under God are as we are; none so like him as ourselves.
That morning I was not yet a vampire, and I saw my last sunrise. I remember it completely, and yet I can't remember any before it. I watched its whole magnificence for the last time as if it were the first. And then I said farewell to sun light, and set out to become what I became.
Forgive me if I have a lingering respect for life.
Interview with the Vampire is a
vampireVampires are legendary creatures said to subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, generally by drinking their blood. Although typically described as undead, some minor traditions believed in vampires that were living people....
novelA novel is a long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by
Anne RiceAnne Rice is a best-selling American author of gothic and religious-themed books from New Orleans, Louisiana. She was married to poet and painter Stan Rice for 41 years until his death from cancer in 2002...
written in 1973 and published in 1976. The novel, the first to feature the enigmatic vampire
LestatLestat de Lioncourt is a fictional character appearing in several novels by Anne Rice, including The Vampire Lestat. He is a vampire and the main character in the majority of The Vampire Chronicles, narrated in first person.-Publication history:...
, was followed by several
sequelA sequel is a work in literature, film, or other media that chronologically portrays events following those of a previous work.In many cases, the sequel continues elements of the original story, often with the same characters and settings. A sequel can lead to a series, in which key elements appear...
s, collectively known as
The Vampire ChroniclesThe Vampire Chronicles is a series of novels by Anne Rice that revolves around the fictional character Lestat de Lioncourt, a French nobleman made into a vampire in the 18th century....
. A film version,
Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire ChroniclesInterview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles is a 1994 film, based on the 1976 novel Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice. The film was directed by Neil Jordan, and stars Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Antonio Banderas, and Kirsten Dunst...
, was released in 1994 starring
Brad PittWilliam Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. He has been cited as one of the world's most attractive men, a label that entices the media to report on his off-screen life...
,
Kirsten DunstKirsten Caroline Dunst is an American actress, model, and singer. She made her film debut in Oedipus Wrecks, a short film directed by Woody Allen for the anthology New York Stories . At the age of 12, Dunst gained widespread recognition playing the role of vampire Claudia in Interview with the...
,
Antonio BanderasJosé Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor and singer. He began his acting career at age 19 with a series of films by director Pedro Almodóvar and then appeared in high-profile Hollywood films including Assassins, Evita, Interview with the Vampire,...
,
Christian SlaterChristian Michael Leonard Slater is an American actor who has starred in films such as Heathers, Kuffs, True Romance, He Was a Quiet Man, Broken Arrow, The Legend of Billie Jean and Pump Up The Volume....
and
Tom CruiseThomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known by his screen name of Tom Cruise, is an American actor and film producer. Forbes magazine ranked him as the world's most powerful celebrity in 2006. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and won three Golden Globe Awards...
.
To date, the novel has sold some 8 million copies worldwide.
Publication and critical reaction
Published in 1976,
Interview with the Vampire quickly became a
cultCult may popularly refer to a religious group with relatively few adherents whose beliefs or practices are regarded by others as strange or sinister.The term "cult" was originally used to denote a system of ritual practices...
success, and a prominent influence on present
GothThe goth subculture is a contemporary subculture found in many countries. It began in the United Kingdom during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the post-punk genre. The goth subculture has survived much longer than others of the same era, and has continued to diversify...
culture. The novel was set apart from its predecessors of the
vampire genreVampires are legendary creatures said to subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, generally by drinking their blood. Although typically described as undead, some minor traditions believed in vampires that were living people....
by its
confessionalA confessional is a small, enclosed booth used for the Sacrament of Penance, often called confession, or Reconciliation. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church, but similar structures are also used in Anglican churches of an Anglo-Catholic orientation, and also in the...
tone from the vampire's perspective, touching on
existential despairLike “rationalism” and “empiricism,” “existentialism” is a term that belongs to intellectual history. Its definition is thus to some extent one of historical convenience...
and the sheer boredom of lifeless
immortalityImmortality is the concept of living in a physical or spiritual form for an infinite or inconceivably vast length of time....
.
Rice reported in her biography that the themes of vampirism and the tone of the book echoed her daughter Michele's death from
leukemiaLeukemia is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow and is characterized by an abnormal proliferation of blood cells, usually white blood cells . Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
in 1972.
Interview is distinct from its sequels in its sombre tone, and subsequently the perspective shifts to that of the vivacious Lestat. Nevertheless, it remains the best-selling and best-received of Rice's books.
Plot summary
In San Francisco, a vampire named
LouisLouis de Pointe du Lac is a fictional character in The Vampire Chronicles novels written by Anne Rice. He began his life as a mortal man, and later became a vampire. He is the protagonist and antihero of Interview with the Vampire, the first of the The Vampire Chronicles...
tells his 200-year-long life story to reporter
Daniel MolloyDaniel Molloy is a fictional character in the Vampire Chronicles universe created by Anne Rice. He first appeared in the novel Interview with the Vampire, but also makes appearances in The Queen of the Damned, and briefly in Blood and Gold....
(who is only referred to as "the boy" in the novel).
In 1791, Louis was a young indigo plantation owner living south of New Orleans,
LouisianaThe State of Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state divided into parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. Distraught with guilt over his younger brother's
suicideSuicide is the intentional killing of one's self. Many dictionaries also note the metaphorical sense of "willful destruction of one's self-interest"...
and seeking death in any way possible, Louis is approached by a vampire named Lestat, who desires for Louis' company. Lestat turns Louis into a vampire (although initially Louis merely begs to be killed) and the two become immortal companions. Lestat spends some time feeding off the local plantation slaves while Louis, who finds it morally impossible for him to murder humans to survive, feeds from animals.
Louis and Lestat are forced to leave when Louis' slaves begin to fear the monsters with which they live and instigate an uprising. Louis sets his own plantation aflame; he and Lestat exterminate the plantation slaves to keep word from spreading about vampires living in Louisiana. Gradually, Louis bends under Lestat's influence and begins feeding from humans. He slowly comes to terms with his vampire nature but also becomes increasingly repulsed by what he perceives as Lestat's total lack of compassion for the humans he preys upon.
Escaping to New Orleans proper, Louis feeds off a plague-ridden young girl one night, whom he finds next to the corpse of her mother. Louis begins to think of leaving Lestat and going his own way and fearing that is what Louis might do, Lestat then turns the girl, who has nearly reached the point of death, into a vampire “daughter” for them, naming her “Claudia” in the process (her real name is never revealed). Louis then is forced to stay by Lestat, because of Claudia.
Louis is horrified that Lestat has turned a child into a vampire, but instantly he cares for Claudia tenderly and dotingly. She takes to killing easily, but Claudia begins to hate Lestat as she realizes she can never grow up; although her mind matures into that of an intelligent, assertive woman, her body remains that of a six-year-old girl. After 60 years of living together, Claudia hatches a plot to dispose of Lestat by poisoning him and cutting his throat. Claudia and Louis then dump his body into a nearby swamp. After realizing that they seem to now be the only vampires living in America, Claudia desires to travel to Europe with Louis and seek out "Old World" vampires.
As Louis and Claudia prepare to flee to Europe, Lestat appears, having survived and recovered from Claudia's attack, and attacks them in turn. Louis sets fire to their home and barely escapes with Claudia, leaving a furious Lestat to be consumed by the flames.
Arriving in Europe, Louis and Claudia seek out more of their kind. They travel throughout
eastern EuropeEastern Europe is a region lying in the Eastern part of Europe. The term is highly context-dependent and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
first and do indeed encounter vampires, but these vampires appear to be nothing more than animated corpses, mindless and unintelligible. It is only when they reach Paris that they encounter vampires like themselves - specifically, the 400-year-old vampire Armand and his coven, the
Théâtre des VampiresThéâtre des Vampires is the home of a Parisian Vampire Coven from the earlier books in Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles series, specifically Interview with the Vampire and The Vampire Lestat.-Details:...
. Inhabiting an ancient theater, Armand and his vampire coven disguise themselves as humans and feed on live, terrified humans in mock-plays before a live human audience (who think the killings are merely a very realistic performance). Claudia is repulsed by these vampires and what she considers to be their cheap theatrics. Santiago, a prominent figure among the vampire coven, suspects Claudia and Louis of killing their maker. One rule among the vampires there is death to any vampire who kills their own kind.
Claudia demands that Louis turn a human Parisian dollmaker, Madeleine, into a vampire to serve as both a mother figure and a replacement for Lestat. Louis at first refuses but, after realizing Claudia's plight, gives in and makes Madeleine into a vampire. Louis, Madeleine and Claudia live together for a brief time but all three are abducted one night by the Theatre vampires. Lestat has arrived - having survived the fire and attempted murder in New Orleans - and his accusations against Louis and Claudia result in Louis being locked in a coffin to starve, while Claudia and Madeleine are locked in an open courtyard. Armand arrives and releases Louis from the coffin, but Madeleine and Claudia are burned to death by the rising sun. Louis finds the ashen remains of Claudia and Madeleine and is devastated. He later returns to the Theatre late the following night, burning it to the ground as the sun rises and killing all the vampires inside, and leaves with Armand.
Louis and Armand then travel across Europe together for several years, but Louis never fully recovers from Claudia's death. Tired of the Old World, Louis eventually returns to America and New Orleans in the early 20th century, living as a loner; he feeds off any humans that cross his path but lives in the shadows and never creates another companion for himself.
Telling the boy of one last (which is later described in detail by Lestat in later books) encounter with Lestat in New Orleans, Louis ends his tale; after 200 years, he is weary of immortality as a vampire and all the pain and suffering to which he has had to bear witness. The boy, however, seeing only the great powers granted to a vampire, begs to be made into a vampire himself. Infuriated that his interviewer learned nothing from his story, Louis refuses, and attacks the boy, feeding off him and rendering him unconscious. He then vanishes without a trace.
Recovering from the attack, the boy notes the address of the house where Louis last saw Lestat in New Orleans, and then leaves to track down Lestat for himself.
Film adaptation
Before the novel's publication, Anne Rice had sold the film rights to
Interview with the Vampire to
Paramount PicturesParamount Pictures Corporation is a Worldwide American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood, California. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is the world's oldest existing American film studio; it is also the last...
, who did nothing with the property for the ten years of their contract. With Paramount's option expired, Rice moved the film rights to
Lorimar ProductionsLorimar Productions, later known as Lorimar Television, was an American television production company that was later a subsidiary of Warner Bros., active from 1968-1993...
, which was taken over by
Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. (also known as Warner Bros. Pictures, or simply Warner Bros.—the shortened form of the former official, sometimes still used, formal corporate name: Warner Brothers
in 1988. Producer David GeffenDavid Geffen is an American record executive, film producer, theatrical producer and philanthropist. Geffen is noted for creating Asylum Records in 1970 , and Geffen Records in 1980, along with his later role as one of the three founders of...
purchased the rights for $500,000, and director Neil JordanNeil Jordan is an Irish filmmaker and novelist. He won an Academy Award for The Crying Game.-Early life:Jordan was born in County Sligo. He was educated at St. Paul's College, Raheny...
co-wrote the script with Rice, with her receiving the sole credit. The film was released in 1994 with Tom CruiseThomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known by his screen name of Tom Cruise, is an American actor and film producer. Forbes magazine ranked him as the world's most powerful celebrity in 2006. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and won three Golden Globe Awards...
as Lestat, Brad PittWilliam Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. He has been cited as one of the world's most attractive men, a label that entices the media to report on his off-screen life...
as Louis, Christian SlaterChristian Michael Leonard Slater is an American actor who has starred in films such as Heathers, Kuffs, True Romance, He Was a Quiet Man, Broken Arrow, The Legend of Billie Jean and Pump Up The Volume....
as the interviewer (a role he received after the death of the originally cast River PhoenixRiver Jude Phoenix was an American film actor. He was listed on John Willis's Screen World, Vol. 38 as one of twelve "promising new actors of 1986," and was hailed as highly talented by such critics as Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel. He was also well known for his animal rights activism...
), Antonio BanderasJosé Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor and singer. He began his acting career at age 19 with a series of films by director Pedro Almodóvar and then appeared in high-profile Hollywood films including Assassins, Evita, Interview with the Vampire,...
as Armand, and a young Kirsten DunstKirsten Caroline Dunst is an American actress, model, and singer. She made her film debut in Oedipus Wrecks, a short film directed by Woody Allen for the anthology New York Stories . At the age of 12, Dunst gained widespread recognition playing the role of vampire Claudia in Interview with the...
as the child vampire Claudia.
The film was a major success, causing a resurgence of interest in the book series and sent Interview with The Vampire back onto the bestseller lists. Rice initially voiced her objections to the casting of Tom Cruise as Lestat (her original choice was Rutger HauerRutger Oelsen Hauer is a Golden Globe–winning Dutch film actor. He is well known for his roles in Blind Fury, Blade Runner, The Hitcher, Nighthawks, Ladyhawke, The Blood of Heroes and Batman Begins....
). But, after seeing the finished film, she paid $7,740 for a two-page ad in Daily VarietyVariety is a weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the Daily...
praising his performance and apologizing for her previous doubts about him. There have also been several slight alterations from the book to the film adaption; one, most notably being, the change from the mortal Louis' despair and grief from his younger brother's death to (in the film) despair and grief over a deceased wife and stillborn child. Other changes include Lestat returning from the swamp with a new accomplice before attacking Louis and Claudia; the deletion of some characters including Lestat's blind father, Louis's family, and the Freniere family; the deletion of Louis and Claudia traveling through Eastern Europe; shortening Madeleine's story time; the deletion of Louis entering a church and attacking a priest; deleting the part with Lestat having a hand in the deaths of Claudia and Madeleine; Louis finds Lestat with a new vampire who later abandons him as well.
Manga adaptation
A Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese mangaManga consist of comics and print cartoons , in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 20th century...
adaptation of the book was published in 1994 by Tokuma Shotenis a publisher in Japan, that was established in 1954.The company was one of the largest entertainment publishers until the 1990s. Some of their products included music, computer and game software, movies , magazines, manga and books. One of their most famous subsidiaries was Studio Ghibli...
. It was also serialized in both Animageis a Japanese anime and entertainment magazine which Tokuma Shoten began publishing in July 1978. Hayao Miyazaki's internationally-renowned manga Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind was serialized in Animage from 1982 through 1994...
and Chara Comics magazines. The manga is by Udou Shinohara.
External links