Vampire turn-ons: Sex: meh Wonderfully woven carpet with symmetric pattern: hell yes

Fun Fact: Anne Rice held strong criticism for Tom Cruise as Lestat and after hearing about such criticism, Tom Cruise put 110% into the job in order to prove Rice's criticism wrong. The result was one of Tom Cruise's best performances as well as the undisputed Queen of Vampires: Anne Rice, having to eat her own words. That is what you call perseverance

I love in the later books someone gives Lestat a copy of this book and he's like "WHAT IS THIS HORSESHIT?! THAT DIDNT HAPPEN! I NEVER SAID THAT! THIS IS BULLSHIT!!!"

Aging up Armand to avoid the Call me by your name "Homosexuals are bad and lust for underage" problem actually is one of the bloody best and most thoughtful book to movie adaptation decisions I probably have ever heard. Or maybe they just wanted Antonio Banderas for the role. Either way: good decision.

I once accidentally told somebody that Tom Hanks played Lestat in this movie, and it haunts me to this day.

I just loved the end of the movie where Lestat basically goes "Oh Louie, you're still going on like this? Count yourself lucky you only had to listen to him for a couple of hours, I had to put up with him for decades"

I like how even when Louis tells the reporter how horrible being a vampire is the reporter is still "Nah. Don't care. I want to be a vampire anyway."

In the books Lestat does often refer to Louis as his lover. Sharing blood is an intimate and orgasmic thing for them.

To paraphrase Lindsay Ellis in regards to Rice’s hatred of fics: “How dare you make the gay vampires gay!”

This was my favorite movie as a pre-teen. I read all the books after I saw this movie, resulting in my first ever parent teacher conference. My 5th grade teacher took issue with me reading an "inappropriate book" during free reading time and took it away. My mother told her if she ever took a book from her daughter again she'd be looking for a new job. Bless my mum.

Love the idea that vampires stay emotionally at the same age they were when they were turned. Louis isn't Like That because he's a vampires, he's Like That because he's 24.

*"Oh Louis, Louis. Still whining Louis?"*

"The scythe was a prop from the theater, he wasn't just being really dramatic." Oh in the book it was not a prop from the theater and he was REALLY just being that dramatic.

Knowing about Anne Rice's daughter made me see Claudia's character very differently...

Fun fact: in Anne's first draft of the book, Louis and Claudia found the Theater of the Vampires and lived happily ever after. It was after an editor suggested she expand a bit more on it that it ended up with its bittersweet ending.

The whole issue of vampires being incredibly gorgeous creatures glowing with sex appeal was dealt with simply by casting the biggest, most attractive movie stars of the moment. Cruise, Pitt, and Banderas were amazingly hot at that time, scoring hit after hit, so they made the perfect metaphor for Rice's conception of irresistible blood fiends whose lives are fueled by the adulation of others. :)

Is it just me or does Dom with fangs look less Vampire and more The Cat from Red Dwarf?

Later books: Louis is in the background. Moping. Because of course he is. He's Louis. He sometimes just shows up to wear sweaters. And mope.

I LMAO in the cinema when Lestat said "louis, louis always whining".Toms delivery was perfect

I would definitely consider Louis and lestat lovers in the book series. Lestat admits to falling in love with Louis and often confesses his deep and complex love for him- “to love someone like this is to burn”. Although Louis is often depicted as hating lestat, in the later books he truly comes to love him- “I love you with my whole soul, and I will always love you”, he confided to me. “You are my life. I have hated you for that and love you now so much that you’ve been my instructor in loving. And believe me when I say you will survive because you always have and you always wil”. They also share many romantic kisses :)

My grandma's in this movie! She was living in New Orleans at the time, so she made it on as an extra.

wasn't anne rice the one who like,, tried to sue people for writing fan fiction of her work or something? i remember reading something about her not liking fans writing works based on her books

Lestat is a bi disaster, I love him.

"Don't tell me people still fall for that whole Anne Rice routine? What a world!"-Spike "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"

One of my favorite parts of the movie was Lestat turning the child. It's just as you said: I know how to fix our relationship we'll have a baby. Which only works temporarily. Trust me, I KNOW.

Tom has said in interviews that Lestat was like a brother, he loved playing him and he’s one of his favorite roles and would gladly play him again.

Christian Slater was a last minute casting choice due to younger River Phoenix's untimely death happening a couple weeks before filming began. Just thought it was noteworthy since you mentioned the difference between the boy in the book and Slater's take in the film.

Well, clearly that statue is a weeping angel.

When I watched the movie in the theater, I remember a parent leaving abruptly with their children right after a sultry scene. I was amazed that anyone would bring their elementary school-age kids to an R-rated movie without researching the film first, especially one with "vampire" in the title.

Why does everything have to come out on Mondays? Note that every time Louie's life changes dramatically there's fire. Louie burns down his plantation when he becomes a vampire, he burns down New Orleans when he leaves Lestat, and he burns the down the theater in Paris when he has to leave Claudia and explore the world alone.

Claudia is one of the greatest characters ever created in literature. Choosing the great Kirsten Dunst to portray her in the film, was nothing short of an incredible casting triumph!

`I remember when it was first announced that Cruise would be cast to play Lestat. I and my friends, all serious fans of the novel, were horrified at the choice. Her thought it was doomed and would be crap. We still thought of Tom dancing in his under pants while flipping booze bottles. He was, as was quickly recognized, fantastic. He nailed the character. All of the main roles were handled wonderfully even if Armand looked much different than in the book.

"Can I buy a pony, Louis? I'm going to buy a pony."

Favorite moment on this video: "Kiiiiisssssss"

Antonio Banderas was drop-dead gorgeous in this movie.

When Claudia and Lestat exchange words at the piano (harpsicord?) and she asks him why must he always be so cruel, and you see for a moment a confused shame overcome his expression, that's when I understood that Mr C was not actually the worst choice to play Lestat, despite the fan rage against him, 'cause Tom is short, and _everybody knows_ the _only_ thing important about an actor playing Lestat should be his height and long, blonde hair. What possible good is having a face that can make every emotion Lestat suffers and exhilarates through so undeniably clear to those that have read the Vampire Chronicles and so confusing to the punters that only like da movin' pitchers when it's not Lestat's so often factually stated six full feet above the floor? Who would actually want to see a well-researched and deeply nuanced performance of a now and then mortally conflicted character coming from a dedicated actor with a deferential respect for the figure he's portraying when there are so many _taller_ dudes that would fit better in our spank banks? Lestat described that moment of desperate shame Claudia's question at the piano (harpsicord?) made him feel in the one sequel or the other. Louis never saw it or mentioned it. Tom knew about it and showed it to us. I liked that. It was a small but shiny little thing. A dark moment that was a little golden. It made me say, "Oh!" I think I need some sleep.

"they're sexually ace but romantically bi" aye just like me! *does spider-man pointing meme but with a bunch of vampires*

"I'm gonna buy a pony" 😂🙌

Kirsten Dunst was one of those rare occassions where a character from the book seems to have walked off the page & on to the screen, so perfect is their interpretation.

Dom: being a vampire made Louie less racist. Me: YAY 🤗 Dom: but he doesn’t have respect for any human life... Me: 😅... well at least he hates everyone equally?

21:17 To quote a great man 'You think just because I use big words means I cant make dirty jokes? You dont know me'

I've been waiting for this forever. Interview was the movie that got me into vampire literature, and it will always hold a special place in my heart. A great episode and I can't wait for the train wreck that was Queen of the Damned.

When I tell you I nearly fell out of my seat laughing at the fact you called Armand a Senpai....I mean I began cackling till the other occupants of my home thought I'd lost my mind.

There was one difference I'm surprised you left out, as it jumped out at me when it happened, and may suggest that it was Neil Jordan who wrote the screenplay - Early on Lestat tells Louis to stop feeding prior to the moment where the victim dies as that moment may be too powerful and dangerous for the vampire to experience. Not only does he NOT say that "dead blood" is dangerous, somewhere in the book it is mentioned that in the most desperate of times, dead bodies may be fed upon for survival. So, that said, when Claudia poisons Lestat in the movie by killing the boys with Laudanum, keeping their blood warm, Lestat freaks out when he realizes she let him drink "Dead Blood", as if it was the dead blood that damaged him, when in the book is was the drugs in their blood that hurt him enough for her to slit his throat. I saw this as a (forgivable) misinterpretation of the book which implies to me that it was not Anne Rice who wrote the screenplay. Or alternatively, I suppose it's possible that the idea that a drug like Laudanum would damage a vampire didn't make sense to Jordan, so he re-wrote it, making up this "dead blood" concept so it sounded more realistic in the world of vampires.

I heard that Anne Rice did not want Tom Cruise for Lastat, but she admitted he did well when she saw him in action (or something like that)

Lestat wasn't technically a commoner, he was just a lord who'd lost everything.... Soooo I guess yeah?

RIP Anne Rice.

Funnily enough I always got the impression that their switching Louie's suddenly deceased brother to suddenly deceased child and wife was a way of saying, "Hey general audiences, look! It's not THAT gay", as if moaning and falling into a suicidal rut about your dead brother, another man, was somehow less valid than moaning and falling into a suicidal rut about your dead wife and child. I feel the substitution speaks volumes. When I read the book the language Louie used in regards to his brother seemed...oddly evocative.

When I first heard that Tom Cruise was going to play Lastat...I was horrified. But I have to admit, once the movie was released and I saw it...I was impressed with his performance.

of all the scenes to be left out I was annoyed most about the feral vampire since it had my favourite moment of the book. Louis getting thrown through the air towards a rock and instead of trying to dodge it wondering if a vampire can be knocked out and what that would be like, if it would be any different than as a human before smashing into the rock. it just stood out to me as oddly surreal and showing just how skewed a vampire's concerns were.

Kirsten Dunst was AMAZING in it! So young and yet nailed that part so perfectly!

One thing I love about this movie is the costumes and how they use them to show that time passes. At the beginning of the movie you can see they’re wearing late 18th century fashion whereas at the end it’s clearly 1880s , I love it 0:

After reading some of the other books in the Chronicles, I sort of assumed that Interview was completely Louis' view of the world, rather than factual, history sort of way. (Like how when I was a player writing up notes/recaps for game sessions, it invariably featured my character's events, try as I might to be factual.) I liked when they crossed over with the Mayfair series. I never knew about her losing her daughter, so that totally makes sense why this novel was so depressing. I remember watching this for the first time on the way back from a school trip (buses with tv/vcr combos) and we only got as far as when Louis went through the theater and was in the process of killing the other vampires.

I wish Queen of the Dammed had the same actors play the characters in that movie too.

I used to work for Anne. Michelle was Claudia. I worked for her when Stan passed away. His funeral was beautiful and moving. I know EVERY line of "Interview with the Vampire" I was also on the Board the Anne Rice Fan Club and helped plan the ball each year. I worked the ball each year from 18 to about 27. She wrote "Blackwood Farm" when I was in her employee. I also helped design Lestat Brand Coffee which was the best damn coffee ever. This was my entire life for my young adult life. It was wonderful, terrible and blood sweat and tears. No pun intended. I have so many pictures, my costumes were elaborate and gorgeous. Polygrip was your best friend for keeping your fangs in your mouth for the evening! It was a wild ride. I made some life long friends and got betrayed by close "Friends". Ricean Vampires and the lore within Anne's world was my life, and I do not regret it, even with all the crap that went on behind the scenes.

Loved this movie. Kristen Dunst was so good for someone so young and it just made Claudia's death all the sadder because of how you watched her go through everything like struggling to understand the idea that she'll never physically grow up and the years caring for Louie as much as she did.

Natalie: wears vampire teeth Ollie: wears vampire teeth Dom: "I gotta get in on this"

I really do love how Rice came to change her mind about Cruise, the moment she saw him in action, not only saying her words, but MEANING them, that was a great 'I raise my goblet of blood to you, sir. I was wrong.'

They also left out that Lestat's Maker lept into a fire without handing any information about Vampires to him, which the custom was to do so. That's why they broke an unspoken law of vampires about turning children...

I was a young teen into rap and hanging out on the block with my boys. Then I hooked up with a hardcore goth girl and she turned me on to this book. I was addicted to the series and read every book on a binge. Great books.

"The first of 11 sequels..." There's currently 14 books in the vampire chronicles, and they crossover into The Lives of the Mayfair Witches at Merrick

21:37 So, what you're saying is... YOU THOUGHT IT WAS DIO, BUT IT WAS I, LESTAT!

Meh, that thing about vampires making everything sexier is no tru- *Dom dressed as a vampire* ...Oh myyyyyy

I love Antonio bandaeras in the film, but The book Armand is my absolute favourite character. Antonio’s Armand was more like the vampire Santiago. There’s a Botticelli painting in the National Gallery (London) it’s the Adoration of the Magi and there is a red haired boy looking over his shoulder at the viewer and I’ve always thought that’s how Armand looks.

I need more sexy vampire dominic

Off to a *very* dramatic start. Love that.

For me, the moment when Lestat is in the car at the end of the film, having just attacked Daniel (the boy/interviewer) and you see him rearrange the lace cuffs of his shirt, was the moment that encapsulated Cruise's understanding of the character. Never have I been so overjoyed by such a simple act. I hate Cruise, but damn he played Lestat so well!

The catacombs were the vampires home originally on the land the theater stands upon. In the “vampire lestat” it’s significance is explained when Lestat explains how he came to be a vampire. Lestat was a strong and willful young lord who single handedly took out a pack of wolves plaguing his village. Lestats deed and nature attracted the attention of a vampire named Magnus (not Marius). Magnus was in a feud with the vampires living in the catacombs because they disagreed about how to live. (Magnus believing they should live in the world. The catacomb coven led by Armand believing they should live in the catacombs with the dead and away from society.) Magnus felt exhausted with the war with the catacombs coven so as a final middle finger to Armand he turned Lestat, explained what he turned him into, then promptly burns himself to death. Lestat is approached by Armand and pressured to join the catacombs coven but he not only refuses but uses his vast holdings to purchase the catacombs and the land they are under. He says he will leave the catacombs ant the coven alone if they leave him alone, but if they don’t he’ll raise the catacombs to the ground and build a theater. (Which ironically inspires Armand to build the theater and leave lestat alone) later lestat meets Marius who mentors him.

I feel like this is a good time to mention the Vampire Chronicles are getting a series adaptation on Hulu.

Actually lol’d when you remembered Queen of the Damned being on your patreon list 😂

Lol. I love this book and I love this video. The book is so unsettling

RIP Anne Rice

I remember seeing this in the cinema with two friends - there was an advert before the film that claimed three people in the cinema like the taste of blood. Someone in the audience in front of our trio looked at us - we waved and smiled.

Am I the only one who started laughing at Dominic Noble reaction to talking about Queen Of The Damned?

RIP Anne Rice 💕

The outtakes at the end fit so wonderfully into my collection of "people in old-timey clothing doing new-timey things". Truly an aesthetic.

One of Tom Cruise's finest performances and certainly my favourite!

Always thought it was good point to keep in mind that Lestat was inspired by her husband and could see how Louis and Lestat relationship is first portrayed as toxic and then Lestats redemption arc in the sequels.

You have a friend request from: Armand *clicks deny*

When you start giggling because you have a sneaking suspicion that Queen of the Damned is next...

You have no idea how many times I've wanted to request this as a 'lost in adaptation'! I saw the movie when it first came out in theaters, then immediately dove into the book series ('The Vampire Lestat' is still one of my all-time favorite novels). This is an excellent, thorough review, and I couldn't agree more with every point you made. I do not envy the job you have ahead of you with 'Queen of the Damned'. But maybe you'll have some fun ripping that one apart!

24:58 The unnamed vampire musician survives the fire and his name is revealed in “Prince Lestat” as Antoine.

"... speaking of dark, unholy curses that make you question the nature of good, evil, and the value of life itself, do remember that KZfaq is a very well crafted algorithmic hellscape that likes to feed on those dependent upon it ... " - No truer words have ever been spoken.

Hearing the Dom utter the words "puppers" and "bork" made my day.

Goth Dom playing piano looks eerily similar to a guy I knew in high school. That's not a slam, because that guy went on to run a shelter for abused women seeking to leave their situations and have a safe place to stay, it's just eerie in that it's like realizing an alternate universe version of the Dom exists in our universe simultaneously. I'm glad there's two Doms in the world. Confused on how it happened, but glad.

Omg, he should do an updated one. With the new show that came out

Came to rewatch this video after learning of Anne Rice’s passing, she will be missed.

I listened to the audio book version of the book years ago (when it was on cassette...) and wanted to outlaw the word "preternatural" from the English language about an hour in.

Kirsten Dunst is indeed a surprise for a child actor at that time.

14:17 actually, Louis says very clearly in the book that for vampires killing is the equivalent of sex in terms of pleasure and lure.

Wow, I just realized that Louis went to see Tequila Sunrise - a movie about a complex relationship between three people -two men who love each other but also kind of hate each other since they're on opposite sides.

When the piano music changed and you smiled at the camera, you got me. Well done sir, I laughed.

"I just remembered Queen of the Damned is on the patreon to do list. FUU--" 😂🤣

"what we do in the shadows" & the series version of it made me rewatch this since childhood. It's as fascinating & compelling for me now as it was when I was a kid & talk about the nostalgia lol

I hope you'll revisit Interview with The Vampire when the AMC series adaptation comes out in October! I heard they make some pretty significant changes to the plot.

Commenting already, for the algorithm.

I clicked so fast when I saw this cause both book and movie are on my forever favorites list! I love them a lot and the characters still look like they do in the movie (except for Armand obviously... and while I completely understand the aging up, I still wish they'd have stayed loyal to the overall look). ... looking forward to the cringe of Queen if the Damned, a book I loved and a movie that let me despair in all the worst ways.

need a sequel of this now that the tv show's first season is here

You know, it always made me laugh that Louis and Claudia come to Paris desperately searching for any signs of other vampires....and they go for several months without checking the place that calls itself "Theatre des Vampires". Maybe they thought 'no, they'd never be THAT obvious'?

I remember hearing at the time that Rice was strongly apposed to Tom Cruise playing Lestat (aka the Brat Prince) but that when she saw the footage most of the way through the production she apologized as she felt he really had done some a good job.