Customer Reviews

Cravings

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a sick little movie. It's not a vampire flick, but it is about some seriously disturbed people, some of whom have a demented addiction to the taste of blood.

A psychiatrist who has recently faced the suicide of his wife and the accidental death of his mother, tries to overcome his deep grief by resuming his activities as a psychiatrist at a local hospital. He is assigned to the case of a teenage girl who has been cutting herself. Turns out she's not only cutting herself, but others as well, and drinking the resulting blood.

The psychiatrist eventually gets involved intimately with the girl's attractive widowed mother, which turns out to be a bad idea.

The progression of the movie wanders a bit, there is a suggestion that the psychiatrist is being haunted by the presence of his desceased wife..., the bathtub she died in keeps mysteriously filling itself up every night. But this part of the movie never fleshes out and is sort of left hanging at the end.

I was not satisfied with the ending, but.., you might be. It's a matter of taste, but it was a sufficiently disturbing ending to make it fit in with the whole disturbing theme of the movie.

The movie kept my interest up to the very end, and so I have to recommend it as worth watching.

- Mike S.

I almost didn't watch this film because of the over-abundance of ridiculous Vampire movies, shows, novels, and all else which have flooded the market within the past few months. Personally, I'm sick to death of the entire genre and what they have done to the traditional folklore reguarding Vampires. Yet, it was highly recommended that I ignore the deceptive cover art and watch this particular film. And, I must say that I was not disappointed in the least. The whole product was excellent. The cast, their acting abilities, the story, the realistic quslity of the effects, etc. Wonderful film. Now, I highly recommend that you watch this film.

Released overseas as Daddy's Girl, I'd been waiting for this to hit the states for quite some time now. Unfortunately for me, Lionsgate acquired it, re-titled it and slapped on some idiotic vampire artwork, completely misrepresenting the concept. Is it a vampire film? Not in the traditional sense, no. Cravings falls more in line with a films like Wisdom of Crocodiles or White Skin, vampire cinema without fangs. That doesn't mean Cravings doesn't have its share of bloodsucking, it does, just don't expect to see the usual anemic, tortured romance filled with bisexuality and phallic symbolism.

Cravings is definitely a quiet, chilling little low-budget horror thriller that takes its time telling a story and all the actors involved did a fantastic job of bringing the concept to life, especially Jaime Winstone (KIDulthood) who could very well be the next Angela Bettis; she's got this odd, childlike beauty that draws you in. Expect to see more of her as time goes on; she's already been prominently featured in thriller Donkey Punch as well as the Brit TV zombie series, DEAD SET.

Being a fan of strange, unique little films like this, I actually plan to purchase this. I hate what Lionsgate have done to this indie gem but it's the film that counts and Cravings is a decent film. It's not all that scary but there are some truly disturbing things to behold here including a horrific, gag-inducing blender sequence and an unforgettable finale that I will always remember as, "The Human Juice Box" sequence. Evans has done a great job of making an interesting, original and thought-provoking film, it's a shame horror fans will be turned off by Lionsgate's "genius" marketing. Don't let the crapped up artwork and title fool you folks, a low key horror treat awaits you inside.

This is an interesting little psychological thriller, if more than a bit sadistic, which was unfortunately promoted dishonestly in the U.S. by Lionsgate as a vampire flick. (Lionsgate even changed the title from Daddy's Girl to Cravings.) Many disappointed viewers, taken in by this crooked advertising, hated the film from the get-go.

The movie is about a psychiatrist, wonderfully played by Welsh actor Richard Harrington (Lark Rise to Candleford), who is at an extremely low point in his life. His wife has recently committed suicide by slitting her wrists and his mother is near death from leukemia. Returning to work before he's ready, he takes on a new patient, a teenage girl who likes to cut herself so that she can drink her own blood.

We're told she is suffering from Renfield's Syndrome. (Renfield was the non-vampire character in Dracula who craved blood.) Before long, the psychiatrist learns the hard way that the girl's blood cravings are not restricted to herself.

Quite intriguing! The story of a man trying to help a psychopathic young girl who craves blood, and indulges in a number of feats without fangs. He soon becomes a sucker...literally. And suckee! Why the cover artwork portrays a vampiric image, I don't know. No such thing in the movie. But don't get me wrong, this is a very intense flick with great acting from Jaime Winstone and Richard Harrington. I gave it 3 stars because it is slow in developing...could have been a 60-minute cable special...but it is well worth the time if you're a bloodsucker fan.

Some people like the gritty feel of movies that are more along the lines of normal life. This movie, through what I'd heard, was a vampire movie. Not so. What it is is a movie representing a psychiatrist who receives as a patient a mortal girl, not a vampire, who enjoys drinking blood, and shows his attempts to treat said girl. It is complicated by improper doctor-patient relationship with the girl's mother, and has a disturbing ending that keeps you thinking, if you can get that far, but it has too much of the feel of normality for my taste. Not a bad movie if you like that sort, as this is something that could easily happen in the real world. I much prefer the more fantastical styles rather than psychiatric for my "vampire" movies. Again, there are no vampires in this movie, just a girl with vampiric tendencies.

No movie should be judged on its artwork, just as a book shouldn't be judged on its cover. However, when the distributor does this to a movie, then it needs to be mentioned.

Essentially the cover here does nothing but demean the movie it contains. Who did Lionsgate think they were fooling? Someone wanting an all-out vampire fest is going to be disappointed by this slow burner, yet they seem to be trying to hit that market with this somewhat lurid, but incredibly feeble artwork attempt.

What is really a crying shame is that the film itself is incredibly good. Those looking for a vampire tale with a different twist are highly recommended to grab this title.

Things you should know. Firstly it's a British film, partly financed by the Arts Counsel of Wales. It has a small ensemble cast. There are no fangs in the movie, no capes, no stalking of victims in dark Victorian alleys. There is no CGI. It was shot on film, not DV.

Every performance is terrific. The film is easily worth a five-star vote from me. The last vampire film I saw prior to this was Daybreakers. I thought Daybreakers was merely okay, with it's over-the-top action sequences and grafted on "evil corporation" story. Cravings however is much more sedate, more laid back. It's a film that slowly seduces you and draws you in. In fact, it's mostly an exceptional character study of its two main protagonists.

Lionsgate are to be congratulated on only two fronts: Firstly they brought this movie to the US. Secondly, they retitled it (the movie has a new title card with the name change, but the credits run under the original title of "Daddy's Girl".) The new title is actually better, and sets justifiable expectations.

Just don't expect the usual romantic nonsense associated with current Vampire tales. Nor should you expect a nihilistic movie without hope and strangeness. There is almost a surreal quality at work here.

Top notch movie this.