_Hello David..._ :vampire:

I was totally into this film (mainly due to the soundtrack) when it came out, despite the fact that it's basically 2000s Alt/ Vampire Goth Twilight, but with a bit more to appeal to boys, as it's really more about Lestat, despite Jesse being a less cringy Bela. And, if anyone of the male gender were to tempt me, Stuart Townshend would have been on a very short list.

This is very much a time capsule movie, and relevant to a very specific subculture. As such, it doesn't age terribly well overall, and as a film, it's admittedly not very good if you want a dark, semi-horror dramatic thriller to take seriously. Although, it does work better as at least somewhat intentional dark and (emotionally) edgy vamp-camp, and it does have a lot of creative juices flowing with some genuinely great art contained within. Namely, the music/soundtrack collaboration, and the visuals. Besides _The Crow_, it's probably the closest thing to having the same visual style and auditory tonality as _Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines_. Although, there are admittedly probably a lot of films from the late 1990s that influenced the visual and auditory scape of that game; this film just fits pretty neatly into the same zeitgeist right before it fell out of fashion.

The original Jonathan Davis vocals for Lestat are better than what's on the actual released soundtrack for the most part (although Jay Gordon's version is also quite apt for Lestat, I think-- and I personally really like/liked Orgy at the time), but that's not to say that the guest vocalists are bad, just that they don't really work in context, as it's supposed to be Lestat singing them. But there are some real bangers if you're at all into edgy goth rock influenced Nu Metal. And _Change In The House Of Flies_ is very much in its element as a score song played in the film.

Aaliyah really was great in this, along with Stuart Townshend, and I'm not at all saying that just because she died in that horrible, preventable plane crash caused by her record company's avarice and recklessness. She genuinely brought the character to life by completely diving into Akasha onscreen. Also, her wardrobe (well, the one outfit on the cover) is just phenomenal. Properly iconic. Also, though I'm not actually an Anne Rice reader (though I was friends with one at the time) they at least got someone to look the part for Armand, compared to the previously cast Antonio Banderas (lol).

And--speaking of camp--Vincent Perez really played it up as Marius. Again, not a book reader, but his performance was very "Udo Kier theatrical vampire", and I loved it. Lena Olin played it straight, and it totally worked for her part of the film.

1994, the film adaptation of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire hit the big screens. The vampire Lestat disappeared from the film scene until 2002 when he returned in the moderately successful film "The Queen of the Damned" as a rock star. Aaliyah, who played the titular queen, tragically died in a plane crash before the movie's premiere. Ironically, this event is what people currently associate most with the film. And the film is also remembered for its fantastic soundtrack, with a quite twisted history. NOT JUST KORN In the '90s, the band Korn, led by the charismatic Jonathan Davis, was a mega rock star. With four albums released from 1994 to 1999, they defined the sound of nu-metal and sold millions of records worldwide. The controversial and costly Untouchables album was supposed to mark the beginning of the new century. However, in the same year, the soundtrack for "The Queen of the Damned" saw the light of day, largely composed by Davis (with assistance from Richard Gibbs and the trip-hop fan-favorite Tricky). However, you won't hear Davis singing on the soundtrack due to a contractual agreement with another record label. So, Davis cleverly suggested interpretations by his fellow musicians. The songs gained a new dimension and became treats for fans of Linkin Park, Disturbed, Static-X, Marilyn Manson, and Orgy. The rest of the soundtrack consisted of tracks from stylistically similar artists, but more on that in a moment. THE VAMPIRE LESTAT The fictional band "The Vampire Lestat," created for the film, could be classified as alternative metal with a touch of gothic darkness. Artists replacing Davis felt comfortable in the slightly Korn-influenced compositions and didn't attempt to mimic him. Wayne Static from Static-X kicks off with "Not Meant For Me." David Draiman from Disturbed interprets "Forsaken" in his uplifting style. "Redeemer" is a haunting rock'n’roll where Marilyn Manson excels. Jay Gordon from Orgy handles the oriental-sounding "Slept So Long," the second most unsettling track in my opinion. Lastly, a few words about "System," sounding like a haunted lullaby, showcasing Chester Bennington from Linkin Park, whose powerful vocals surprisingly fit. Davis found perfect substitutes, although you must listen to the originals with Jonathan as well. These are just five tracks out of 14 on the soundtrack. So, how did the remaining songs fare? PROFESSIONAL COMPANIONS Most of the additional tracks on the soundtrack are nu-metal classics or songs from bands that time has treated rather harshly. There are iconic tracks like Deftones' "Change," Papa Roach's "Dead Cell," Disturbed's "Down With The Sickness," and Static-X's "Cold." On the other hand, there are groups like Godhead (reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails in "Penetrate"), Earshot (engaging with "Headstrong"), Dry Cell (the average nu-metal track "Body Crumbles"), and closing the lineup, Kidneythieves (a decent band with a female vocalist in "Before I’m Dead"). Standing out against this backdrop is Tricky's "Excess," vocally supported by Alanis Morissette. A genuine, rock-driven trip-hop track. In conclusion, most of the tracks showcase excellent compositional work, whether by Jonathan or the bands. I remember some of these songs from many, many years ago and happily revisited them while describing this album. So, if you missed it, I recommend catching up, though you can skip a few less engaging songs.

First, I want to make it clear that I never read the book or any Anne Rice book, for that matter. Which, ultimately, is irrelevant since the book is not the movie, and the movie is not the book.
That being said, I did not like this. All that is keeping the film from being a Full Moon vampire movie is the budget. The acting, and the dialog are the primary issues; there are some dodgy special effects, but I'd want to cut a little slack since this was made in 2002.
If the movie existed in a vacuum, it would still be bad, but then you understand that it is in the same universe as _Interview with the Vampire_ (1994) - one of my favorite vampire movies - and it adds another layer of disappointment. Seriously, we go from Tom Cruise to Stuart Townsend... are you kidding?
Maybe the biggest problem for me was the overall plot: Lestat becomes a rockstar. Are you kidding? There's only one vampire rockstar and his name is _Rockula_ (1990). Just a stupid story, and it really detracts from what the movie actually needed to be about: Akasha.
So, the movie is titled _Queen of the Damned_, yet this is not about her. Why? She doesn't show up until the midpoint of the film, and all she does it wiggle and speak in a bad accent - what was it supposed to me anyway, Romanian? Russian? French?
The only positive for me was the soundtrack: totally nu metal. Almost all of the songs are sung by Jonathan Davis - who gets a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo - such a missed opportunity to exchange the vocals for other nu-metal singers on the official soundtrack. _Queen of the Damned_ could have been the best album Korn ever made.
Anyway, Korn rules, but this movie is terrible. I'd say to give this a huge skip, unless you're a fan of the _Twilight_ (2008-2012) series, but wish it had the 2000s cool of the _Underworld_ (2003-2016) series. Even in that light, I'd rather watch all of the _Twilight_ movies again than watch _Queen of the Damned_ a second time, and so there's no confusion, I did not like _Twilight_ either.

Very good movie. A lot of action, kills, fights and battles. Aalyiha did a pretty good job acting in this movie. R.I.P.