So, this is barely a horror movie, and hardly a vampire movie. The first hour is a very slow build, and the end kicks into horror all at once. If I were a fan of style over substance, I'd love this - the lighting is amazing, and the camera work is fabulous - trouble is I'm not and I didn't. I was just bored.
The movie starts out like a Bauhaus music video, and by that, I mean Bauhaus is playing a song. Really. I had high expectations from there, figuring I was in for a fun, '80s, gothic vampire movie. Nothing of the sort. This almost reminds me of the eurotrash movies from Jean Rollin, and Jess Franco; the difference being, they knew how to add enough sleaze to make the ride enjoyable.
We get to see a young Willem Dafoe, in what may have been his first film role. It's bad when that was the only exciting moment for me.
Really good makeup effects here, but the story is almost nonexistent. _The Hunger_ has the feel of a movie adapted from a long book, but all the important parts were cut out for "art."
I could understand fans defending this tooth and nail, the same way I would defend _Begotten_ or _Naked Lunch_, but I thought this was a huge waste of time.