A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)

Genre

Horror

Director

Ana Lily Amirpour

Country

USA

Cast

Sheila Vand, Arash Marandi, Marshall Manesh, Dominic Rains, Mozhan Marnò, Rome Shadanloo

Storyline

In the Iranian ghost-town Bad City, a place that reeks of death and loneliness, the townspeople are unaware they are being stalked by a lonesome vampire (Sheila Vand).

Opinion

The critics loving it, and VICE Films distributing it gave me the input to watch this film. After watching it, and taking some hours to think about it, I still can't come up with something to write that is good enough and appropriate for the film. 

I can say that A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night is the first Iranian film blending Spaghetti Westerns, graphic novels, and vampire flicks; it is unique, weird, yet beautiful, and brilliant. But, like with music, or art, or food, I can't give you an explanation for like it.

Iranian director and writer Ana Lily Amirpour is clearly influenced by Jim Jarmusch's aesthetic, but also by David Lynch's nonsensical narrative.

The plot not revealing too much is a good thing because many plot twists works better if you don't expect them. Of course, you can enjoy a second view as well. The film has some scary moments, and it keeps you guessing throughout the whole time. Subplots and secondary characters do not deviate from the original story, but they do are essential to it.

The characters are involving and interesting. You can't help but like the young man; you can't stand the pathetic, drug-addicted, old man; you hate the drug dealer; the girl is weird, but you like her: she is not some crazy vigilante, but she protects good people.

The stunning black and white photography by Lyle Vincent is definitely the first thing you notice, and the unusual, yet beautiful soundtrack fits perfectly into the story, as it was a Tarantino film.

Sheila Vand is great as The Girl, and I'm sure the director choose her for her hypnotic eyes. The others give decent performances.