Long before Twilight dominated the pop culture landscape, director Neil Jordan had women swooning over the elegant undead with the Tom Cruise/Brad Pitt vehicle Interview With a Vampire. Nearly twenty years has passed, and as a follow-up to his work on the bloody historical drama series The Borgias, Jordan has returned to vampire tales with Byzantium. But this time around, we find the female of the species may be more deadly than the male.
Based on the play by Moira Buffini, this drama centers on two vampires, mother and daughter, who have "lived" side by side for two centuries before their world was thrown into spin by a deadly pact. Gemma Arterton of Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters and Saoirse Ronan of Hanna star as mother Clara and daughter Eleanor respectively. We got a sneak peek of each as set photos and a gorgeous still were released as well as a poster. Now, you can see them in action thanks to the film's international trailer, viewable below:
Revealing rich colors, a moody tone and loads of drama, this trailer is gorgeous and compelling. But as a major fan of Interview With a Vampire, I expected nothing less. Then while Arterton plus Ronan is a strong beginning, this vampire drama's cast also boasts a strong supporting cast that includes Jonny Lee Miller (TV's Elementary), Caleb Landry Jones (The Last Excorcism), and Tom Hollander, who last menaced Ronan in Hanna as a whistling hit man. In short, this looks like it should be scintillating and sensational.
Byzantium had its world premiere at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival. Its theatrical release will begin in Russia on April 11th, with openings in the United Kingdom, Netherlands, and Brazil to follow. IFC Films will be distributing Stateside, but no release date has yet been announced.
