Vampire in Brooklyn

Plot synopsis:
A ship of dead men steers into Brooklyn harbor. It keeps going until
it runs aground. A large wolf jumps from the ship. The wolf is the vampire
Maximilian [Eddie Murphy], the sole survivor of the massacre of a tribe of vampires
living on an island in the Bermuda Triangle. Max has come to Brooklyn to
find Rita Veder [Angela Bassett], the half-vampire daughter born to a human and a vampire
from his tribe.Meanwhile, Julius Jones [Kadeem Hardison] isn't having a good night. First, there was
that ship that ran aground and plowed right through the building where he
and Silas Green [John Witherspoon] were working. Then his woman kicked him out of the house
for snoring while otherwise engaged. Now, two thugs are after him for his
money or his blood. Then, just as Julius is about to meet his maker, the
vampire Maximilian shows up, neatly kills off the two thugs, and informs
Julius that he is to become his renfield and that the first thing he must
do is retrieve Max's coffin from the ship.Ship and dock are crawling with the law, one of whom is Detective
Rita Veder. Rita and her partner Justice [Allen Payne] have been sent to investigate the
accident in the harbor and the 18 bodies aboard that were found drained of
blood. While checking out the ship, Rita falls through a rotten floorboard
and lands in the cargohold where she finds a coffin and gets a glimpse of
Max, who recognizes her immediately. Rita chases him, but he disappears.
When she returns to the cargohold, the coffin is gone, a human ear
remaining in its place. Max and Julius take the coffin to Julius's house,
an apartment he rents from Silas.The ship's log is retrieved, but it is written in some obscure
language that no one at the university can decipher, so it is sent to Dr
Zeko for translation. Zeko's turns out to be a nightclub, but Zeko [Zakes Mokae] is able
to tell that the log speaks about a nosferatu on board. As Rita sits at a
table, waiting for Justice to return from a phone call, she doesn't notice
that a cobra in a nearby terrarium has escaped and is crawling toward her.
Fortunately, Max is seated nearby and catches the cobra just in time,
giving Max the perfect opportunity to introduce himself to Rita. He asks
her to dance, believing that one dance with him will make her his, but
Justice returns and Julius butts in with his jive talk, so Rita splits,
not at all enthralled with Max.Rita and Justice go back to the apartment Rita shares with roommate
Nikki [Simbi Khali]. Nikki comes on to Justice but he turns her down and leaves.
Instead, Nikki picks up Max and brings him home. Rita overhears the
bumping and screaming in Nikki's bedroom. The next morning, Rita finds
that Nikki has split with all her belongings, and there's a note saying
that she's getting an apartment with a man she just met. Rita assumes it
is Justice, and she becomes very jealous.Time is growing short. Max has to start using drastic measures, like
taking on the personas of other people, such as Preacher Pauly and stupid
Guido in order to get closer to Rita. But Max's plans seem to backfire, so
he takes the direct route and saves her from being run over by a speeding
taxi. In gratitude, Rita accepts a dinner date with him. Max hurries back
to Julius's apartment and casts every spell he knows to change it from a
pigsty to an elegant lovenest, complete with candelabras, fireplace, and a
baby grand piano. He finally manages to get his dance with Rita as well as
a bite on her neck.Julius is enjoying the benefits of working for a vampire, e.g.,
driving the black limo with vanity plates that say 'RIP'. He is also
having to adjust to the side-effects, e.g., acquiring a taste for bugs and
losing parts of his body. First his ear, then his right hand, then his
hair, then an eye, then his whole right arm.Meanwhile, Justice is following up a lead that suggests Julius might
have been involved in the killing of the two thugs a few nights ago. The
next morning, Justice pays a visit to Julius's apartment where he meets
Silas Green who tells him that Rita was there all night with the new
tenant, some suave guy. Just then, Justice receives a call from the
dispatcher sending him to investigate a DOA at Brooklyn City Hall. It
turns out to be Nikki.Justice goes to Rita's apartment to tell her about Nikki. As he is
holding her, Rita's tears turn into fangs and she tries to bite his neck.
Out of the corner of her eye, she notices that her reflection in the
mirror is fading. She runs to Max, who tells her of her father, the
vampire. Justice goes to see Dr Zeko, who tells him the story of Rita's
mother, a researcher who was studying the vampires on his island and who
succumbed to the powers of the "dark one." Rita is the result, he says. He
warns Justice that he must kill Max and do it before Rita loses all of her
humanity.Max attempts to teach Rita how to feed, but she refuses. When she
tries to run away, Max retrieves her and brings her to his apartment,
intending to leave for the island in the morning. He brings Silas to her,
but Justice and Zeko arrive just in time to stop her from feeding on him.
A fight breaks out, of course, but Max is easily able to dodge their fists
and stakes. Justice searches out Max's coffin and opens it, prepared to
stake him, but he finds Rita laying there. Rita begins to advance on
Justice, her fangs showing. She stops long enough to share a kiss with Max
and then stakes him, claiming that this part of her must die. Rita and
Justice end up in each others' arms.Epiloque: Max is dead, and Julius doesn't have much left in the way of limbs,
skin, arms, etc., but Silas reminds him that he does have the limo, and
they decide to go for a ride. In the backseat, Julius finds a ring left
behind by Max and places it on his finger. POOF! Julius has back all his
parts (and then some). There's a new vampire in Brooklyn, and his name is
Julius Jones. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.]

Tags: comedy, gothic, murder, paranormal, cult, violence, flashback, good versus evil, insanity, absurd, humor, psychedelic, romantic, revenge

Review:
Maximillian (Eddie Murphy) is the only survivor from a race of vampires on a Caribbean Island, and as a vampire, he must find a mate to keep the line from ending.Some have said this film is the worst for Murphy and for Wes Craven, with Murphy saying the wig he had to wear was a big part of the problem.
That formula was quickly run dry, however, both by Murphy himself and the imitators he inspired.So, Eddie intelligently decided that he needed to recreate a forgotten genre of comedy, one which Peter Sellars had mastered in the 60s, and which only Murphy could do today: he would make movies in which he played multiple characters.
Soon followed the "Nutty Professor" movies, "Bowfinger", and his animated TV series, "The PJ's." In all these Murphy played a multiplicity of roles, and played them all brilliantly (the Academy's disdain for streetwise comedies, and--well, lets just say it--their dismissal of black performers not playing slaves or pimps, are the only explanations possible for Murphy not owning an Oscar or two by now).With these projects, Eddie was not only playing different characters, but also honing a new Eddie Murphy genre: raunchy, but intelligent; gross, but heartfelt; hilariously over the top in the particulars of plot, but firmly rooted in emotional reality.
He has created or has been involved with, some of the arguably best comedies of the 1990's and onward--and has been responsible for inarguably the best comic performances of the era.So, in this era, Eddie decided to push the envelope by mixing the new Eddie Genre with the Horror films he loved as a kid.
The result, "A Vampire in Brooklyn", is unsettling to some because the lines between Eddie's wildly improvisational Black (or African American, if you insist) character comedy to straight vampire horror movie are so starkly drawn.
The funny parts are funny and the scary parts are truly scary.And Murphy also gets to shine in multiple well-defined character parts as well, as the shape-shifting African Vampire assumes the physical identity of several of his victims."Vampire" failed at the box office not because it was a bad film--its definitely is not.
I watched this movie thinking it would be like other eddie murphy movies- lots of humor and fun.
I don't really know what it was that made me like this movie, but I have to say that Eddie Murphy makes a good vampire.
As much as I love to laugh and adore Eddie Murphy's comedic talent, the genre of Vampires is my ultimate favourite topic.
I approached this film with a lot of reservation because I really didn't think Eddie Murphy was vampire material.
So I give this movie the thumbs up and not just for vampire lovers and not just for Eddie Murphy fans- this is quite an entertaining film..
I am a fan of Eddie Murphy, and have noticed that many of his films have pretty poor ratings here on IMDB, including this one, which has a shockingly low rating.I thought the film had very funny moments, and Murphy had a good rapport with his Ghoul.
"Vampire in Brooklyn" is probably one of Wes Craven's most underappreciated movies, and that for some weird reasons.
Vampire in Brooklyn (1995) * (out of 4) They say sometimes great artists must hit an ultimate low before they can fully bounce back and that has never been more true for both director Wes Craven and star Eddie Murphy.
In the film Murphy plays Maximillian, a Caribbean vampire who comes to Brooklyn in search of a woman to carry on his race.
When Eddie Murphy did movies like Trading Places, and Beverly Hills Cop, he was cool because he was funny.
With movies like this Murphy is trying to be cool before he is being funny.
Why wouldn't Eddie Murphy make this movie like he did Beverly Hills Cop?
The movie had a very dark tone, and that would have worked, because it could make for more subtle Eddie Murphy comedy, but Murphy attempts so few jokes here, there is so little opportunity for him to try and be funny.
Angela Bassett does a pretty good job as a cop in search of Murphy, but really can't save this movie, it's just so awkward, it doesn't know whether it wants to be a horror flick a love story or a comedy.
Murphy overall struggled in the nineties, and this is a classic example why, instead of being funny in his movies he tries too hard to be cool and it doesn't work.
Murphy needs to remember he was funny because he applied his unique sense of humor to films, he needs to have his own band of movie instead of trying to produce someone else's style of comedy.
Does that help race relations?Add to that bigotry and very boring love story between Murphy and Angela Bassett and you have a film that was very disappointing.
The directing job on this movie was good and so was the acting from Murphy and Basset.Murphy makes one of the best vampires ever yet.The problem here was the budget.The sets were cheap looking and the supporting actors were terrible.This movie however enterains and will be a Haloween favorite for TV..
For vampire cinema has always been predominant for a white audience for obvious reasons, being a European legend, and on the other hand, its magnificent and gothic setting, which gives it a Halloween-like appearance, with a marginal urban atmosphere, Brooklyn neighborhood in this case, covered with thick mists and dark alleys.Eddie Murphy is great.
An acceptable role in its proper measure.Of the rest of secondary highlights as not, the assistant of Maximilliam, the spawn, who does the funniest part of the film, Angela Basset, the best performance, and his partner, well, puts the heroic note of the function.Obviously the script is improvable, but it is totally entertaining, technically it is very good, with a good sound, its setting is lovely as I said, and that it is in the hands of Wes Craven, enhances the quality of the film, which has it, as much as they always disqualify the smart guys.Who thinks it's a mess, take a look at Dracula 3000 or Dracula 2001, for example and make comparisons..
Continuing my plan to watch every Eddie Murphy movie in order, I come to Vampire In Brooklyn (1995)Plot In A Paragraph: Maximillian (Murphy) is the only surviving vampire, he must find a mate to keep the line from ending.
But they seem to be acting in different movies, and that's the problem.In an interview, Wes Craven stated that the movie was difficult to make because Murphy did not want to be funny, instead aiming to play his character straight.
He also said in a different interview "Eddie didn't want to be really evil, which i think hampered it massively, because it really needed somebody who could be evil but he kind of wanted to do a horror film but he didn't want to be a bad guy and he wanted to look kind of buff all the time".
Vampire In Brooklyn is a very flawed movie and odd collaboration between Master Of Horror Wes Craven and comedic superstar Eddie Murphy.
As a fan of both Wes Craven and Eddie Murphy, I still enjoy the film anyways and both of these guys have done much worst stuff.
Some of the comedic material from Eddie was brilliant, but it was a bit too much and there was a lot of material that was not funny that works against the dark atmosphere and tension that Craven was trying to build and did well throughout the course of the film.
Eddie Murphy's portrayals in dual roles of an African vampire and various others were very good.
With Wes Craven and a big budget, you'd expect some scares  even if they were average ones, but no, not a thing  the `scary' scenes are just silly action scenes and there is no real horror (or tension) in this film.I like Eddie Murphy and I like his trend of playing multiple characters.
I always have time for Angela Bassett as she is not only beautiful but plays good characters (anyone who saw her carry Strange Days will know what I mean), but here she has little material  but still manages to grab the attention.
Hardison is not a good actor and his comedy role is not good at all, even reliable like Witherspoon and a few other familiar faces are wasted.Overall this just about passes the time  but it manages to fail in almost every area it tries to work in.
I love vampires - I do like Eddie Murphy films, but both doesn't match!
Eddie Murphy as – you guessed it – a vampire in Brooklyn.
Released in 1995 and directed by Wes Craven, "Vampire in Brooklyn" stars Eddie Murphy as a Caribbean vampire who travels to Brooklyn seeking the daughter (Angela Bassett) of a vampire he once knew in order to keep his vampire line continuing.
John Witherspoon and Zakes Mokae are also on hand.I can understand why this movie bombed at the box office seeing as how the main cast is all black and this would limit its appeal, but I can't figure out why it has such a low rating since Murphy is commanding in the titular role and the movie hits all the marks of an entertaining blockbuster horror flick.
Furthermore, the two main protagonists (Bassett and Payne) are great and their characters have a compelling romantic thread, not to mention Hardison is amusingly effective as the vampire's ghoul; Witherspoon is also notable.Some people complain about the mixed tone, but the mixture of serious horror with comedy was done in 1990's "Arachnophobia" and it was a minor hit.
I don't know why it is but I can't help but love pretty much the majority of movies from Eddie Murphy's career from the 80's onwards.
Eddie Murphy stars as a vampire from Egypt who is looking for a woman he believes is the last of his kind,.
Oh and everyone else has noticed VAMPIRE IN BROOKLYN doesn`t work as a horror film , a comedy , or a romance .
I thought it would be a great Eddie Murphy, the motormouth, spoof of vampire movies.
As a comedy, this film is too serious, as a horror, it's too cheesy, and as a romance, Murphy is too busy being in love with himself.
Wes Craven is one of the most inconsistent directors in horror cinema: when on top form, he is a genius, taking risks with unpredictable projects and as a result, often giving the genre a much needed shot in the arm, as proved by groundbreaking movies like Last House On The Left, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream; at his least inspired, he is a hack, delivering predictably dumb (but still surprisingly enjoyable) trash like Shocker, Deadly Friend and Cursed.Vampire in Brooklyn is something of an oddity in Craven's erratic career: it's definitely not a predictable project for the director—a comedy/horror featuring a predominantly black cast—but it certainly is dumb.
Written by Eddie Murphy (obviously having a bit of an off day), the script fails to deliver consistent laughs, and even some inspired imagery from Craven cannot prevent this one from being a somewhat disappointing title in the canon of both star and director.It's a shame, because Murphy can be hilarious and makes for a cool vampire, whilst we all know that Craven is capable of creating iconic scary moments; on this particular occasion, however, the magic just isn't there, and although the film cannot ever be accused of being dull, it is ultimately a forgettable flick that rabid Murphy fans might find enjoyable (the star hams it up to the max), but will probably only be of passing interest to horror fans.5.5 out of 10, rounded up to 6 for IMDb..
Wes Craven seems out of his element, handling Eddie Murphy and the movie's tone ineptly.
Funny, this movie is an Eddie Murphy vehicle but the only time the movie works is when he's off screen..
Bad...really Bad. This movie is pretty bad...Eddie Murphy looks like Nick Ashford from Ashford and Simpson.
Their repartee is supposed to provide much of what passes as humour in the film, in truth it is merely a series of lamentable puns ("Put a little heart into it") and gross out sight gags that often seem out of place.Max's romantical target is an already half-vampire (due to some ancestral shenanigans) named Rita (Angela Bassett), a cop with a jealous partner named Justice (Allen Payne).Despite her instincts Rita finds herself drawn to this pimp looking pointy toothed sleaze merchant due to some unknown connection, but as the legend states that she must give herself to Max via dance the usual "Holla at ya' Boi" tactics aren't destined to work for Max.Cue the clumsy mix of bad horror, bad comedy and still more bad puns.The film uses the usual vampire rulebook of mirrors, sunlight, mist, crosses and garlic but awkwardly shoehorns jokes on the back of gore and vice versa.An overrated director and a fading comedian in a relationship doomed to failure, thankfully this genre confusing flop was their only offspring.
I always deliberately avoided watching "Vampire in Brooklyn" because, quite frankly, the idea of a collaboration between horror-director Wes Craven and comedy-actor Eddie Murphy sounds about as appealing as going on a picnic trip with a tribe of cannibals You just don't do that!
Of course your instincts and premonitions are rarely ever wrong, and "Vampire in Brooklyn" definitely isn't what one would call a good film, but at least the opening sequences mislead me into believing it actually could have become one!
Vampire in Brooklyn: 3/10One of Murphy's worst roles, as he plays one of two remaining vampires in this supposed comedy.
So Wes Craven, one of the masters of horror, who brought us amazing scary movies like A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Last House on the Left, The Hills have Eyes and Scream tried to take on the vampire genre.
But having Eddie Murphy play his role totally straight, having Angela Bassett who seems like she's in a whole other movie, and then having that totally ludicrous epilogue which seems straight out of the Friday franchise...
They were murdered by Maximillian (Eddie Murphy) a Vampire from the Caribbean who happens to be the last of his kind & needs to mate with another Vampire & the closet thing left is half Vampire half human NYPD cop Detective Rita Veder (Angela Bassett) who doesn't yet know she's half Vampire, Maximillian has to convince her she is a Vampire & then to mate with her otherwise the Vampire race will die out...Directed by Wes Craven this is a romantic comedy horror with an almost entirely black cast that doesn't really work in any respect.
By the time Craven teamed up with Murphy to make this both needed a hit after their careers both hit slumps, Vampire in Brooklyn was a poor choice of film although the story does have a happy ending as Craven went on to make the mega hit teen horror slasher Scream (1996) & Murphy made the successful children's comedy The Nutty Professor (1996) as their next films respectively.
The acting isn't that great & surprisingly Murphy is the only one who plays it straight which is very odd, Bassett is forgettable & Kadeem Hardison as the comedy relief ghoul is terrible.Vampire in Brooklyn is a horror film that isn't scary, a comedy that isn't funny & it's got a black cast directed by a white man brought in for his name & as a whole it just doesn't work on any level.
Murphy is both suave and sinister as the Caribbean vampire, also a master of disguise, he gets his laughs from being the alcoholic preacher and the Italian gangster, Bassett and the other co-stars do their parts fine as well, the intended jokes are lost in the scary element of the film, because of the amount of gore and grizzly makeup and special effects you are frightened more often than laughing, but overall it is an interesting, funny enough and dark comedy horror.
A really good Eddie Murphy film!.
Eddie Murphy, Angela Bassett, Allen Payne, Zakes Mokae, Kadeem Hardison, John Witherspoon and Joanna Cassidy star in Wes Craven's 1995 horror comedy.
Murphy (Beverly Hills Cop) plays Caribbean vampire, Maximillian who arrives in Brooklyn searching for a woman who is half vampire.
This basically pays tribute and pokes fun at vampire flicks like "Blacula." It's not bad, Murphy is great in it, he and Bassett have good chemistry, Rick Baker's make-up effects are terrific as usual and J.
This makeup is straight from films like FRIGHT NIGHT and other '80s horror flicks, and I'm surprised that they couldn't come up with anything more original.The acting in this film is all of mediocre standard, as I said above, although Eddie Murphy tries his best as the vampire; he manages to be suave but not in the least bit frightening.
I have to say though that Murphy's appearance is good and much like a modern day Blacula (as one character remarks in film, in fact).
Maximillian is the only survivor from a race of vampires on a Caribbean Island, and as a vampire, he must find a mate to keep the line from ending.He knows that a child had been born to a woman who had a vampire father, and he searches for her in Brooklyn.Rita's mother, who has died in an asylum, was that woman, and Rita has nightmares that she does not understand.Not knowing that she is part vampire, Max woos her and attempts to bring her to her blood sucking destiny....The ironic thing about his dirge is that in the same year Craven and Murphy had the career resurgences that they both desperately needed.The big problem with this movie is that it cannot decide to be a horror,comedy or dark romance.