Bakjwi [Thirst] (2009)
(On Cable TV, June 2020) Iconoclast writer-director Park Chan-wook takes on Catholic vampire tropes in South Korean riff Thirst and the result is both familiar and weird. The familiar part comes from the decision to focus the film on the vampiric mythos, as a Catholic priest volunteering for an experimental medical treatment dies and revives as a full-blown vampire. The weird stuff gets going when Park decides to have some fun with the elements at his disposal, going for an affair between vampiric protagonist and an abused wife, and whatever happens next. There’s a strong erotic component to the film, with a lengthy sex scene being central to the plot. While the script is peppered with familiar vampire plot points and subplots, Park’s approach is typically iconoclastic, with a careful use of colour palettes, competent directing and just-provocative-enough imagery. While Thirst does more interesting as it goes on, it’s still often very familiar. But if you’re in the mood for a recognizable vampire film that perverts (but not avoids) many familiar tropes of the genre, then this could be the film that you’re looking for.