A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
Ana Lily Amirpour’s startling debut wowed audiences at Sundance Film Festival premiere in 2014 and spawned other cinematic vampires both ironically self-aware (What We Do in the Shadows) and hipster-cool (Only Lovers Left Alive).
Announcing itself as the first Iranian vampire western, Amirpour’s take on the blood-sucking archetype is anything but prescriptive. For one thing, her vamp (Sheila Vand) is a sassy loner who roams the streets on a skateboard stolen from a kid. In her stripy shirt and ‘60s eyeliner she could be straight out of the Velvet Underground, the only difference being her bat-like chador flowing in the nocturnal breeze. The unsuspecting object of her affections is Arash (Arash Marandi), a handsome James Dean type. He is dealing with his own family issues and in the off-kilter world they inhabit, a touching and unconventional relationship develops.
Amirpour’s striking feature (shot in California) is set in a filmic universe so fully and atmospherically realised, you’d be forgiven for suspecting this was the work of a mid-career director. Inventive, assured and original, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night proves there is always room on any cinephile’s slate for a new instant-favourite filmmaker.
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night is referenced in Women Make Film in chapters Meet Cute, Conversations, Horror and Hell.
Director
Ana Lily AmirpourLanguage
Persian
Subtitles
English
Country
USA
Studio
Madman Entertainment