Vampire
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Director: Robert Eggers
Writer: Ben Collins
Based on the 1915 film A Fool There Was and the poem The Vampire by Rudyard Kipling
Cast: Taylor Kitsch, Samara Weaving, Shailene Woodley, Katherine Langford, Tom Bateman, Violet McGraw, James Frain, Bridget Regan
Plot: Indefinite period of the early 1900s.
John Schuyler (Taylor Kitsch) and his wife Kate (Shailene Woodley) are happily married and live on a large and beautiful estate in a seaside resort. Their daughter Alice (Violet McGraw), Kate and the sister of the woman Gloria (Katherine Langford) stroll in the garden playing and having fun and at a certain point they all set off together for an ice cream.
Meanwhile, a dark-haired woman, very elegantly dressed black named Zora (Samara Weaving), who desperately wants to be part of high society, is with her man, a man who looks tired, drunk and in debt. name Reginald Parmalee (James Frain). At one point the couple is asked to leave the hotel where they are staying as they are behind with payments. They go out into the street to call a taxi right where Alice is walking with ice cream in hand. Alice, distracted by a flying butterfly, slams on Zora, smudging her with ice cream. When Mrs. Schuyler and Kate walk past her without saying anything, Zora feels she has been snubbed and watches them walk away with an angry look.
Meanwhile John had been joined by Dr. Tom Cunningham (Tom Bateman), Gloria's boyfriend and they are talking about sports. Shortly after they are joined by the three females and they enjoy together the view of the wonderful sunset of the day.
The next day, John, who works on Wall Street as a government official, receives a letter from the Secretary of State assigning him as a special envoy and ordering him to sail for England the next day. John immediately phones the family and they are all excited to go with them. Shortly thereafter, however, Kate's sister suffers an unfortunate little car accident by breaking her leg. Kate, although disconsolate, decides she cannot accompany John on the journey aboard the ship because she wants to assist Gloria in her recovery.
Meanwhile, Zora reads in the newspaper about John Schuyler's upcoming trip, recognizing him as the husband of the woman who ignored her. She clutching the newspaper tightly, she orders the servants to pack their bags. Reginald learns of the woman's departure and accuses her of ruining him and then leaving him. The woman laughs as she approaches him declaring that it was just a ploy to test Reginald's love for her. When they hug and kiss, however, the woman uses that moment to steal her wallet full of money due to a horse race win.
Meanwhile, John Schuyler orders Cunningham to take his family to the ship to greet them before the long voyage.
A sudden storm hits the city with lightning darkening the sky and Kate wonders aloud if this is a harbinger of an accident on the ship. Cunningham assures her that the storm is passing quickly and that they can go. Kate and her daughter get ready and leave for the dock.
Reginald learns that Zora has left their home and embarked on a ship to Europe. Reginald is enraged and starts destroying everything before running to the dock. Passengers begin to board the ship. John's family arrives on the dock to greet John.
Zora always arrives elegantly dressed and with a nice bearing and is recognized by an old homeless man who is looking for money. He insults the woman for how she has ruined him, she continues walking without giving him a look. Shortly thereafter, Reginald also arrives at the port and also runs into the homeless man, asking him if he had seen the woman he was looking for. The homeless man changes expression and warns Reginald of the fate of himself and a colleague after dating that woman, stealing all their money and ruining their lives in every way. Parmalee doesn't listen to him, she pushes the bum aside and goes aboard the ship checking her revolver before desperately searching for Zora.
Reginald finds Zora and confronts her by pointing the gun in her face. She slowly shakes her head looking at him gently, lowers the gun with one finger and seduces him by saying: "Kiss me, stupid". As their lips slowly draw closer, Reginald points the gun at his temple and pulls the trigger. The crew rushes from the dead to the deck chairs where the suicide took place. Some witnesses say that around the man there was a woman dressed in black, but that the man actually committed suicide. The crew take the body out of the ship and begin cleaning the deck.
John, hearing the commotion, leaves the family for a moment to investigate and learns of the man's suicide. In order not to scare Kate and her daughter, he explains the incident as a sound from the ship. There are a few minutes left for the ship to depart. John hugs his wife and daughter even if suddenly he notices Zora who is putting on make-up through a porthole and is looking at him with a seductive gaze.
Subsequently, during the last embrace with the family and while the daughter sobbing with tears, she advances on the deck of the ship not taking her eyes off him and sits in a deckchair. John notices it immediately, dumbfounded to look at her for a moment. Finally he greets his family ashore as the ship leaves port. Almost immediately, John is joined on deck by the Vampire. She surreptitiously drops her flower to meet John. John picks the flower up for the lady but most of his attention di lui is still on the passing shoreline. The Vampire directs the deckhand to move John Schuyler's labeled deck chair next to hers. When John seeks out his chair, he learns from the deckhand it is in the location of the suicide telling him the woman he was with was laughing like the devil. He seats himself next to the woman who appears to be dozing. He sits next to her Zora who appears to be dozing, despite a wry smile on her face.
Meanwhile, the Schuyler family returns home and Tom leaves them there after taking them home. Both are saddened by the departure of their beloved father and husband.
Two months later, Kate's sister has recovered from her wound and is able to take Tom on a car ride. John's daughter remains playful and full of fun.
In England, John reclines against Zora, kissing passionately while sipping wine. A postman delivers a letter from John's wife in which he questions his health, the vagueness of his letters. Furthermore, he notes that her secretary (Bridget Regan) who has returned to America is not honest with her about her condition and her status. Zora is shocked at the sight of the letter and tears it into a thousand pieces. The two argue, but Zora reminds John that her thoughts shouldn't be in America when her heart is there with her in England.
Later, while her wife waits patiently at home, John Schuyler is recognized as being intimate with Zora by a couple of American friends who have traveled to England on a trip. The woman refuses to stay in the same hotel due to Schuyler's shameful conduct.
A couple of days later in New York, a newspaper suggests that a certain ambassador fell under the spell of a dangerous woman linked to the suicide of a man named Reginald Parmalee. Kate's sister Gloria reads the column and shows the newspaper to Tom who tears the paper in disgust not believing what she has read.
When John and Zora appear after some time at an important party in society, they are marginalized among their elite associates. At the same moment Gloria and Kate rush to John's secretary accusing her of covering up her brother-in-law's sins. Meanwhile Alice knows nothing of this whole situation and she continues to make drawings and creates gifts for her father's future return to her home.
John begins to drink more and more and writes a telegram saying he is returning home to his wife and baby, but the Vampire changes her letter to indicate that he is now with the woman he loves.
Gloria gives Kate a letter she kept with information about her husband John written by the couple's friends when they saw John with another woman during their holiday in England. Kate is devastated and due to John's undignified activities, he has been fired from his office by the Secretary of State.
John and the Vampire return to New York. Tom is at the dock and sees the Vampira pulling John into a taxi. He goes to a phone booth to tell Kate that unfortunately the woman is with John. John and the Vampire move into an apartment and the housekeeper is introduced to her new owner.
Some days later. Two open cars on the busy New York street: one with Schuyler and the vampire in the back, the other with his wife and daughter in the back seat. As often happens in heavy traffic, the two cars stop momentarily next to each other. The little girl looks over and sees her father in the adjacent car. "Dear daddy, I want you! She's coming home" the little girl screams with a giant smile on her face. But he turns his head as if he hadn't seen her while the traffic starts moving again and they go in opposite directions. John staggers home, looking desolate and defeated, and is chastised by the Vampire for his behavior. She then offers him a drink from the cabinet, further weakening her will. A week later, Schuyler's drinking habit became even more intense. The Vampire threatens to leave him and John falls to his knees begging her to stay. In the meantime Tom and Gloria have become engaged.
Gloria calls a lawyer who tries to convince Kate to file for divorce. Kate questions Tom, the best man at her and John's wedding, about his opinion of her. Tom says he should still try to keep his vows with the phrase "till death do us part". The lawyer takes his leave. Kate puts the baby to bed and together they pray for John's return home.
Six months later, John Schuyler is a raging alcoholic who sits alone in the darkness feeding his addiction. His secretary visits him to submit his resignation. In response he opens another bottle of alcohol. The secretary tells Kate, Gloria and Kate that the Vampire has left Schuyler in despair. The Vampire, in fact, has various lovers.
Kate thinks about it and decides that her place is still with John. Zora learns that Kate will soon be on her way to join her husband. Kate and Tom arrive home. Kate enters alone and finds John in a debilitated state. She helps him to his feet and they are about to leave when the Vampire comes there with a smirk. Tom tries to delay her, pins her down and yanks her but the Vampire threatens to scream, adding more scandals around John Schuyler to the city. Tom lets her go and faces Kate. He approaches John and kisses him in front of Kate. Kate is about to pass out and gives John to the Vampira. Tom escorts Kate, almost unconscious, out of the house. John embraces the Vampire in her weakness.
The following week, the little girl prays for God to bring her father back to her house. Tom and Kate's sister discuss the need to watch Kate for fear that she will do something reckless.
Kate actually manages to evade Gloria and Tom's surveillance and leaves the house to look for John. The camera shows that John is drunk at a party in some kind of brothel where Zora is also there. When a suitor shows interest in Zora, John rebuffs him with a bottle. Zora smiles and takes John's hand and they leave.
The next day, Kate decides to turn to John one last time, taking her daughter with her. She talks to Tom and convinces him with difficulty to try one last time. The two go to the house where John lives. Tom enters the house first and tries to wake up John, who is in a drunken state among the dirt and rats. He hits him with hard slaps until he regains consciousness. At that point Kate and her daughter enter. John is happy to see the little girl and with teary eyes gives her a kiss on the forehead. Zora watches from the top floor with an enigmatic smile. At one point she snaps her fingers and with a confident voice she claims John. John apologizes and approaches the stairs to go to Zora. Kate, desperate, picks up the little girl from home, telling Tom that she no longer wants to know anything about John and she leaves forever.
While climbing the stairs John slips, hitting his head violently. There he begins to relive various moments of the last moments and remembers seeing Parmalee's body being taken away by the ocean ship and now realizes that her fate will soon be the same. He starts to rebel, breaks bottles of alcohol and screams until he puts his hands on his chest and dies alone. The Vampire, with an inscrutable smile, looks down at the dying figure slumped on the ground. She plucks a few crimson roses from a bouquet in a vase and scatters their petals, like drops of crimson blood, over all that remains of her miserable, broken victim. Then the woman goes in front of the mirror, slightly fixing her hair, she puts on lipstick and leaves, closing the door in search of a new man to destroy.
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