The Hunger opens with an extended sequence where a beautiful vampire couple goes hunting for hapless swingers in a quintessential New York punk club scene. Bauhaus performs “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” behind a cage onstage, backlit by blue light and smoke. The vampires—both in sleek and highly tailored black ensembles—are played by French screen star Catherine Deneuve (Miriam) and David Bowie (John) during his Let’s Dance era. When John begins rapidly aging, he learns that he was promised immortal life but not eternal youth. Enter Susan Sarandon as Dr. Sarah Roberts, the world’s sexiest gerontologist, who creates a love triangle in this erotic horror film. As directed by Tony Scott (Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop II), this isn’t vampire lore of yore, but a vampire film for Manhattan’s yuppie set. The film is as stylish and sleek as an MTV music video: timelessly tailored costumes, soft-focus camera work, a symphonic score, and a huge production budget devoted to billowing curtains. Sure, The Hunger lacks a soul and the final scene makes no sense, but at 40 years old, this 1983 cult classic remains as seductive as its vampiric leads. The 40th anniversary of The Hunger screens at 9:15 p.m on April 15 and 9 p.m. on April 19 at AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring. silver.afi.com. $8.
The Hunger 40th-Anniversary Screening
