Eternal Kiss - review by Ron Foley MacDonald

Ron Foley MacDonald has been Halifax's top film and theatre critic for many years now, so I sent him an advance copy of Eternal Kiss. Here is his review:

The World Premiere of the Nova Scotia-shot feature drama Eternal Kiss will take place at Park Lane theatres, Halifax, Thursday April 28th from 6 to 9 pm.

A courtesy screening for cast and crew, family and friends, remaining seats are available to the public for free by contacting voiceoflondon@aol.com by noon, April 28th to guarantee a place.

Eternal Kiss is a contemporary vampire tale concerning a modern-day documentary filmmaker (played by Montreal actor Joe Gallaccio) who investigates whether stories of vampirism are real or not. He ends up getting more than he bargained for.

Triple threat producer/writer/director Paul Kimball shifts the focus back to the romantic era origins of the story, which began when poets Lord Byron, Shelley, Mary Shelley and Dr. John Polidori challenged each other to write tales of dread, horror and longing in the summer of 1816.

With quotes from the romantic poets alongside current pop culture references, Eternal Kiss blends contemporary and more enduring themes in its chamber-like treatment of the vampire trope, complete with site-specific references such as Harker’s Cove and Canadian Forces Base Carfax. Filmed in Shelburne, there’s lingering Gothic sensibility throughout the project.

Sporting a range of gray tones in its colour palette, Eternal Kiss resembles Ingmar Bergman’s mid-60s work, such as Persona and Hour Of the Wolf when that Northern European master mixed terse issues of identity with strong undertones of horror.

Much shooting takes place at night with a deliberate lack of establishing and landscape shots, Kimball’s film emphasizes feelings of dislocation and looming desire. Eternal Kiss is an intense and personal trip into the Vampire world; it is as unsettling as it is engrossing.

Eternal Kiss also features East Coast actors Carly Street, David Connellan and Nigel Bennett. It was financed with the assistance of Film Nova Scotia and California based distributors will release the film internationally later this year.

Thanks very much Ron - glad you liked the film, and "got" what we were going for!

Paul Kimball