After a few weeks to get used to the rhythm of this show, we are here to analyze Interview with the Vampire 1×05 “A Vile Hunger For Your Hammering Heart!” And we couldn't have started our reviews on a worse episode because this is one where everything goes wrong and the disasters just keep piling up. Ready?
Here we go!
After seeing Interview with the Vampire 1×05 “A Vile Hunger For Your Hammering Heart” I could only exclaim: WTF?! I mean, in an adaptation you know you can't expect to find every word of the book on screen.
However, you do hope that the series captures the essence of both the story and the characters and that, as much as the adaptation changes, that essence will always be there.
Interview with the Vampire fulfilled these goals in the first three episodes. In the previous episode, the show deviated a bit but, in general, kept the essence of the characters, especially Lestat, Claudia, and Louis.
But “A Vile Hunger For Your Hammering Heart” takes a dark turn that makes no sense. The first elephant in the room is Claudia. In other words, a vampire show requires the audience to broaden our moral compass to allow us to sympathize with protagonists who kill and feed on the blood of their victims.
But Claudia…goddess, everything in “A Vile Hunger For Your Hammering Heart” is wrong. Claudia and her murderous spiral is something quite terrifying to see, although also illogical. I mean, Louis didn't even bother to check that Claudia was indeed in her casket and she's not at her best when she lets the police into her house without a warrant.
On the other hand, are Claudia's actions totally her fault? Louis needed a sister/daughter so much that he made her become a vampire in the first place. Louis and Lestat have each other, but if Claudia ever wants to have sex again, her options aren't exactly good or healthy. Claudia has been trying to create her own vampire mate.
No one taught her how else to feel loved.
She just wanted to have as close a connection as Louis and Lestat have. Claudia just wanted to feel truly loved and not used... and she finds the complete opposite. After all, Lestat is unnecessarily cruel to Claudia.
Honestly, Lestat has always had this cruel streak that he decides to use as a defense mechanism.
Lestat attacks before they attack him but what happens with Claudia I think she crosses the line. She was already on the ground, what need was there for her to kick her?
But things get much worse. Lestat has few limits but a red line for him is Louis. He will never hurt you, physically or emotionally.
But the last scene of “A Vile Hunger For Your Hammering Heart” is just horrible. Not only is it not true to Lestat's character but the way in which those acts are almost justified. It's a no for me.
Now, Louis has even more reason to choose Claudia over Lestat and to go over to Lestat's side. I don't think anyone can blame him for that. In fact, it's just what he should do.
It’s a shame that everything the show promised has led to this. For the first time, the love between Louis and Lestat was not just a hint, but a reality. However, the creation of Claudia as a kind of possible love interest for Louis barra daughter barra sister shook the representation that the series was intended to sell.
But the end of “A Vile Hunger For Your Hammering Heart” ended up taking the turn we never wanted this show to take because neither jealousy nor the way the relationship took root over the years with the arrival of Claudia and its growth justify what happened.
As for Claudia, if the situation between Louis and Lestat is horrible, what happens to her is disgusting. Although we don't see everything that happens, we do see enough to know what happens: a sexual assault. This scene serves no purpose other than to shock the audience. And the way the show intends to treat it…I'm sure you think they did it with sensitivity but they didn't.
The way that, after everything that happens to Claudia, after she survives, Lestat makes her feel miserable felt like another “blame and beat the victim” episode. Everything is wrong with this.
So yes, “A Vile Hunger For Your Hammering Heart” was a complete disaster and we hope that the following week the show does justice not only to the source material, but to itself.
Agree? Disagree? Don't hesitate to share it with us in the comments below!
Interview with the Vampire airs Sundays at 10/9c on AMC, or you can stream ahead on AMC+.
