Mena Suvari Sinks Her Teeth Into This Throwback Vampire Flick | Sorry Not Sorry

Mena Suvari made a name for herself back in 1999 when she starred in two of the most talked about movies of the year: American Pie and American Beauty.

Since then she has gone onto star in a range of projects traversing pretty much each and every genre going. For her most recent project she embraced her inner vampire for horror comedy Vampires of the Velvet Lounge. 

WATCH: Mena Suvari Sinks Her Teeth Into This Throwback Vampire Flick! #shorts 

Any good actor understands that the key to giving a compelling performance is preparation. Whether that be researching into whatever line of work their character is doing, talking to people who have lived experiences, or simply watching movies of a similar nature, being prepared always yields better results.

Mena Suvari understands this approach and in preparation for her new role, she spent a lot of time with a vampire classic.  

How Watching ‘Nosferatu’ Helped Mena Suvari Find Her Inner Vampire

Speaking to JustWatch, Mena Suvari disclosed that when it came to getting ready to play a vampire, there was only one film she wanted to source: Nosferatu.

She shared, “I got really into watching Nosferatu, the original, and going into this silent film route.” Her time watching Nosferatu came when she was already in Savannah getting ready for the shoot and it was a combination of her shooting location and the silent movie horror that helped her access her Vampires of the Velvet Lounge role.

Suvari explained: “It was shot in Savannah, which was such a character in itself. Really just continuously feeling that energy, and I went more that route. I guess for me it just felt like going to the origin, and trying to digest the energy around that entity and what it felt like.”

The 100 Year Controversy Of ‘Nosferatu’

Released in 1922, Nosferatu was met with a lot of controversy due to its similarity to Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula. Directed by F.W. Murnau, Nosferatu attempted to adapt the famous story without actually paying for the rights to the book.

So, as to avoid copyright infringement they changed character names with Dracula becoming Count Orlok. The similarities, however, remained overwhelming, and Stoker’s widow successfully sued for copyright infringement. The outcome was that prints of Nosferatu were destroyed, but a few copies were held onto and Nosferatu eventually made its way out into the world. 

Controversy aside, Nosferatu remains one of the first examples of a movie vampire and still manages to be creepy for modern audiences. Much of this comes down to the performance of Max Schreck. His silhouette sneaking up the stairs has become one of the most iconic images in cinema, and there is something about the way that he moves that feels inhuman. Schreck conjures so much apprehension and fear through his body language and movement.

Due to the silent movie format, his character never utters a sound and yet it doesn’t stop him from being unsettling. It makes sense, then, that Mena Suvari would opt to pick such a performance to unlock her inner vampiress.    

What Is Mena Suvari’s New Vampire Film About?

All of Mena Suvari’s viewings of Nosferatu were in preparation for her role as famous vampiress Elizabeth Báthory. The character has real historical ties, with the actual Elizabeth Báthory being a Hungarian noblewoman and an alleged serial killer.

Rumour has it that she was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of women and girls during the late 1500s, with further talk suggesting that she killed these women to bathe in their blood in an attempt to keep herself looking youthful. Given the legend, it is no surprise to find the character involved in a vampire story, but Suvari’s iteration is far more modern.

Vampires of the Velvet Lounge places Suvari’s Elizabeth as the head of a coven of seductive vampires. The group hunts by using dating apps to lure victims to their titular velvet lounge. Their plan comes unstuck after one of the coven inadvertently invites a vampire hunter into their home. A low-budget, but fun, vampire romp, Vampires of the Velvet Lounge is made whole thanks to Suvari’s fantastically campy performance.