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The official trailer has been released for Kicking Blood, a new film described by the filmmakers as a “vampire love story.” The fantasy thriller is scheduled to hit theaters on March 31 from XYZ Films Releasing. Ahead of the premiere, you can check out the brand new trailer below.
The official synopsis for Kicking Blood reads: “After falling for a charming recovering alcoholic, modern vampire Anna sets her mind, and heart, on quitting blood and becoming human again.”
Blaine Thurier directed the film with a screenplay co-written with Leonard Farlinger. The film stars Alanna Bale (Cardinal), Luke Bilyk (Degrassi), Benjamin Sutherland (Kim’s Convenience), Vinessa Antoine (General Hospital), Rosemary Dunsmore (Orphan Black), Ella Jonas Farlinger (Anne with an E), and Kristin Shepherd (Netflix’s The Knight Before Christmas).
Kicking Blood Is Not a Typical Vampire Movie
Kicking Blood has some horror elements to it, but it’s far from a traditional vampire horror movie. Director Blaine Thurier spoke about the concept behind the film with Film Inquiry in light of its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2021. As Thurier explains, the idea was to abandon the more overused elements seen in vampire movies and instead put more of a focus on the addiction a vampire might suffer with quitting blood and how that would relate to humans and their own struggles.
“We wanted to pick the aspects of vampire mythology that were most interesting to us, the ones that might actually mean something about who we are as people,” Thurier said. “And the things that did not interest us were bats and coffins and castles and mirrors and garlic and all that. What did compel me was, as I said, the idea of being immortal and addicted and you have to live in darkness. You can’t see the sunlight and you have no soul, and would there be just the tiniest spark left to compel you to try to recover from your addiction and reconnect with your soul in the end.”
Alanna Bale, who plays Anna in the film, drew from her own real-life experiences for inspiration to play a vampire in withdrawal. She explained, “I think that addiction is pretty prevalent, whether you suffer from it or you know someone that does. It’s everywhere and you don’t have to look far to find it. So I found that to talking with Blaine and reading the script, and drawing from life experience, everything that I needed was there. In terms of research, I think the most useful tool is lived experience. And so I was able to draw from that a lot.”
“I think it’s an acting technique question,” Bale added. “The most useful tool for me are actionable verbs or images. So for example, if you’re going through withdrawal, you feel like your skin is crawling or like you have a burlap sack on you. So just those images I would drop in right before going through the withdrawal period in the film. And to me, that is more actionable than thinking in my head. ‘I’m going through withdrawal.’ It’s not as cerebral, it’s more of a feeling.
Kicking Blood will be released by XYZ Films Releasing into theaters on March 31, 2022.
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