Vampire Academy is another YA book made movie, and with other movies in the same genre its either a hit or miss. Misses being Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief (2010) and The Mortal Instruments (2013) while blockbuster hits being The Hunger Games (2012) and The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012). Everyone, including myself, was skeptical about this movie, especially involving vampires.
Vampire Academy is set in a reality where there are 3 different kind of vampire species:
Moroi: Vampires who live of the blood of humans - only drink to feed, not kill. They can control one of the four elements (earth, air, fire, water), and in some rare cases, the element of spirit.
Stogoi: Immortal vampires who have turned evil from the act of killing a human. They cannot stand the sun light, unlike the Moroi, and seek to destroy them.
Dhampir: The children of Moroi and humans. Being half vampire, they are incredibly strong and powerful. They do not feed off blood and can stand the sun. They are the protectors of the Moroi from the Strogoi.
The movie is centred around a Moroi princess, Lissa, and her shadow-kissed best friend, Rose. Within minutes we discover that they are bonded by unknown means, allowing Rose to unintentionally access Lissa's mind - seeing and feeling what she does. The pair have ran away from their boarding school St. Vladimir's Academy, and have been living under the radar for the past year together. Their year abroad comes to an end, when they are caught by dhampir guardians, tasked to locate Rose and Lissa, and to bring them back to the academy.
Rose Hathaway and Lissa Dragomir.
Just because St. Vlad's is a 'vampire academy' doesn't exclude the traits for your everyday American high school. Like any other, there is a social hierarchy with cliques who rule the school. I loved the fact that it had the structure of a regular high school, with bitchy mean girls, weird nerdy girls, hot boys etc. Being a princess didn't automatically ascend Lissa to the top of the feeding frenzy. She had the label of orphan, loosing her parents and brother in a tragic car accident two years prior. Unable to claim an element also set her up to be tormented by her peers.
Rose however, is a force to be reckoned with and is known amongst both moroi and dhampir students as the best guardian-in-training. She has a sharp tongue that is ready to attack anyone who stands in her or Lissa's way. Being bold and reckless does lead to her to trouble, especially when protecting Lissa. Being away for a year has set Rose back compared to the other dhampir students. Because of this, Rose has to take personal lessons with Guardian Dimitri Belikov, who is 'a god', known for killing six strogoi. Rose and Dimitri bond during their lessons and soon there is an obvious attraction between he two.
Dimitri and Rose during their private lessons.
Threats within the school start targeting Lissa and inadvertently, Rose. Some of the attacks are generic vamp mean girl business which include threats written in blood, however starts to take a turn for the gore with dying and hanged animals in Lissa and Rose's bedroom. The movie revolves around uncovering who is behind the attacks on Lissa, while dealing with your average teenage drama that is inevitable. The most obvious suspect is the most popular girl in the academy, Mia, who thrives on the emotional turmoil Lissa endures because of the attacks.
To strike back at Mia, Lissa uses compulsion on the other moroi students and teachers to exclude Mia and to accept her as their new reigning leader.
Things take a turn for the worse when Rose and Lissa discover that Mia was only responsible for some of the attacks which means that there is another threat at large within the school. During the Equinox Dance, Lissa is kidnapped, leaving Rose to turn to the only person she trusts (thats right), Dimitri. Where is the fun in that without a passionate scene between the two? The necklace Rose was wearing, which Rose was gifted by Lissa's uncle, Victor Dashkov, is in fact a love charm. Once Rose and Dimitri were together, were blinded by the love charm and its effect. Dimitri being ever so responsible, destroyed the necklace before things went too far.
Rose, Lissa, and Natalie at the Equinox Dance.
With the true mastermind uncovered, Rose and Dimitri get their senses together and try to locate Lissa. Using their bond, Rose is able to locate Lissa at Victor's home and while connected, Rose endures the torture Lissa is put under by Victor. It soon becomes clear that Lissa has not claimed the elements because she is a 'spirit' user. Victor, with the help of his daughter, Natalie, has been testing Lissa's powers with the dying animals throughout the year in order her to master it. Victor reveals he is dying and therefore disqualifies him from accepting the throne when it alternates to his family. He wants Lissa to heal him and in order to do so, she must give up her life for him - a life for a life. Throughout the film, we have seen Lissa heal the animals that have been killed for her discomfort, and each time she does so, the use of spirit drains the energy from her to the brink.
Rose watches as Lissa heals a dead crow.
Rose and Dimitri bust into action when they arrive at the residence and kicking ass while doing so. They manage to rescue Lissa and arrest Victor, bringing him to the prisons underneath the school. Tempting Rose with the knowledge of 'shadow-kiss', she visits Victor in his prison cell. It there he explains that during the car accident which made Lissa an orphan, Rose too should have died with the Dramogir family. However the thought of Rose dead enabled Lissa to bring her back to life, using the element of spirit. Rose having been dead and brought back to life has made her 'shadow-kissed', which is the reason for her more brash and reckless actions.
What kind of movie would this be if the movie ended here right? Well fret not because literally out of nowhere, a strogoi-turned Natalie emerges, killing the guards in charge of Victor. No longer being the fragile moroi, Natalie kicks butt freeing her father. While he escapes, she and Rose battle it out for their lives. Before Natalie manages to kill Rose (you guessed it), Dimitri comes to save the day! Killing Natalie and saving Rose they live happily ever after.. okay not really. The truth is finally uncovered leaving St. Vladimir's Academy stunned by the news. Things go relatively back to normal however Rose and Dimitri suppress their emotions for each other, seeing how he is her teacher and it would be inappropriate. They brush off the night of the dance blaming their actions on the love charm (even though we all know that isn't 100% true).
The movie ends in the promise that Rose and Lissa's story isn't completely finished.
How was it compared to the book? It was mediocre. Like all book adaptions, things need to be altered to fit the time limit and also because the Vampire Academy series is Rose's perspective, which will be hard to translate onscreen without 2 hours of voice over. But I think it was poorly adapted only picking the essentials of the storyline. As a movie on its own, it wasn't too bad, but not great either. It is worth a watch though for its action, romance, and comedic elements. Not a combination likely to be seen in a vampire movie.
If they do decide to continue with a sequel, I hope they've learnt for their mistakes in this film.
Rating:
3/5
Trailer:
Amadea Auwrangzeb
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