20 Vampire Movies You Must See Before You Die

20. Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)

With her androgynous looks and pale skin, Tilda Swinton was born to play a vampire, but it took Jim Jarmusch to finally cast her as one - opposite Tom Hiddleston, no less - in his 2013 vampire film Only Lovers Left Alive. The plot here concerns a depressed musician vampire named Adam (Hiddleston), who has taken to hiding away in his mansion in a state of total and utter melancholia. One day, his long-time vampire love returns from Africa, bringing her troublesome little sister - played by Mia Wasikowska of Alice in Wonderland fame - along for the ride. The arrival of these characters, especially Wasikowska's, soon sets off a ominous chain of events. Poetic in all the ways that Jarmusch films usually are (not to mention beautifully shot), this is a vampire story that lingers with you long after it's over because - despite their undead nature - the characters feel like fully-formed individuals. Both Swinton and Hiddleston are on top form, and - despite their bloody tendencies - you can't help but feel for their plight.