Director: Robert Bierman
Screenplay: Joseph Minion
Starring: Nicolas Cage, María Conchita Alonso, Jennifer Beals, Elizabeth Ashley
Country: USA
Running Time: 103 mins
Year: 1989
Vampire’s Kiss (1989) delivers biting social satire on the blood sucking nature of corporate America. Nicolas Cage stars as a mentally unhinged man who believes he’s turning into a vampire. The film takes place within the backdrop of the Yuppy Manhattan culture of era and released two years before American Psycho was even published.
Radiance is releasing this surreal dark comedy in 4K UHD as part of their Transmission series – a series which aims to champion offbeat cult classics and underrepresented film genres. The label has delivered an expansive package with high quality audio and visuals and hours of bonus content.
The film is presented in a brand new 4K restoration from the original 35mm camera negative presented in Dolby Vision HDR. The picture has a cynical, dark and moody atmosphere, enhanced by the grimy New York setting. Particularly effective are the close-ups on Cage as he gurns, pulling bizarre, crazed and madcap expressions, in what the actor describes as a German Expressionist style of performance, inspired by Max Schrek performance as Count Orlok in Nosferatu (1922).
The sound design was phenomenal. The film comes with the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo track. The raw chaotic sounds of the city were engulfing the room, reflecting the character’s disharmony and deteriorating mental state throughout the movie. A shot of Cage’s office block as the noise of traffic screeches through the speakers was particularly striking, highlighting the cut-throat nature of modernity and corporate life. The film also employs orchestral music to enhance the more thrilling and titillating moments.
Radiance has summarised the plot, here: “Peter Loew (Nicolas Cage, Wild at Heart) is a self-centred literary agent living a shallow existence in the money-obsessed Manhattan of the 1980s. His life is nothing but days at the office, one-night stands and unsatisfying therapy sessions, until one night he brings home a mysterious woman (Jennifer Beals, Devil in a Blue Dress) from a club and his life begins to take a bizarre turn.”
The film was helmed by director Robert Bierman, whose other credits are unfortunately a little underwhelming with mostly television credits. This feels a great shame as his directing was marvellous. Cage carries the film with his fantastic, unshackled performance. Jennifer Beals is a fiery seductress with a commanding presence. María Conchita Alonso plays Cage’s embattled secretary, the ultimate victim of the movie. Her restrained performance plays off as a great foil to Cage’s hijinks. Elizabeth Ashley as Dr. Glaser had a fantastic rapport with Cage as Peter’s therapist.
A dark cynical social satire which has a mix of thrills and unsettling clawing moments. Watching Nicolas Cage as he stumbled the streets of Manhattan in a dreamlike delirium, bearing a pair of plastic fake fangs and terrorising all those who cross his path, made for a visual and sensory feast in ultra-high definition.
Film:
Special Features
New interview with director Robert Bierman (2026, 65 mins): The almost feature-length interview with Bierman repeats some of what is said in the archival film commentary but has the time to delve into far more detail. He speaks about wanting to make a story about New York, the Yuppy culture, and why he wanted to cast Cage after hearing about his dedicated work ethic. He discusses “solving the problems” that came thick and fast during production. He speaks at length about Cage pulling out of the film, losing his lead actress the day before the shoot, what it was like working in New York and how he kept costs of the low budget shoot down, and details how he achieved key set pieces and sequences.
New audio interview with screenwriter Joseph Minion (2026, 18 mins): The New York writer is a great storyteller, this is presented with a voiceover and shots of the movie. He talks about how he was inspired to write a horror-themed/horror-adjacent story and catering to popular tastes. Then he speaks about the journey of getting the script looked at and meeting Cage for the first time – surprisingly he was originally mooted to direct the film but passed up on the opportunity as the subject matter was “too painful”. He loved the finished product, the initial lacklustre reviews. It was fascinating to learn the character Peter Loew was semi-autobiographical.
New interview with composer Colin Towns (2026, 17 mins): Towns speaks about the various different instruments he used for the film, and how back in the 80s he was able to experiment far more, to achieve the “spooky” music and sound effects. He also delves into the nature of working as a composer and the types of cues he’s given to enhance a movie.
New audio commentary with critics Kim Newman and Nick de Semlyen (2026): A high standard commentary track. The pair have an easy-going dynamic, but it’s crammed with details contextualising the movie and key influences. They speak at great length about Cage’s legacy on film. Many of the stories were the same as the ones Bierman and Cage mention in the previous track, but they’re able to delve into them from a more detached perspective.
Archival commentary with Robert Bierman and Nicolas Cage (2002): The director doesn’t hold back on Cage’s chaotic behind the scenes actions – even leaving the movie as pre-production began. The humbled Cage dolefully responds and speaks about the project and his choices. Hilarious to learn Cage had to eat a cockroach twice for that famous shot. Bierman speaks about how he tried to get a shot of Manhattan into each shot as he saw the setting as character in itself. They were both dismayed at how the films was recut for its theatrical release.
Robert Bierman short film The Dumb Waiter (1979), with a new introduction by the director (2026, 12 mins): Presented in 1080p on the bonus Bluray disc. Dark unsettling British movie, starring Geraldine James, has a fast pace and is visually striking. It felt like it shared the same dark, cynical and clawing DNA of Vampire’s Kiss. Bierman’s intro is just as well told as his interview with lots of namedrops and the interesting circumstances around why/how the film was commissioned.
Trailer and TV spot
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Pull-out poster and six lobby-card style postcards
Limited edition 40-page perfect bound book featuring new writing from Julia Armfield, Zach Schonfield and Justin LaLiberty
Package:
The Transmission Vampire’s Kiss 4k UHD release is set to come out on 20th July, 2026.