History Film / Byzantium

* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: What's with nice guy Darvell later thinking [[spoiler: Ruthven might be a good, noble recruit for the Brethren? Ruthven raped and forced Clara into whoredom - and it's hardly the first time he's done that - and then abandoned Darvell, robbed his corpse, and stole his estate. WTF?]]

Clara (Gemma Arterton) and her daughter Eleanor (SaoirseRonan) have spent decades on the move, never settling too long in one place. When Clara kills another vampire hunting them, they're forced to leave town quickly and decide to lay low in a run-down coastal resort.

* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: What's with nice guy Darvell later thinking [[spoiler: Ruthven might be a good, noble recruit for the Brethren? Ruthven raped and forced Clara into whoredom and then abandoned Darvell, robbed his corpse, and stole his estate. WTF?]]

[[quoteright:280:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/byzantium-001_6055.jpg]]

* BoyMeetsGhoul: The film has IllBoy Frank meet and subsequently fall for vampire Eleanor.

* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler: Darvell decides to turn on the Brethren and save Clara's life rather than blindly follow their rules any longer. In the end he asks to journey with her in the hopes she can forgive him for standing by all those years ago.]]

* BoyMeetsGhoul: Frank and Eleanor.

* StrongerWithAge: Seemingly averted. Clara [[spoiler: is able to kill Werner with relative ease and wrestles Savella to the ground despite both being older than her (Savella having lived through the Crusades)]]. It is unknown if the vampires actually have super strength or if it's just proportional to their height and weight like humans. Though Clara being able to easily overpower men to feed on them [[spoiler: punch through a windscreen unharmed and shrug off being thrown off a moving car]] suggests they are at least much stronger than humans.

* MsFanservice: Unsurprisingly Clara. Gemma Arterton plays an attractive vampire who spends the vast majority of the movie wearing sexy clothing. And Clara is introduced to viewers whilst she's giving a man a lapdance in a stripclub.

* OffWithHisHead: Seems to be the standard means of killing vampires as those that are killed during the story are both decapitated.

* NobleDemon: Darvell. Despite the rather elistist company he surrounds himself with he has always shown Clara kindness and is by far the most likeable member of Brethren. His loyalty to the brotherhood is born out of the fact [[IOweYouMyLife they saved his life]]. He also respects both Clara and her daughter for how they've chosen their victims.

* StrongerWithAge: Seemingly averted. Clara [[spoiler: is able to kill Werner with relative ease and wrestles Savella to the ground despite both being older than her (Savella having lived through the Crusades)]]. It is unknown if the vampires actually have super strength or if it's just proportional to their height and weight like humans.

* BreakTheCutie: Captain Ruthven plucks a young Clara from her job picking cockles on the beach, carries her off to a brothel and makes her a whore, turning her into the flawed human being she is now. [[spoiler: He also rapes a 16 year old Eleanor to infect her with syphillis and subject her to the same slow, agonising death he faced due to her mother's actions.]] It's strongly implied he does this

* BreakTheCutie: The Captain plucks a young Clara from her job picking cockles on the beach, carries her off to a brothel and makes her a whore, turning her into the flawed human being she is now. [[spoiler: He also rapes a 16 year old Eleanor to infect her with syphillis and subject her to the same slow, agonising death he faced due to her mother's actions.]]

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: The Brethren's entire attitude towards women not being allowed to join their ranks, regardless of their merit. Clara being denied entry is only two centuries ago, hardly a time for enlightened views on women in positions of power. But then you realise the Brethen are strongly implied to be much, much older than that and time has not shaken the trappings of countless centuries of sexism. The fact her low birth is also a strike against her falls squarely into this trope too.

* NobleDemon: Darvell. Despite the rather elistist company he surrounds himself with he has always shown Clara kindness and is by far the most likeable member of their ranks. His loyalty to them is born out of the fact [[IOweYouMyLife they saved his life]]. He also respects both Clara and her daughter for how they've chosen their victims.

* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Nearly all members of the Brethen hold very open contempt for women.

* EldritchAbomination: Whatever it is that inhabits the shrine.

* EvilIsPetty: Turns out the entire reason the Brotherhood is hunting for Clara and Eleanor is that they're ''female vampires'', which they consider an abomination, since only men are allowed to create. Guess being immortal doesn't cure good old-fashioned sexism. That said Clara was merely exiled for stealing the gift. It was only after breaking the rules regarding a woman siring another did they set out to hunt her down.

[[quoteright:280:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/byzantium_itunes_poster_4392.jpg]]

--> ''"My story starts with Clara. One day it will end with her."''
-->- '''Eleanor'''

* EvilIsPetty: Turns out the entire reason the Brotherhood is hunting for Clara and Eleanor is that they're ''female vampires'', which they consider an abomination, since only men are allowed to create. Guess being immortal doesn't cure good old-fashioned sexism.

Clara (Gemma Arterton) and her daughter Eleanor (SaoirseRonan) have spent decades on the move, never settling too long in one place. When Clara kills another vampire hunting them, they're forced to leave town quickly and decide to lay low in a run-down coastal resort. After Clara runs into the rather lonely Noel whilst hooking for some cash she convinces him to let them stay at the small hotel his mother left him. Whilst her mother starts setting up her business, Eleanor shows increasing signs of frustration and resentment over the life she leads.

Clara (Gemma Arterton) and her daughter Eleanor (SaoirseRonan) have spent decades on the move, never settling too long in one place.

''Byzantium'' is a 2013 British-Irish fantasy thriller film directed by Neil Jordan (of ''Film/InterviewWithTheVampire'' fame) and starring Gemma Arterton, SaoirseRonan, and Jonny Lee Miller. The story concerns a mother (Clara, played by Arterton) and daughter (Eleanor, played by Ronan) vampire duo.

* ForTheEvulz: The Captain's motivations for his kidnap, imprisonment and repeated rapes of Clara are not explored, other than ItAmusedMe. This could be because we learn of what he did through Eleanor's stories, and her mother may not have discussed with her why the Captain did what he did.

* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Clara towards Eleanor. It is debatable whether she cares for Noel, or if she is just using him so she can take over the hotel.
* IHateYouVampireDad: Eleanor blames Clara (somewhat rightly) for turning her into a vampire (mostly to ease Clara's loneliness, but it is unknown if Eleanor knows that this is the reason) and for the life they have to live, on the run and under the radar.

* SlidingScaleofVampireFriendliness: Clara & Eleanor are fairly amiable, and don't seem to enjoy killing, nor are they totally ruled by their hunger. Clara only kills "bad" men like pimps, while Eleanor takes old and sick people who have expressed a wish to die. [[spoiler: However, Clara describes herself as "ruthless" and shows it - garrotting Werner, killing the pimp to take his business, killing Kevin to keep the secret, attempting to kill Frank and she'd have killed Morag too if she'd got to her first.]]

* EvilIsPetty: Turns out the entire reason TheBrotherhood is hunting for Clara and Eleanor is that they're ''female vampires'', which they consider an abomination, since only men are allowed to create. Guess being immortal doesn't cure good old-fashioned sexism.

''Byzantium'' is a 2013 British-Irish fantasy thriller film directed by Neil Jordan (of ''Film/InterviewWithTheVampire'' fame) and starring Gemma Arterton, Saoirse Ronan, and Jonny Lee Miller. The story concerns a mother (Clara, played by Arterton) and daughter (Eleanor, played by Ronan) vampire duo.

Byzantium is a 2013 British-Irish fantasy thriller film directed by Neil Jordan (of Interview with the Vampire fame) and starring Gemma Arterton, Saoirse Ronan, and Jonny Lee Miller. The story concerns a mother (Clara, played by Arterton) and daughter (Eleanor, played by Ronan) vampire duo.

Byzantium contains examples of:

BreakTheCutie: The Captain plucks a young Clara from her job picking cockles on the beach, carries her off to a brothel and makes her a whore, turning her into the flawed human being she is now. [[spoiler: He also rapes a 16 year old Eleanor to infect her with syphillis and subject her to the same slow, agonising death he faced due to her mother's actions.]]

DaywalkingVampire: All the vampires shown have no aversion to sunlight. Most of their activities take place at night, but this appears to be from a desire to stay undetected, not to mention Clara's "occupation".

ForTheEvulz: The Captain's motivations for his kidnap, imprisonment and repeated rapes of Clara are not explored, other than ItAmusedMe. This could be because we learn of what he did through Eleanor's stories, and her mother may not have discussed with her why the Captain did what he did.

FrozenFashionSense: Clara & Eleanor dress in clothes that appear to be from the late 70s, early 80s. This may have been the last time they had money to purchase clothes.

HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Clara towards Eleanor. It is debatable whether she cares for Noel, or if she is just using him so she can take over the hotel.

IHateYouVampireDad: Eleanor blames Clara (somewhat rightly) for turning her into a vampire (mostly to ease Clara's loneliness, but it is unknown if Eleanor knows that this is the reason) and for the life they have to live, on the run and under the radar.

OurVampiresAreDifferent: Clara & Eleanor avoid the V-word mostly, not even really referring to themselves with a specific term. In her stories, Eleanor uses the term "soucriant". They can walk in the sunlight, appear in photographs and mirrors, don't have visible fangs, and no mention is made of crucifixes and garlic. It is hinted when Eleanor goes to Frank's birthday dinner and when [[spoiler: Clara tries to kill Frank]] that they need to be invited in. When they feed, their nails, usually on the thumb, grows rapidly whereupon they slit an artery and drink from it. To be made into a "soucriant", you need to travel to a remote island, enter a creepy shrine and apparently make a deal with the "Nameless Saint". It is stated that only those who are willing or ready to die can be turned into a vampire.

RapeAsDrama: Basically, rape is the genesis of the film - [[spoiler: Clara's, and later Eleanor's, rapes at the hands of the Captain make them "ready to die" and allow them to become vampires.]]

SlidingScaleofVampireFriendliness: Clara & Eleanor are fairly amiable, and don't seem to enjoy killing, nor are they totally ruled by their hunger. Clara only kills "bad" men like pimps, while Eleanor takes old and sick people who have expressed a wish to die. [[spoiler: However, Clara describes herself as "ruthless" and shows it - garrotting Werner, killing the pimp to take his business, killing Kevin to keep the secret, attempting to kill Frank and she'd have killed Morag too if she'd got to her first.]]

StrongerWithAge: Seemingly averted. Clara [[spoiler: is able to kill Werner with relative ease and wrestles Savella to the ground despite both being older than her (Savella having lived through the Crusades)]]. It is unknown if the vampires actually have super strength or if it's just proportional to their height and weight like humans.

VampireInvitation: Not made totally obvious in the film. Clara & Eleanor wait for invitations when entering any residence, but there is no discussion as to whether they can enter or not if they don't get one. [[spoiler: When Clara tries to kill Frank, she demands to be invited in or that he should come outside. She's stopped from going any further by the phone call hijacked by Savella.]]

OurVampiresAreDifferent: Clara & Eleanor avoid the V-word mostly, not even really referring to themselves with a specific term. In her stories, Eleanor uses the term "soucriant" in her stories. They can walk in the sunlight, appear in photographs and mirrors, don't have visible fangs, and no mention is made of crucifixes and garlic. It is hinted when Eleanor goes to Frank's birthday dinner and when [[spoiler: Clara tries to kill Frank]] that they need to be invited in. When they feed, their nails, usually on the thumb, grows rapidly whereupon they slit an artery and drink from it. To be made into a "soucriant", you need to travel to a remote island, enter a creepy shrine and apparently make a deal with the "Nameless Saint". It is stated that only those who are willing or ready to die can be turned into a vampire.

OurVampiresAreDifferent: Clara & Eleanor avoid the V-word mostly, not even really referring to themselves with a specific term. In her stories, Eleanor uses the term "soucriant" in her stories. They can walk in the sunlight, appear in photographs and mirrors, don't have visible fangs, and no mention is made of crucifixes and garlic. It is hinted when Eleanor goes to Frank's birthday dinner and when [[spoiler: Clara tries to kill Frank]] that they need to be invited in