With a Kiss I Die (2018)

[bunniefuu]

[woman] In my lifetime,

I've only fallen in love twice.

The first time led to betrayal,

m*rder and suicide.

The second time

was three days ago.

And meeting her would

prove far more tragic.

Where's my Romeo?

What's here?

Poison, I see,

has been his timeless end.

O' churl, drunk all, and left no

friendly drop to help me after.

Thy lips are warm.

O' happy dagger,

there rust and let me die!

[cell phone rings]

Hey, can you hear me?

Yeah, the convention's

going great.

San Francisco?

It's good. Chilly, but nice.

Hey, I gotta go.

They're calling us back in.

Love you too.

[man] Hi there.

What are you listening to?

Nothing, actually.

I just put these on

hoping it will

deter people like you

from talking to me.

You're so funny.

Am I?

You know, just...

I just saw you there

sitting alone and I think,

- "Oh my god you're s..."

- Beautiful.

Oh yes, but not just beautiful.

- You know, I think it's like...

- Love at first sight.

Exactly.

How do you know it was love, and not

just a chemical response in the brain

caused by erotic stimuli?

After all, the only difference

between love and lust,

is that the first one

requires the intent

of being with one, and only one,

significant other.

So unless you're gonna

drop down on one knee

and pledge your

everlasting love to me,

do me the honor of f*cking off.

b*tch.

Why are you following me?

Sorry, I have a message

from Father.

[in foreign language]

Rough day?

You could say that.

I hope you didn't finish

that whole bottle by yourself.

Hmph.

This one still

has a little bit left.

I get the sense that you don't

want company right now,

but...

leaving you drunk

on the edge of a perilous cliff

doesn't seem like the best idea.

Fine.

You stay. I'll go.

Amaltheo!

Who's Amaltheo?

God damn it, where are you?!

- I'll get you some water.

- I don't need any f*cking water.

[grunts]

Don't look at me like that.

Like what?

Like you care.

[retching]

- Here, I'll get your hair...

- [gasps]

sh*t! I'll call an ambulance!

[shrieks]

- Who are you?

- Who are you?

- I'm her nurse.

- Okay well, she needs help.

She's vomiting blood

and she's super drunk.

- I'll take care of it.

- Take care of it?

I said I'll take care of it.

And don't ever come back.

It's okay, agape mou.

Everything is going to be okay.

- Where were you?

- Looking for you.

You've never

missed a sunset before.

[coughs] He knows.

Who knows?

Father. He knows

where Romeo's buried.

That's nonsense, my dear.

He's just trying to rile you up.

This is the ring

I told you about.

The one I gave him

on our wedding night.

My promise that

I would be his forever.

Let's not talk about it now,

my dear.

We need to clean you up and

get you feeling better first.

[knock on door]

Hello?

Hello?

[gasps]

What are you doing here?

I'm sorry. I knocked.

I know. Not answering

felt like a hint.

You're okay.

Yes, I'm fine.

You were vomiting blood.

Blood? I was drinking

red wine all night.

What happened to him?

He cut himself on glass.

He looks sick.

And you thought

I was vomiting blood,

so maybe medicine

isn't your forte.

Well, I'm glad you're okay.

Thank you.

For checking in.

Farryn.

My name's Farryn.

Juliet.

Hi, Juliet.

You need to leave.

Huh.

For 10 seconds there

you were almost likable.

[door slams shut]

You told her your name.

What's in a name?

In your case, everything.

She knows more than she should.

Perhaps it is fate

handing you a gift.

The girl is traveling alone.

Someone helps me home and

you want me to take her life?

I want you to be

with the man you love.

If I complete

the transformation,

like Father wants,

I could lose my humanity,

my capacity to love.

Your love for Romeo hasn't

dwindled for eight centuries.

Completing the transformation

didn't cause your father,

or cousin, or any of them

to stop loving.

They just never knew

how to love in the first place.

You can't give up hope.

Loving someone means doing everything

that you can to be with that person.

[man] I see you're

still reading fantasy.

I don't remember inviting you.

Since when does family

need an invitation, Cousin?

Since they're not

really family, Cousin.

Blood is blood, Cousin.

Father requests your presence.

Since when does Father request?

Then consider it a demand.

He won't allow you

to say 'no' this time.

Then I'll have to think of

another way of telling him,

perhaps a hand gesture.

I have just the finger in mind.

I will relish the moment

when Father finally allows me

to rip that smug smile

off your face.

Thank you for the message,

Cousin.

You make a marvelous errand boy.

Give my regards to the family,

or what's left of them.

[whistling]

Read your future

in the coffee grinds?

No thank you.

The future is nothing to fear.

Why is it a pretty girl

like you here all alone?

I was hoping you could

tell me that.

I don't tell things

you already know.

Fate has already chosen

your future,

but the way you get there will

be as interesting as the ending.

There is a line going all the

way around from past to future,

from good to bad,

that's very rare...

Sorry, do you mind if we stop?

But we're almost done.

I know. It's just...

sometimes it's nice not to know.

She continues to be insolent,

Father.

Why do you allow her

to insult us?

The only insult is a son

who's no more useful

at bringing down a mule.

It's time for a more

persuasive message.

[dogs barking]

[in foreign language]

Sorry, I don't speak Greek.

Excuse me.

It's a little early

for a dance, huh?

Look, I don't want any trouble.

[gasps]

- [grunting]

- When a wh*re touches a prince,

her hands are removed

and her eyes plucked.

You can have my money,

just please let me go!

Money? Money...

I want something

far more valuable.

- [hisses]

- [grunts]

[in foreign language]

Then I'll assume you received

Father's message,

- and I will see you soon.

- [both hissing]

[panting]

[Amaltheo]

Now you have no choice.

[Juliet] Don't be so dramatic.

She'll tell someone.

[Juliet]

Who's going to believe her?

Someone. Anyone.

Maybe no one in America,

but here...

there is far more history here.

And far more hatred.

I know the history.

If I take someone's life,

it's gonna be someone

who deserves it.

Besides, she's probably

halfway back to America by now.

[knock on door]

Juliet? It's me, Farryn.

You shouldn't have come back.

You shouldn't have saved me.

That's a mistake

I can easily rectify.

You're not safe here.

I feel safe.

What you feel is irrelevant.

There's a gathering in two days.

Cousin has your scent.

You won't last a day.

I would if you turned me.

Go home.

And if I don't?

[Juliet]

Why do you want to be turned?

I think you know the answer.

Life is too short, right?

There's so many amazing things

you want to experience.

You make it sound so dreary.

I'll let you in

on a little secret,

life always ends the same way,

with humanity destroying

anything beautiful.

Maybe... but despite it all,

there still is a lot

of beauty left in the world.

Didn't used to see it,

but now I do.

Let me guess, that's why

you always carry your camera.

I'm sorry you don't

see it anymore.

But as jaded as you pretend

to be about the world,

I think that deep down, you

don't really want to believe it.

Where you see beauty,

I see life, plucked from earth

and slowly wilting away.

I've seen hundreds of

thousands of people die.

There was once a boy

in Marseille...

he couldn't have been

more than thirteen years old.

He was playing the flute

at the front

of a battle regiment

during the French Revolution.

He was proud to be

serving his country,

twiddling away

at his instrument.

So focused, as if any wrong note

could somehow influence

the outcome.

That's when a cannonball tore

through the lower half of his body.

He was still alive

when I found him.

His insides were

spilled on the dirt.

His legs were shreds of meat.

His stomach laid by his side,

squirming as he cried.

He did everything he could

to hold onto his life,

but what that little boy

didn't understand,

is that when you've lost so much of

yourself there's no point in living.

If you're so miserable

why do you go on?

We didn't come here

to talk about me.

No, we came here

so you can dissuade me.

And yet, here you still are.

Living forever means you have to

watch everyone you ever loved die.

Better than them

watching us die.

Juliet, love, I can't keep

increasing the dosage.

It's strong enough to k*ll a...

[Juliet]

Have you ever lost anyone?

Yeah, my mom.

This ring was hers.

She got so thin that one day

it just slid off her finger.

I promised her I'd hold onto it

until she got better,

but she knew that was

as much a lie as I did.

I watched her waste away

for two full years...

and lost two years

of my life in the process.

And you still think

life is beautiful?

I don't regret spending

a single minute with her,

but I don't want to waste

another minute of this life.

I've forgotten what it's like

to have an expiration date.

I mean, I will someday, it just

seems too far to even imagine.

I'm not immortal, I just age

at a much slower rate.

So...

if you're not immortal,

can you be...

k*lled?

Fire, decapitation, dead blood.

We've become what we are

because our blood has mutated.

Evolved. But there are

negatives too.

We lose our ability

to see color,

and well, our tastes,

they're quite particular.

Human blood.

Yes, but I refuse to hunt,

to take a human's life.

Oh, so that's where

Amaltheo comes in.

He's like a traveling lunch box?

I've had nurses

like Amaltheo before,

but he's the only one who never

asked to be turned, so I kept him.

I promise you I won't

squander this gift.

I'll write the next

great concerto or...

study medicine

and finally find a...

Let's not talk about the future.

In a couple of days

our lives will change forever.

You claim to love living

in the moment,

if you only had two days, how

would you like to spend them?

[microphone feedback]

Okay, so this is a song I wrote.

It's my first time

performing it, uh...

it's my first time

performing period, so, um...

Okay, here it goes.

Something or...

nothing.

I'll just sing now.

Cover me in lace

I'll bury my bones

in this place

Mark me with a touch

Of your crimson lips

on my face

I've waited so long

Now forever I will cry

My heart is broken

On this cold lonely night

Take me with you, love

Take me with you, love

Take me with you, love

The leaves turn to dust

As a cold wind comes in

Life is now taken

Let winter

Begin

Take me with you, love

Take me with you, love

Oh, take me with you, love

[guitar stops]

[applause]

[speaks foreign language]

Bravo. Good stuff, good stuff.

Not bad.

Ehm, [speaks foreign language]

Juliet.

Juliet?

Did I forget to mention that?

Juliet?

Uh, this way, Juliet. Ah...

[speaks foreign language] Sorry.

- Hey.

- I did not agree to this.

You asked me what I wanted

to do if I had two days left.

But the real question is,

what would you do?

- Not this.

- No,

you'd rather mope around

and never do anything new.

I've performed before.

When?

When I was eleven.

So a thousand years ago?

I'm not that old.

[singing]

Dolce amoroso fuoco

Che 'l cor m'accende

Ogn'hora

Per te cara signora

Dolce amoroso foco

A questa donna ardente

I. Prima tra la gente

Serro sempre servente

Dolce amoroso foco

Che 'l cor m'accende

Ogn'hora

Per te cara

Signora

[applause]

[laughing]

You knew da Vinci?

I modeled for him once.

You modeled for da Vinci?

He was actually one of

the few humans

I ever thought were fascinating.

You slept with da Vinci?!

[laughs] Um...

[laughs]

Relax, he had

far different taste.

But I won't lie, I did go for a

rebellious streak once I got turned.

How long of a streak?

Mmm, a century or two.

How many people

have you slept with?

[both chuckle]

What are you doing?

I'm sorry, I just thought

you, me, the sunset...

I have to go.

I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

That's twice you've

missed the sunset.

I hope you're not starting to

develop feelings for this girl.

Of course not,

it's just I pity her.

Hmm.

Don't forget, she's just

a means to an end.

What if I turn her?

You said you would

never do that.

That's what you told me.

And after a couple of days...

You made a pledge

to the man you loved.

It is not the same thing.

You want to share your body,

your blood,

your very existence with her,

I don't see how it isn't.

I've slept with

other people before.

But you never cared about them.

This is so, ordinary.

And you're extraordinary.

That girl is not

good enough for you,

and certainly not

for your family.

Now you get to choose

who is and isn't worthy?

No.

I don't get to choose anything.

Never have.

What's that supposed to mean?

Nothing.

Do whatever you think is best.

I'll be here

when you get hungry.

Up kind of early, aren't you?

I make it a point to never miss

a sunrise or a sunset anymore.

The colors are so vivid

they almost don't seem real.

I wouldn't know.

Do you still remember

any colors?

I think so.

I remember my eyes

are dark brown.

I remember how rosy cheeks

got on pale skin

after running in the garden.

But I don't remember sunrise.

Right around the sun

it's bright yellow,

then it fades to a bright

orange, to a burnt orange,

but when the orange

hits the clouds,

it immediately gets swallowed up

by this bluish gray,

and then fades into purple,

right where that bird

just flew by.

And there's a streak of white...

Centuries ago, I told someone

the story of my heartbreak.

He was an English writer,

a womanizing drunk, with a

tongue as sharp as a blade.

I don't know why I told him.

Or at least

I like to think I don't.

He took my story

and published it,

and made it one of the most

famous love stories ever told.

His name was

William Shakespeare.

Juliet?

That's impossible.

At the end of the play she...

k*lled myself.

That part is true.

Or at least I tried.

Seems my flare for the dramatic

was only superseded

by my lack of knowledge

of basic anatomy.

I would have died eventually,

more slowly and painfully

than I had hoped.

That's when he turned me.

The one we call "Father".

I hate him every single day for not

leaving me to die in that tomb.

And what about Romeo?

After I was turned,

I tried to find

where he was buried.

I looked everywhere,

hoping to die by his side,

but I never found him.

I figured he must've been burnt

with the victims of the plague.

But it seems Father

has finally found him.

And the only way

he will tell me where

is if I complete

my full transformation.

You're going to keep your promise

to die by his side, aren't you?

[Juliet] This vile

around my neck contains

the exact same poison

that took my beloveds life.

Although I've grown immune

to the poison,

I drink it during sunset,

to remember our love.

But memories fade,

and after all this time,

the only ones I still have left

are the ones on those pages,

floating somewhere

between real life and fantasy.

Sometimes I wonder

if our love was also...

just made up.

Maybe we were just stupid kids

making terrible choices.

I mean, at that age,

who really knows?

But your love was real.

I can see it in the way

you talk about him.

Maybe...

but if our love was real,

and if it was

"once in a lifetime"...

then why am I having those exact

same feelings now for someone else?

I'm not trying to replace him.

I know.

Besides...

Farryn and Juliet

is an awful title for a book.

[laughter]

Ow!

Are you okay?

Yeah, are you okay?

Of course, I'm okay.

It's not like I see everyone

as a talking filet mignon.

[laughs]

Go wash up.

I'll be right back.

[gasps]

- You lied to me!

- What are talking about?

Why didn't you tell me?

Your blood, I tasted it.

Tell you what? [Grunts]

Okay, okay, I'm sick.

I don't have long.

I know.

That's why you didn't run.

That's why you

wanted me to turn you.

What's the difference

if I live six weeks or six...

It makes all the difference.

I can't change you.

Even if I wanted to, I couldn't.

Your blood,

your immune system is f*cked.

Not only would you

probably die, so would I.

[Amaltheo] Oh babe,

tell me what this vile b*tch did

to break your heart.

She does not deserve your tears,

or your pain.

The love you and Romeo had

was unlike anything this world

has ever or will ever see again.

Your love was

once in a lifetime.

Even your lifetime. Never forget

how beautiful that was.

And never forget your promise

to do anything and everything

within your power

to be with him.

In the end, everyone

will get what they want.

[knock on door]

[door opens, shuts]

What do you want?

To apologize.

To see you again.

When my mom told us she had

cancer everything changed.

Not just her health,

but the way people treated her,

fluffing her pillows,

asking her how she was feeling

a hundred times a day.

Everyone looking at her the way

you're looking at me now.

I haven't told anyone

I have leukemia.

Not even my dad.

He thinks I'm at a

conference in San Francisco.

[chuckles]

I didn't know turning me

could k*ll you.

Actually that's not true, I...

Maybe I just didn't want

to believe it, or you know,

maybe deep down

I just really didn't care,

I don't know.

All I know is that

I wasn't ready to die.

Clinging to life just like that

little boy on the b*ttlefield, huh?

It's human nature.

Yeah.

But so is forgiveness.

And then what?

I'm supposed to

say I love you back?

And we will live

happily ever after for a week

before I watch you

wither away and die?

Then don't watch me die.

You said we only had two days,

right?

I think we still have

a few hours left.

Let's make them count!

And then you can go back to your tragic

ending, and then I'll go back to mine.

[door opens, shuts]

Juliet?

[birds chirping]

Time's up.

Then let's run away together.

It doesn't matter

if we have one month,

or one week, or just one day.

At least we'll be

together for that time.

What about Romeo?

I once dreamt

that when he died

he was turned into stars,

and put in the heavens above so

everyone could admire his beauty.

The setting sun was always

a painful reminder of his loss.

But now I realize

he's not in some crypt,

but up there,

more brilliant than ever.

And in some way I think

he brought me to you.

So that I could be happy

once again.

[gasps]

[seagulls calling]

[door creaks open, shuts]

Ah, my darling Juliet.

The brightness of your cheeks

would shame the stars.

Let her go.

Her?

Up 'til now

it was just him and only him.

How fickle the heart is.

We got so much to catch up on.

How rude of me, I haven't even

offered you a drink yet.

I don't want a drink.

And yet you'll have one.

Funny how leverage works.

There's nothing like

fresh young blood.

I can't imagine feeding off the same

withering old man like you have.

I guess it would be

like a dog...

eating the same

dry canned food...

over and over again...

day in, day out.

I haven't seen your cheeks

so flushed and alive

since the day you turned.

I remember these family reunions

being far more impressive.

Soon it will be just

you and me, huh, Father?

That's why I'm here isn't it?

You can't turn people anymore.

Maybe you're the one who should

have stuck to canned food.

- Father...

- Enough!

Did you really think

that I was going to

let you get away

with that American girl?

With my bloodline?

Don't you know by now that

you cannot keep secrets from me?

That I got spies everywhere?

[door creaks open]

Ah, there it is,

that human emotion

you're so desperately

trying to cling on to.

Why?

[Father] To have what you

always seem to take for granted,

a place by our side.

All you had to do

is what he wanted.

What about what I wanted?

You! It's always about you!

I gave up my life for you,

so you waste all the gifts

you were given.

I watched myself

get old and wrinkled,

for the aches and pains as I

stitched my flabby skin together,

day in and day out, while you

stayed young and beautiful.

And you never realize

how lucky you are.

And then, after all that,

you leave me for her.

You could have offered

to turn me,

but no, you had

to be the same rebellious,

selfish brat you've always been.

I will never turn him.

Him? [Chuckles]

What would I do with

a wrinkled old guy like him?

Our agreement was for you

to take a place by our side.

And there you are.

Now let's try some of that

bitter old blood

that Juliet loves so much.

Bring her.

[grunting]

So this is the girl

that melted the heart of ice.

And this is the deadbeat dad

who likes little children.

[grunts]

She's got your loving

personality too, huh?

Let's be clear,

I don't love you.

In fact, I don't even like you.

But you carry my bloodline,

and it's purer than any of these

impotent half-breeds.

That's what makes you special.

I'm honored.

Well, you should be!

And if you were,

none of this would be happening!

In addition to that ring

you're wearing on your finger,

I got another souvenir.

I remember ripping it from

your tender young breast.

It would be a shame

if it were to find another.

[grunts]

Finally, we see eye to eye.

You said you would

never turn him,

so I guess that leaves us

with only one option.

I have no reason to k*ll her.

Her life's but

a blink of an eye for me.

When the transformation starts,

your love for her

is going to fade so quickly

without me even

lifting a finger,

and that's far more satisfying.

It's okay, agapi mou.

No!

Too slow, my little angel.

[chuckles]

How do you keep getting people

to k*ll themselves for you?

And how many more have to die?

[grunts]

She was willing to

give her life for you.

Are you willing

to give me yours?

[moaning]

Not even a tear for

your friend of 30 years?

I see the transformation

has already begun.

Let her go!

[chuckles]

Of course,

but permit me this

one last moment

to see pain and misery

on my dear cousin's face.

- [hissing]

- No!

[yelling]

[grunting]

What's happening?

A dying girl?

[grunting softly]

You were in love

with a dying girl?

You were in love

with a dying girl!

[laughs, coughs]

[grunts]

Come on, let's get you

out of here.

[gasps]

You're not going anywhere.

You spent the last 800 years

trying to make me less human,

when that was the only thing

keeping you alive.

As my blood turns,

I care less and less

whether you live or die.

To me, you're already dead...

a withering, impotent man

who I can crush like an ant.

Your rein is over,

and everyone knows it.

Now if you

or any of them follow me,

I swear you'll get your wish

and know just how

dangerous I can truly be.

Follow her, you fools!

k*ll her if we have to!

k*ll her... [coughs]

I hate your family.

[laughs]

I can still make you laugh.

That's cause you say

the dumbest things ever.

[grunts]

It's beautiful, isn't it?

The sun's so yellow

it's almost white.

[sobbing]

I love you.

I love you, Juliet, I love you.

I love you too.

[hisses]