"One day tomorrow, when investigating who in Italy, in our years, was writing horror films endowed with all the trappings of intelligence and literary dignity, Alda Teodorani's name will be the first to rise to the lips."
These are the words with which Valerio Evangelisti introduces Alda Teodorani to readers in the preface to the novel.
In a bleak post-apocalyptic earthly setting, the author revives the eternal and fascinating myth of the vampire, giving one of the boldest and most personal readings ever.
An homage to the genius of Stoker, Lovecraft, Shelley, and their daring epigones of our time, but an absolutely sui generis homage, far removed from the clichés that have done so much harm to horror and, above all, from plagiarism or, even worse, parody.
"Belve" is the story of Vlad and a community of vampires condemned to live in an old cemetery inside Cinecittà , once a mecca of cinema, now a "county" governed by iron and inhumane laws where 20th century actors and directors continue to increase their wealth.
If in "Dracula" it is a mortal maiden who awakens in the vampire the ancient feeling of love, in "Beasts" it is Brin, an alien from a distant, decaying world, who bewitches the centenarian Vlad. No, do not imagine an improbable as well as trivial love story: the encounter, if it can be called that, between Vlad and Brin is only an occasion for the author's cruel as well as lucid considerations about humankind, about men who kill for futile and vulgar reasons their fellow human beings, unlike "beasts" and vampires who are necessary to do so for reasons of survival.
Thus, once again, our sympathy goes all the way to the "different," and, if Vlad painfully feels the inferiority of his own race in the presence of Brin's elegance and magnanimity, we cannot help but feel inferior and at the same time immensely grateful to the vampires, who, although they condemn us to the eternal sleep of death, give us that ephemeral but most intense dream that is art.
"Beasts" is a profound and intelligent novel, capable of eliciting strong impressions and painful reflections if one has the sensitivity and ability to read between the lines, and which I ultimately recommend to all those who want to "experiment" with "alternative" readings than the usual names.
Addictions Editions - Page 124 - Price 10 Euro
Ebook Editions Kipple Officina Libraria - Price €1.99
Beasts. Vampires and monsters in the Cinecitta of the future | Cut-Up Editions - Pages 149 - Price 12.75 euros
Review by Editor
