Film

What We Do in the Shadows

Name: What We Do in the Shadows
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Released: 2014
Cast: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Jonny Brugh, Cori Gonzalez-Macuer, Stu Rutherford

Other titles called What We Do in the Shadows: the 2019 series (FX).

A documentary crew follows four vampire flatmates in Wellington as they squabble over dishes, ancient feuds, and who gets first bite of a hapless human. Directed with straight-faced absurdity by Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement, it treats immortality as less horrifying than the indignities of shared housing stretched across centuries. Deadpan, silly, and oddly tender — for anyone who wants their vampires funnier than scary.

TMDb rating

3.8

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love mockumentary-style comedy where the deadpan is played straight and the absurdity comes from ordinary flatmate squabbles, like the Office crossed with a monster movie.

Skip it if you want a scary film or a fast-moving plot, since the laughs come from awkward small talk and a loose, wandering structure rather than real dread.

What it asks of you: It runs a brisk 86 minutes and asks you to stay with its dry, observational rhythm, where the jokes land in pauses rather than punchlines.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Shaun of the Dead2004

Same lineage of deadpan British horror-comedy, where the joke is that an actual apocalypse barely interrupts the mundane grind of pub nights, exes, and flatmate squabbles.

But It's zombies, not vampires, and the tone leans more on romance and slapstick than fangs and capes.

Flight of the Conchords2007

Clement and Waititi's earlier show delivers the exact same dry, absurdist rhythm — folk musicians instead of vampires, but the comic DNA is identical.

But No horror at all, and the musical numbers might grate if you came purely for monster gags.

Best in Show2000

The gold standard mockumentary about eccentric obsessives taking themselves far too seriously — swap dog shows for centuries-old bloodlust and you've got the same comic engine.

But Zero horror or fantasy element here; it's pure human (and canine) absurdity, with no fangs in sight.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from What We Do in the Shadows

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Nosferatu1922

WWDITS's vampire postures, coffin gags, and old-world stiffness are direct visual homages to Murnau's original bloodsucker; watching it shows how much of the comedy is loving parody rather than pure invention.

The granddaddy of vampire cinema, and once you've seen it you'll spot exactly which centuries-old mannerisms, camera angles, and coffin gags Viago's crew are lovingly ripping off.

But Silent, black-and-white, and paced for 1922 audiences — real patience is required if you're expecting jump scares or quick laughs.

Thor: Ragnarok2017

Waititi's blockbuster follow-up brings that exact same deadpan comic timing to a much bigger canvas, proving the humour scales effortlessly from flatshare to space opera.

But It's a glossy Marvel tentpole with none of the scrappy, homemade charm of the original.

Zombieland2009

A gleeful, gory American cousin to the same joke — genre monsters treated as a backdrop for wisecracking banter and survival comedy rather than genuine dread.

But Louder, faster, and far more violent, with none of the intimate mockumentary framing that makes the original feel so cosy.

Dracula: Dead and Loving It1995

Mel Brooks takes the piss out of every vampire cliché with the same affectionate mockery, just cranked all the way up into full slapstick parody mode.

But The jokes are broader and cheaper here, closer to sketch comedy than the character-driven wit you might be hoping for.

The Addams Family1991

Monsters as a loving, weirdly functional household who find the outside world baffling — the same fish-out-of-water warmth, just without the found-footage gimmick or the fangs.

But It's family-friendly and gothic-glam rather than gory, and the vampires are really only one part of a bigger ensemble.

Fright Night1985

An '80s vampire comedy-horror that plays it a little straighter, giving you the actual charm and menace of an old-world vampire moving in next door in suburbia.

But Less comedic, more teen-horror thriller overall — you'll get genuine scares in places where you might have expected laughs instead.

Death Becomes Her1992

A vain, immortal-adjacent comedy about the absurd logistics of never actually dying — bickering over eternity forever, just with rival Hollywood socialites instead of vampire housemates.

But No vampires, no mockumentary style at all, and the humour leans far more into Hollywood satire than anything horror-adjacent.

Let the Right One In2008

Both films ask what it actually costs to be an eternal outsider stuck doing mundane human things; one plays it for laughs, this one for heartbreak.

The same premise — a young vampire quietly adjusting to ordinary domestic life among mortals — played here as aching, tender tragedy instead of comedy.

But It's slow, subtitled, and genuinely sad; there is no comic relief waiting around the corner.

Man Bites Dog1992

Same structural joke — a documentary crew normalising a monster's daily routine — but Man Bites Dog refuses the safety net of comedy, showing how dark that format can actually go.

A film crew embeds with a charismatic monster who explains his craft directly to camera — the exact mockumentary conceit, pushed to genuinely disturbing extremes.

But It's a pitch-black Belgian satire about a serial killer, with real cruelty where WWDITS has silly cruelty.