History Film / WhatWeDoInTheShadows

** A prime example unfolds when two police investigators come knocking. Vlad hypnotises them to see nothing out of the ordinary, so they notice fairly ordinary problems in the house (i.e. the lack of smoke alarms) but fail to notice [[spoiler:Petyr's burned corpse, and assume the dead vampire hunter is just asleep]].

* TurnOffTheCamera: Vlad tells the cameraman to turn off after Petyr dies in the fire.

** Inverted, Deacon describes the horrific fashion in which he was turned, having been carried off by a winged monster into a creepy castle, fed upon to the verge of death, forced to drink said monster's foul vampire blood... only to point off camera and say that he and Petyr have been friends ever since.

* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: The pack of lycanthropes we see have heightened senses and some slightly feral habits in human form, but only assume full, out-of-control Man-Beast form during the full moon. They do have an Alpha Male they look to for leadership and guidance, who like Viago, is usually more AffablyEvil in keeping a bunch of wild punks on short leash, and asks them to [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking refrain from swearing]] to keep them from getting angrier and transforming. They're also big believers in "[[FurAndLoathing fur is murder]]".

* FromNobodyToNightmare: When we first see the werewolves, they are in human form and are mocked by the main characters for not swearing, wearing tracksuits, and generally being even bigger losers than them. The next time they run into them, it's just before their transformation and the main characters have to flee before they turn into monsters. [[spoiler:This results in Stu being nearly killed. Subverted in that the werewolves are pretty nice guys who don't want to hurt anyone, even if they still do.]]

->''"Vampires have had a pretty bad rep. We're not these mopey old creatures who live in castles. Well, most of us are... a lot are, but.... There are those of us who like to flat together in small countries like UsefulNotes/NewZealand."''

* CameraAbuse: When the group are [[spoiler:attacked by werewolves near the end]], one of them attacks a cameraman, who drops the camera.

* CoolAndUnusualPunishment: After Nick's flagrant violations against the flatmates result in his banishment "indefinitely" [[note]]which Nick, Viago and Vladislav assume is an indeterminate period that could allow for Nick to come back at some point, just not immediately, like tomorrow[[/note]], Nick is also subjected to a "really harsh punishment" called the Procession of Shame... [[spoiler:Nick stands still while the other three vampires walk around him in a circle, pointing at him, sternly remarking, "Shame" (and even "bad vampire")]].

** Nick deliberating over telling Stu that he's a vampire does resemble an friend contemplating on coming out to his best friend.
** Viago's costumes getting a frigid reception is reminiscent to how blackface is discouraged. For extra clarity, Viago's costumes included Whoopi Goldeberg in ''Sister Act'' and ''Blade''. The werewolves taking offense to Vlad's fur coat also has undertones of cultural appropriation.

* FromNobodyToNightmare: When we first see the werewolves, they are in human form and are mocked by the main characters for not swearing, wearing track suits, and generally being even bigger losers than them. The next time they run into them, it's just before their transformation and the main characters have to flee before they turn into monsters. [[spoiler:This results in Stu being nearly killed. Subverted in that the werewolves are pretty nice guys who don't want to hurt anyone, even if they still do.]]

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Peytr turns Nick, [[spoiler: who spills the vampire's address to a vampire-hunter that gets him killed.]]

** Prime example is when two police investigators come knocking. Vlad hypnotises them to see nothing out of the ordinary, so they notice fairly ordinary problems in the house (i.e. the lack of smoke alarms) but fail to notice [[spoiler:Petyr's burned corpse, and assume the dead vampire hunter is just asleep]].

* RealityEnsues:

** Really, the film's humor primarily runs on this trope and VillainsOutShopping, as mentioned below. Almost every joke boils down to "how does this regular everyday activity work when you live by vampire rules?"

* VampiresOwnNightclubs: But not a very good one.
* VampiresSleepInCoffins: The vampire roommates sleeping in coffins, with the 8000 year old vampire [[LooksLikeOrlok Petyr]] sleeping in a stone coffin. One scene has Viago place a picture of a woman he loved years ago inside his coffin, and then the coffin lid shakes violently, implying that Viago is "[[ADateWithRosiePalms busy]]".

* VillainsOutShopping: The whole movie is this. When the vampires aren't out stalking prey, they're arguing over who does what chores at home, trying to club and barhop (with limited success), or learning about modern day technology.

* AssholeVictim: At one point in their nightly club crawl, the trio stop and talk to a pair of prepubescent girls. Turns out they're fellow vampires who were turned when they were very young, and use their overly youthful appearance to lure in and feed on pedophiles.

* FailedASpotCheck: {{Invoked|Trope}} by Viago when two police investigators come knocking: he hypnotises them to see nothing out of the ordinary, so they notice fairly ordinary problems in the house (i.e. the lack of smoke alarms) but fail to notice [[spoiler:Petyr's burned corpse, and assume the dead vampire hunter is just asleep]].

''What We Do in the Shadows'' is a BlackComedy Horror {{Mockumentary}} which follows three colorful, but lovable vampire flatmates: Viago, Deacon, and Vladislav, in their struggles to fit into modern day [[{{UsefulNotes/Wellington}} Wellington]] society. When their eight-thousand-year-old extra flatmate Petyr (pronounced "Peter") attacks and turns twenty-something hipster Nick into a vampire, the guys must teach him the ropes of vampirism and guide him through his newfound eternal life. In turn they are forced to learn a thing or two about modern society including technology, the Internet, and proper clubbing.

* IHateYouVampireDad:
** Inverted, Deacon describes the horrific fashion in which he was turned, having been carried off by a winged monster into a creepy castle, fed upon to the verge of death, forced to drink said monster's foul vampire blood... only to point off camera and say that he and Petyr have been friends ever since.
** For his part, Nick seems to have been on similarly good terms with Petyr, talking to him about his frustration that everyone likes Stu more than him, and even managing to convince him not to eat Stu.

* VampireHunter: Newly-turned vampire Nick keeps revealing the fact that he's a vampire to strangers, one of whom claims to be a vampire hunter. [[spoiler:It turns out he wasn't lying -- he really is a vampire hunter and indirectly causes the death of Petyr, an ancient vampire who was also one of Nick's flatmates.]]

* AsHimself: Stu is played by Stuart Rutherford, a part-time business analyst for the Wellington company LanWorx. He wasn't aware that he'd be playing a major part, and was actually told he'd been brought on to do some computer work for the filming crew, with him playing only a minor part on the side as an added deal.

* BadassDecay: Invoked. Vladislav was once one of the most feared and powerful vampires in the world, but after a battle with his arch-foe "The Beast" he became a shell of his former self. Viago notes that both Vladislav's transformation and hypnotic abilities have weakened considerably since he was in his prime.
** The surviving camera man also counts, being the only normal human to make it without being killed or transformed.

** Later, Nick discovers that when a vampire eats chips (which are coated with salt), the result is projectile vomiting blood. Massive amounts of high pressure blood.

* WorkingClassWerewolves: The Werewolf Pack that the vampire flatmates rival are all seen wearing modest working-class clothing and are all around fairly average when they are not operating as a pack. This is in-contrast to the various vampires seen who, while they are not that much better off, try to live up to their aristocratic heritage in their dress and behavior.

* HundredPercentAdorationRating: Everybody likes Stu, though a few some just like him for his tasty blood.
* TheAce: Despite (or maybe because of) being TheEveryman, everyone loves Stu. He wins over the vampires much faster than Nick, helps them connect to the internet world for the first time in their ''lengthy'' lives, [[spoiler: stabs a vampire in the chest with little trouble, survives a werewolf attack, and even seems to be on his way to becoming their new Alpha Male within two months.]]
* {{Adorkable}}: Viago.
* AffablyEvil:
** Viago is a murdering vampire, but also a sweet, easygoing guy who generally maintains peace in the flat and tries to get on with everyone. He’s also extraordinarily nice and polite to his unsuspecting victims, since he believes that their last moment alive before he bites into their throat and sucks them dry should be a pleasant one. He also takes no pleasure in killing his victims.
** All the four "flatmates" are this to some degree.
%%** The werewolf pack is as well, especially their Alpha, Anton.

* BadassNormal: Stu manages to navigate through the supernatural community with ease despite being the only human in the main cast [[spoiler:until the ending]].

* BeastWithAHumanFace: Vampire Vlad just hasn't been the same since he lost his fight with The Beast -- he used to be able to change into any animal, but now he never gets the faces right. Specifically, he turns into a black cat with a tiny human face.

* CampStraight:
** Viago is very effeminate, to the point of being described by Vladislav as TheDandy, but he still holds a candle for a woman he fell in love with decades ago.
** Jackie at one point uses a homophobic slur out of frustration with Deacon.
* CannotKeepASecret: Nick tells just about everyone he meets that he's a vampire. Something that is actually governed by a [[TheMasquerade weak Masquerade]].

* CursedWithAwesome: All the main characters don't mind being vampires. Aside from the few inconveniences, they seem to enjoy their (un)lives. Nick's biggest complaint is that he can no longer eat chips/fries without getting violently ill.
--> '''Nick''': Don't believe the hype.
* TheDandy: Viago. He's even referred to this by Vladislav.
--> '''Vladislav''': He was an 18th-century dandy, so he can be very fussy.

* TheDreaded: The Beast, a.k.a Vladislav's nemesis, is accompanied by ominous music and imagery whenever brought up, as well as images of a horrifying creature that is a melding of a human and several other animals. Turns out [[spoiler:she's a relatively normal looking vampire, and Vladislav's ex-girlfriend.]]

* EvilSoundsDeep: Vladislav speaks with an imposing baritone.

* FrozenFashionSense: The vampires still hold fast to the trends form their respective time periods.

* {{Ghostapo}}: Deacon was apparently a member of a "secret Nazi vampire army".

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Deacon is lazy, smug and a MeanBoss to Jackie, and, not least, a former Nazi and completely unrepentant about this fact, but like the rest of the gang, enjoys Stu's company. Later on, [[spoiler:when Petyr catches fire]], he's the first to try and rush in and save him despite the strong chance of getting killed. And towards the end of the movie, he tries to console Nick after [[spoiler:Stu (temporarily) dies at the hands of the werewolves]].
** Vladislav is generally somewhat surly and low energy, but is otherwise fairly easy going and open minded.

* LooksLikeCesare: Vladislav has the pale skin, long, scraggly black hair and sunken eyes to fit this trope to a T, though his mustache is also evocative of UsefulNotes/VladTheImpaler's.
* LooksLikeOrlok: Petyr, seemingly due to his immense age (8000 years old). The other, younger vampires are pallid but otherwise human looking, though Vladislav starts to look very decrepit when he's feeling particularly down before the big gala event.

* NiceGuy: Stu is quiet, polite and affable and so nice even a {{Jerkass}} like Deacon takes a liking to him. [[spoiler:So much so that not only do the werewolves like him, but he actually manages to bring the two groups together with their mutual love of Stu.]]
** Viago is also surprisingly chipper and friendly for a three hundred year old bloodsucker.
* NonMaliciousMonster: Neither the vampires nor werewolves truly wish to inflict harm. The vampires kill humans mostly out of necessity to eat, and try to give their victims a good time before killing them; the werewolves cannot help it when transformed, engaging in breathing exercises to calm down and stop themselves transforming, and going as far as to chain themselves to trees during the full moon.

* TheOlderImmortal: Petyr is around 8000 years old, and considerably different looking to any other vampire we see. He is also heavily implied to (and in the cases of Deacon and Nick, outright confirmed to) have been responsible for turning every single one of the main four into vampires.

* PetTheDog: Petyr is by far the most antisocial of the bunch. But when Nick explains that he shouldn't turn Stu because he's a vegetarian, Petyr nods in understanding.

* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Deacon was a Nazi at one point and Vlad is okay with slavery. The vampire's beef with werewolves is also a case of FantasticRacism, especially with Vlad wearing a fur coat around them.
* TheQuietOne: Petyr doesn't speak at all (preferring to talk in hissing and screeching noises), while Stu just keeps to himself.

* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: The ages of each vampire generally correlate with their personality and appearance. The just under two-hundred-year-old Deacon looks and acts like a moody twenty-something, the close to four-hundred-year-old Viago looks and acts like an uptight thirty-something, the over eight-hundred-year-old Vladislav looks and acts like a bitter middle-aged man, and the ''[[OlderThanDirt eight-thousand-year-old]]'' Petyr looks and acts like a decrepit old man.
** And the very recently turned Nick acts childish at his best, and like a moody teenager at his worst. As he mostly uses his new powers to play around and brag to everyone he meets with no concern for the secrecy needed to protect them all.

** The long suffering Jackie is Deacon's "familiar", taking care of the flatmates' affairs in order to -- eventually -- be turned into a vampire. It becomes increasingly clear Deacon has no plans to ever live up to his end of the deal, [[spoiler:and he's very annoyed when Nick sires her instead.]]

* RetiredMonster: Vladislav was once one of the most feared vampires around. A bad encounter with the monster called The Beast, [[spoiler:his ex-girlfriend]], has left him pretty broken down.
** Deacon used to be a Nazi, and was part of an initiative to train [[{{Ghostapo}} vampire commandos for the Third Reich]]. He fled to New Zealand when the war ended, but he's still a pretty big {{Jerkass}}.

** A few scenes resemble ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. Vladislav's threesome with vampire women on the сeiling is a call-out to similar scene in the movie in Dracula's castle, where vampire brides attack Harker and one of them ends up on the wall. Vladislav has the extreme widow's peak from ''Bram Stoker's Dracula,'' with a lot of ClassicalMovieVampire mixed in. Vladislav also calls himself "Vlad The Poker", a call-out to Dracula being Vlad The Impaler, concept which ''Bram Stoker's Dracula'' popularized. [[spoiler:Nick]] vomiting huge gouts of blood for a comically long time after eating a single chip strongly resembles the staking of Lucy in ''Bram Stoker's Dracula,'' which itself was parodied in [[Creator/MelBrooks Mel Brooks's]] ''Film/DraculaDeadAndLovingIt'', and more directly Udo Kier's Dracula vomiting-out a non-virgin's blood in the Andy Warhol-produced ''Film/BloodForDracula''. Jemaine Clement said in interviews that he based Vladislav on Dracula as played by Gary Oldman.

* TheStoic: Stu has very little dialogue despite being present in very confusing or dangerous situations. He's just that chill.

* TeamMom: Viago, who tries to organize household chores, wakes everyone up in the evening in a very sweet and motherly fashion, and seems to take care of Petyr.
** In an interview, Waititi refers to Viago as the mother of the group, while Vladislav is the dad, and Deacon is the teenage son. He also says that his portrayal of Viago was partially based on his own mother.

* TokenHuman: Stu. He's not anyone's familiar, but the main characters like him so much that they let him stay.
* UndeadChild: Parodied with Vladislav, who claims to have become a vampire at sixteen and thus to look eternally sixteen. Vladislav is played by [[Music/FlightOfTheConchords Jemaine Clement]], [[DawsonCasting who was forty at the time and]] ''[[DawsonCasting definitely]]'' [[DawsonCasting doesn't look that young]].
** The gang also knows two vampire girls whose main feeding strategy seems to be [[MuggingTheMonster ambushing pedophiles]].

* VillainyFreeVillain: The Beast is introduced as TheDreaded, but once we meet her, it's made clear that Vlad's side of the story is heavily biased, as she doesn't seem more malicious than any other vampire introduced so far.

* TheVoiceless: Petyr doesn't speak throughout the whole movie and seems basically animalistic, though Deacon's account of when Petyr turned him into a vampire implies that he can speak.

* WouldntHurtAChild: Deacon specifically says that he doesn't want Jackie to bring children for them to feed on.

* YoungerThanTheyLook: Vladislav was apparently made into a vampire when he was sixteen years old, and remains physically sixteen as a result. Despite this, he both looks and acts like a middle-aged man. He claims this wasn't at all uncommon in his time.

An American series based on the film called ''Series/WhatWeDoInTheShadows'', headed by Waititi and Clement, premiered on March 27, 2019 on Creator/{{FX|Networks}}.

The film was co-directed as well as co-written by Creator/TaikaWaititi (of ''[[Film/Boy2010 Boy]]'') and Jemaine Clement (of Music/FlightOfTheConchords). It was released in its home country, New Zealand, as well as a few others in 2014. It later met a limited release in [[{{UsefulNotes/TheUnitedStates}} the States]] in early 2015.

An American series based on the film called ''Series/WhatWeDoInTheShadows'', headed by Waititi and Clement, premiered on March 27, 2019 on Creator/{{FX}}

** Later, Nick discovers that when a vampire eats human food, the result is projectile vomiting blood. Massive amounts of high pressure blood.

** The surviving camera man also counts.

** A few scenes resemble ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. Vladislav has the extreme widow's peak from ''Bram Stoker's Dracula,'' with a lot of ClassicalMovieVampire mixed in. [[spoiler:Nick]] vomiting huge gouts of blood for a comically long time after eating a single chip strongly resembles the staking of Lucy in ''Bram Stoker's Dracula,'' which itself was parodied in [[Creator/MelBrooks Mel Brooks's]] ''Film/DraculaDeadAndLovingIt'', and more directly Udo Kier's Dracula vomiting-out a non-virgin's blood in the Andy Warhol-produced ''Film/BloodForDracula''. Jemaine Clement said in interviews that he based Vladislav on Dracula as played by Gary Oldman.

''What We Do in the Shadows'' is a BlackComedy Horror {{Mockumentary}} which follows three colorful, but lovable vampire flatmates: Viago, Deacon, and Vladislav, in their struggles to fit into modern day [[{{UsefulNotes/Wellington}} Wellington]] society. When their eight-thousand-year-old extra flatmate Petyr (pronounced "Peter"), attacks and turns twenty-something hipster Nick into a vampire, the guys must teach him the ropes of vampirism and guide him through his newfound eternal life. In turn they are forced to learn a thing or two about modern society including technology, the Internet, and proper clubbing.

** Viago is a murdering vampire, but also a sweet, easygoing guy who generally maintains peace in the flat and tries to get on with everyone. He’s also extraordinarily nice and polite to his unsuspecting victims, since he believes that their last moment alive before he bites into their throat and sucks them dry should be a pleasant one.

** Nick hovering outside of the window is reminiscent of the famous scene from ''Literature/Salem’sLot''.

** Nick hovering outside of the window is reminiscent of the famous scene from ‘’Literature/Salem’sLot’’.

** Nick hovering outside of the window is reminiscent of the famous scene from ‘’Literature/Salem’sLot.

** Viago is a murdering vampire. He's also a sweet, easygoing guy who generally maintains peace in the flat and tries to get on with everyone. He is also extraordinarily nice and polite to his unsuspecting victims, since he believes that their last moment alive before he bites into their throat and sucks them dry should be a pleasant one.

** A few scenes resemble ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. Vladislav has the extreme widow's peak from ''Bram Stoker's Dracula,'' with a lot of ClassicalMovieVampire mixed in. [[spoiler:Nick]] vomiting huge gouts of blood for a comically long time after eating a single chip strongly resembles the staking of Lucy in ''Bram Stoker's Dracula,'' which itself was parodied in [[Creator/MelBrooks Mel Brooks's]] ''Film/DraculaDeadAndLovingIt.'' Jemaine Clement said in interviews that he based Vladislav on Dracula as played by Gary Oldman.

* NonMaliciousMonster: The werewolves, who unlike the other supernatural creatures in the film, do not wish to inflict harm, but cannot help it when transformed. They engage in breathing exercises to calm down and stop themselves transforming, and go as far as to chain themselves to trees during the full moon.

** Viago is a murdering vampire. He's also a sweet, easygoing guy who generally maintains peace in the flat and tries to get on with everyone. He is also extraordinarily nice and polite to his unsuspecting victims, since he believes that their last moment alive before he bite in their throat and sucks them dry should be a pleasant one.

* HypocriticalHumor: Lampshaded by Nick when the other vampires criticize him for using his power in public: