skjam | Entries tagged with vampires

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014) dir. Ana Lily Amirpour

Bad City may be an oil town, but black gold hasn't brought prosperity to the majority of its inhabitants. Arash (Arash Marandi) is a hard-working young man who works as a handyman for a wealthy family, but himself lives in the slums and supports his heroin addict father Hossein (Marshall Manesh). Hossein is deeply in debt to local drug dealer/loan shark/pimp Saeed (Dominic Rains). Saeed takes Arash's beloved vintage car as partial payment on Hossein's debts, not interested in Arash's complaint that the car belongs to him, not his father.

At his job, Arash is called up to the room of daughter Shaydah (Rome Shandaloo), who flirts with him while he's doing repairs. He's trying to ignore this as he knows it's not going anywhere. When she leaves, Arash succumbs to the temptation to steal some small jewelry in hopes of trading it to Saeed for his car.

So far, shaping up to be a noir crime drama. But then Saeed runs into a girl walking home alone at night (Sheila Vand) and the genre of the movie abruptly changes.

This 2014 Iranian horror movie is shot in stylish black and white, which helps cloak the fact that although the director is Iranian-American, most major roles are played by Iranian actors, and everyone is speaking Farsi, it was actually filmed in California. Unsurprisingly, there are themes and actions in the movie that would not fly with the Iranian government.

This is one of those movies where "good" and "evil" don't really enter into it. The Girl kills people to survive, but generally preys on people that are pretty awful. Arash doesn't kill anyone himself, but is perfectly willing to profit off a corpse he finds. There doesn't seem to be any law enforcement as such, and there's a gulch with an alarming number of bodies that people have just dumped there. "Bad City' indeed. Prostitute Atti (Mozhan Navabi) sees her job as just her job and is saving to...go somewhere else, maybe? And the Street Urchin (Milad Eghbali) is mostly drifting around with not much to do. Especially after The Girl confiscates his skateboard.

This last makes for some interesting imagery. The Girl's chador resembles the classic "Dracula cloak" (which is also seen when Arash dons one.) A vampire on a skateboard seems like something you would not have seen outside a 1980s kid's cartoon. But shot in this movie it's just eerie.

The deleted scenes are also interesting. I was fascinated by the much larger role for minor character Rockabilly (Reza Sixo Safai) who in these clips addresses the camera directly if obscurely. (But I can see why they were taken out, it would have made the movie drag a lot more.)

Content note: Murder, mutilation and gore. Assault. Prostitution. Drug abuse, including a person forcibly being given drugs by needle. Partial nudity. Deleted scenes include gay-bashing. Older teens should be okay, but sensitive viewers may want to give it a pass.

This is a striking movie that's an interesting mix of foreign and familiar. Recommended to horror fans who can handle subtitles.

Current Music: "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?"--Leo Reisman and his Orchestra

Mark of the Vampire (1935) dir. Tod Browning (also released as "Vampires of Prague")

Czechoslovakia, 1934, near the city of Prague. It is growing dark, but in the inn run by a local fellow (Michael Visaroff), two English travelers want to be on their way. The innkeeper warns that vampires roam these parts at night, Count Mora (Bela Lugosi) and his daughter Luna (Caroll Borland). The travelers scoff, but then the local medico, Dr. Doskil (Donald Meek), returns to his room at the inn, clearly frightened out of his wits, and bearing bat thorn, a plant said to ward off the undead.

The next morning, the servants at the castle of Sir Karell Borotyn (Holmes Herbert) are saddened to learn of the death of their master from his friend Baron Otto (Jean Hersholt). Sir Karell's corpse has neck wounds and has been drained of blood, which leads Dr. Doskil to declare that the death was due to vampire. Inspector Neumann (Lionel Atwill) is a skeptic, and not convinced that vampires are anything other than superstition. Despite Dr. Doskil's resentment at being lumped in with "ignorant peasants", his findings are discarded by the coroner's jury, which brings in a verdict of "Death by Unknown Causes."

Sir Karell's daughter Irena Borotyn (Elizabeth Allen) must postpone her marriage to Fedor Vicente (Henry Wadsworth) and moves in with Baron Otto, who has been appointed her guardian.

A year later, the mandatory mourning is over, and Irena and Fedor reunite at the village, though the castle itself has been abandoned. Soon, there is to be a wedding. But then Fedor blacks out near the castle and wakes up with neck wounds and severe anemia. Irena is attacked as well. Count Mora and Luna have supposedly been sighted in the area. Irena says she was compelled into the open by what she thought was the voice of her father. Inspector Neumann is forced to call in an expert, Professor Zelin (Lionel Barrymore). The professor assures everyone that vampires are very real, and precautions must be taken or Irena will surely be taken.

If you have never seen this movie before and haven't had it spoiled for you, go see it now. Seriously.

SPOILERS beyond this point. You have been warned!

This movie is a remake of the lost horror classic, "London After Midnight" which was also directed by Tod Browning and starred Lon Chaney Sr. Thus it has much the same twist ending. There are, in fact, no vampires. Instead, it's an elaborate hoax to catch Sir Karell's murderer who'd disguised his own deed as a vampire attack.

So now you can rewatch it as a comedy. The "Professor" is just making stuff up when he spouts vampire lore. The doctor is a gullible fool. Bela Lugosi with his deceptively high billing is basically playing himself, an actor dressed as Dracula, but fully committed to the "bit" so staying in character even when no one could possibly be watching. Some of the characters are in on the trick and acting their hearts out, while others are not in on it, and which is which isn't always clear.

I'm told that the movie was edited down from about 80 minutes to 60 for a tighter film, but this does create some lore gaps. There's an "extra" vampire that does nothing but appear in certain scenes just standing or sitting around. Presumably he had action in cut scenes.

The sets are great, and the acting works better once it's clear that you're watching a comedy. The heavy edits do make the film a bit choppy, but it's still a fun watch with a fine cast. Recommended to fans of spooky comedies.

Current Mood: quiet
Current Music: a washing machine next door

Crypt of the Vampire (1964) dir. Camillo Mastrocinque, aka "Terror in the Crypt", original title "La Cripta e l'incubo"

Antiquarian Friedrich Klauss (Jose Campos) has been summoned to Castle Karnstein in Styria by Count Ludwig Karnstein (Christopher Lee). It seems that some two centuries before, one of the Karnstein clan had been accused by the others of practicing blasphemous dark magic. She maintained her innocence, but as she was executed, she pronounced a curse on the family, saying that she would return in the form of one of them, and kill them all. The village of Karnstein fell into ruins over the years, leaving only a mostly intact bell tower that sometimes rings when the wind blows. Recently, a number of the scattered Karnstein clan have been turning up dead in horrific fashion, and the Count's daughter Laura Karnstein (Adriana Ambesi) is worried that she may be the fated murderer.

Laura may have been influenced in this by the mysterious dreams of death she's been having, and her nurse Rowena (Nela Conjiu), who's a dabbler in the occult. Pretty maidservant Annette (Vera Valmont), who's having an affair with the Count, doesn't get on at all with Laura and would be thrilled for an excuse to get rid of her. Friedrich's job will be to search the castle's records and library for clues to the appearance of the original witch which were erased or hidden upon her ignominious death. With luck, they will be able to prove that Laura isn't the reincarnation of the curse.

Friedrich is quickly smitten with Laura (though not to the extent that it interferes with his work), and she's coolly interested. After all, they don't get visitors often at the castle. But a couple of days later, there's a carriage accident nearby. A noblewoman and her daughter were traveling too fast, and it has quite worn out the daughter Ljuba (Ursula Davis). Laura agrees to put Ljuba up at the castle so the mother can rush on. Despite her "delicacy", Ljuba recovers quickly, and proves a charming companion for Laura. Soon the girls are inseparable friends.

But the curse still lurks, and the reappearance of a hunchbacked peddler (Angel Midlin) frightens Laura. She and Rowena need to get to the bottom of this, lest Ljuba become the latest one to die.

This atmospheric quickie is loosely based on the classic Sheridan le Fanu story Carmilla, which will spoil certain details of the ending if you've read it or seen other adaptations.

The limited budget is well spent, and the acting is decent. Christopher Lee as always is intense, and there's smoldering chemistry between the actresses playing the very good friends. One clunker is the dubbing for Ljuba's mother, which makes her sound wooden in a way that should immediately arouse suspicion in the people she's talking to.

Young women wander about in nightgowns (racy for the time period) and there's a couple of bare backs implying that nothing is worn in front in a couple of the scenes. That said, nothing is shown more in the way of physicality than some warm hugs. Oddly enough for a horror movie, the Satan worshiper isn't a villain as such.

Content note: some blood (in black and white), hanging, a severed hand, prejudice against the physically deformed.

Not one of the best Christopher Lee movies, but worth watching if you've exhausted all of those, or have a thing for implied lesbians.

Current Music: "Into the Night" --Yoasobi

The Lost Boys (1987) dir. Joel Schumacher

Santa Carla has the unofficial nickname of "The Murder Capital of the World." Sure, the brightly colored boardwalk attracts people to this small Pacific Coast city, but all those "Missing" posters lend an eerie air to the place. And if you're on edge, then any of the slightly eccentric people can look sinister. But reputation or no, it's home to not a few people. Lucy Emerson (Dianne Wiest) is moving herself and her sons Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim) in with her father (Barnard Hughes) after her divorce. Grandpa's taxidermy business also looks kind of creepy.

Lucy finds a job with video store owner Max (Edward Herrman), Michael is intrigued by mysterious local girl Star (Jami Gertz), and Sam is befriended by Edgar and Alan Frog (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander), whose family owns the local comic book shop.

Star turns out to have a complicated relationship with the local motorcycle hoodlums, led by David (Kiefer Sutherland). Michael begins an initiation into the gang, which initially plays out as "teen falls into bad company and gets hooked on drugs", but Sam, forewarned by the Frog Brothers, realizes that Michael is in fact turning into a vampire.

Can Sam save his family not just from the vampires, but the vampire hunters?

This is a very Eighties film, from the businesses (video and comic book stores), through the soundtrack, to some of Sam's frankly bizarre fashion choices. Sam shows his geek bona fides with Superman minutia.

The vampires' lair (Santa Carla's previous tourist attraction before 1906) and Grandpa's home are both excellent sets.

For most of the movie, it's not clear if it's supposed to be comedy or horror, but once the vampires come out into the open, the comedy elements become stronger.

Content note: violence, often gory. Michael and Star have allegorical sex. David and his gang apparently have killed children, though this does not happen on screen.

I know this movie was a touchstone for a lot of fellows a bit younger than I am, but I think I missed the window for it to be special to me.

The Breed (2001) dir. Michael Oblowitz

It is the "near future" and the United States of America has become an openly authoritarian state with a vaguely East European vibe. Despite this, there are still more or less regular cops. When a young woman is kidnapped, police detective Steven Grant (Bokeem Woodbine) and his partner track down the culprit. The victim is already dead from blood loss, and the killer, only seen as a dark profile, murders Steve's partner, demonstrating superhuman abilities as he leaves the crime scene.

Steve's superiors at the National Security Agency are surprisingly receptive to his wild tale of a bloodsucking monster. It turns out this is actually the sixth killing with the same M.O., and vampires are real. They age very slowly, are superhumanly strong and fast, are inconvenienced by sunlight and silver, but don't have a problem with religion, and have deliberately kept their numbers down to avoid detection. In fact, decades ago they created a blood substitute so they could avoid killing humans. Recently, they revealed their existence to the government in an attempt to not have to hide any more.

Not all the vampires agreed, and this killer is presumably a renegade sending a message. To facilitate the investigation, Steve is partnered up with vampire security expert Aaron Gray (Adrian Paul). They don't get along at all, but they will have to work together to crack this case and prevent a threat to vampire and human alike. Along the way they encounter vampire scientist and pro-integrationist Dr. Cross (Peter Halasz) and the seductive Lucy Westenra (Bai Ling) as well as several more hostile vampires and humans.

This 2001 made for cable movie was shot in Budapest, which explains a lot of the European vibe. It's somewhere on the line between horror and buddy cop movie. Vintage cars and hairstyles help with the noir atmosphere while simultaneously undercutting the "future" setting.

Woodbine puts in a decent performance as a cop who's in way over his head and has to deal with his preconceived notions about vampires. (Including a moment when Aaron accuses him of racism and Steve is absolutely baffled by this. Mind, Aaron is a Polish Jew and at the time he was turned, he wasn't considered "white" at all.) It does not help that a lot of the vampires, despite supposedly being peaceful, really lean into the "scary person of the night with fangs" routine.

Some bit characters are pretty funny, and the name references are cute.

Lucy just doesn't work for me, but if your idea of seductive outfits is "Lady Gaga concert" then you might like her more.

There's also some cringy moments where the vampire community is shot in a way to evoke Jewish refugees when it's not being Eurotrash. The fact that the government is bonkers authoritarian and Steve is just kind of okay with this until the inevitable "you've gone too far" moment is disturbing.

It's pretty obvious who the killer is, but the motivation involved has enough twists to keep you guessing for a while.

Content note: Some gore and violence (vampire movie!), nudity, R-rated sex, harm to children.

Overall: It doesn't quite fit together right, but this movie is a watchable mess. Bring some friends and popcorn to enjoy a night of not good but not terrible movie.
Overall: