Vampire Movie Recommendations
 

The Vampire Diaries, the new vampire show airing on the CW this fall, has given my vamp love a little boost. And, while I'm skeptical about the show, I thought watching some vampire movies would be a nice way to fill the summer hiatus. And I know I'm not the only Stranger who loves vamps, so I thought, "Recs Thread!"

So what vamp movies do you like? They can be old or new, really good or so bad they're good. Give a summary of the movie without getting too spoilery (or put any spoilery bits in spoilery tags). And if you feel the urge to rate the hotness of the vampires in the movie, no one will complain. :D

I'll start with one very few people seem to have heard of. It was called The Wisdom of Crocodiles when released in theaters. When first released on DVD, the name was changed to Immortality. Maybe they were afraid the original title (which comes from a Francis Bacon quote about crocodiles that cry when they devour their prey) was too obscure, and most people wouldn't get that it was a vampire movie. And I kind of see their point. But I still like the original title better.

Anyway, The Wisdom of Crocodiles stars Jude Law as a vampire named Steven. And while Steven has to drink blood to live, and is unusually fast and strong, he can also walk in the sun, doesn't have fangs, and isn't bothered by crosses. Which I usually dislike. (I like my vampires to be vampires, ya know?) But it worked for me in this movie.

The film is actually like a character study. It's all about how Steven lives among normal people, being what he is, and doing what he has to do to survive. (Getting blood from a blood bank or an animal isn't an option for him. Which is unfortunate for some of the people who cross his path.) It's not exactly what you'd call action-packed (although there is some action), so some might find it a little slow in places. But I love character-study type stuff, so I really liked it. Plus, as weird as Steven is, he's also oddly appealing. A little creepy, but appealing.

So what vamp movies can you recommend for summer viewing? Plus I'd love to know what anyone who's seen Wisdom of Crocodiles thought of it.

I have a guilty pleasure favorite called The Insatiable. It wasn't a great movie, and had a less than huge budget, but it has Michael Biehn in it (he played Kyle Reese in the original Terminator, and was on my mind after seeing Terminator Salvation.)

Basically, a shy, lonely guy catches a beautiful vampire girl in a cage and tries keeping her. She's so different from the vamps Hollywood has presented us with in recent years (you know...handsome, sensitive, reluctant vampire dudes who want to leave their human girlfriends human etc) that the movie is refreshing. She's smart, articulate, and best of all, completely unapologetic about what she is without coming across as being monstrous or evil.

The very very first vampire movie I saw at the movie theaters was one called Fright Night. Not the scariest vampire movie ever--basically a kid (high school age, I think) suspects that the guy who just moved in next door is a vampire. He finds or sees more and more proof, but no one will believe him. It's a slow build-up type movie more than an action movie, although there is action at the end. I LOVED it, and am still unapologetically a fan despite the fact that some of it doesn't wear well with time.

And the list begins. :)

This sounds really interesting. And, hey, a movie doesn't have to be "great" to be good. Especially a horror/vampire movie.

Fright Night scared the crap out of me. Of course, the fact that I was 12 when I saw it on cable for the first time might have had something to do with it.

I'm a big fan of this movie too. It's one of my favorites. But I actually like the sequel better, which is rare. In Fright Night 2, the guy from the first movie, Charlie (who's in college by this time), becomes the object of a female vampire's seductive attentions. Yes, the movie is very 80s in spots, but I love it anyway. And I also think it holds up better than the original.

Fright Night 2 also has a song in it that I have loved since I saw the movie years ago. I wrote about it in my LJ and everything. :D In fact, you can see a Fright Night 2 fanvid featuring the song here.

"Come To Me" from Fright Night 2

I third the Fright Night movies. I love them both but I do prefer the first one more. Maybe because the vampire is a man. *is shallow*

Near Dark is also a really good vampire movie from the '80's - A young Adrian Pasdar is entirely lickable and yummy. Basically it's boy meets girl, girl bites boy, then boy gets kidnapped by girl's psycho 'family'. The thing about this is it has a very western feel to it, and turning into a vampire is a slow process involving a 'first kill' and it's really interesting. And sexy hot during one scene where the girl 'feeds' the 'boy' because he can't make that first kill. Still too human.

Of course no list is complete without mentioning The Lost Boys - the ultimate vampire movie imo. I love it so hard I've worn out the sountrack to the movie, and two VHS tapes of it.

I wish I could think of more but a lot of vampire movies end up being so cheesy it's hard to rec them.

Count me in as loving the Fright Night movies too! I haven't seen them in so long. I need to put them on my list for DVD buyage.

I second Near Dark too. Bill Paxton is a scary as all hell vampire. The bar scene in it (oh samsom, you know the one I am talking about) is just brutal.

I saw Insaitable on SciFi one night and it was pretty decent. I liked that it was kind of different from other vampire movies.

Are we counting out the mainstream vampire movies cause I probably will forever have a soft spot for Bram Stoker's Dracula. Gary Oldman...man. And I did like Interview with the Vampire only cause they took a totally slow paced and plodding book and they made it interesting.

Now here are some that I HATE to admit that I actually enjoy either as guilty pleasure or popcorn-turn-the-brain-off fare.

I LOVE Bordello of Blood and From Dusk til Dawn. Not cause they are GOOD vampire movies but because they make me laugh. Dusk til Dawn (the original) tries soooo hard to be this serious movie and it fails so bad. And Bordello of Blood just makes me laugh period.

And just plain amusing to be was Once Bitten, the early Jim Carrey movie with Lauren Hutton as the vampire seductress. Now that is supposed to be a comedy and I actually find it really amusing.

Lastly cause wow this long and I haven't even gotten to all the ones I like, I am probably the only person here that really loved Blacula. As the tagline says "His bite is outta sight".

Still my favorite vampire movie of all time. Interestingly, it's actually grown in stature since its original release, when it was considered an entertaining but ultimately minor film.

Liv, I *know* the bar scene, and it was teh brutal. I've only watched that part once because I find it beyond disturbing. Which is totally the hallmark of a great vampire film.

How can I forget Bordello of Blood? It's a laugh riot. I mean, come on, Dennis Miller? It's a snark fest, absolutely. And the scene at the end, with "Ballroom Blitz" playing? Awesome.

Penny, I agree. I think Lost Boys has grown as a cult hit since it was first released. I just adore the humor and darkness and how the two mix. I'm convinced Joss Whedon watched a couple of times and took notes.

They made a sequel not too long ago and I heard it was beyond terrible. Never try to improve on a classic. It's not possible.

I loved The Lost Boys too, but I haven't seen it in eons. I'm thinking I should find a copy posthaste. That one was almost too much for me the first time I saw it, but after seeing the ending the first time I was okay after that. I also need to track down Fright Night, which I haven't seen in at least 5 years. I wasn't even aware there WAS a Fright Night 2.

I've seen Once Bitten a kabillion times. Remember when HBO was fairly new and only had, like, 5 movies a month, so they'd have them in near constant rotation? Yeah, Once Bitten was one of their 5 movies early on. I thought it was hilarious at the time, but I haven't seen it recently enough to know how well it wears. And shockingly enough, movies that were hilarious when I was in high school (or however old I was) don't always hold up to the test of time.

I love From Dusk Til Dawn as an action flick. But the vampires in it could've been almost anything else (zombies, ninjas, etc). They just needed something for the heroes (or anti-heroes) to fight. Still, there are vampires. So, technically, I consider it a vampire movie.

Dracula 2000 is a definite guilty pleasure of mine. And I feel like giving a disclaimer before reccing it.

Disclaimer: This is not the best movie ever. This I know. And you probably shouldn't watch if you're lactose intolerant because there is a lot of cheese involved. However, if you don't take it at all seriously, you can have fun with it. Plus, the head vamp is more than a little attractive. However, I am not reccing the sequel. If you end up watching that one, don't blame me.

If you are talking about Lost Boys: the Tribe, I have to say it was pretty much a train wreck. It was kind of fun seeing Keifer's half-brother in a movie, and for horror fans watch for Tom Savini's cameo at the beginning, but seeing the "Coreys" again was a little much.

I'm also a big fan of the book Vampire$ and the movie version, John Carpenter's Vampires. It definitely presents vampires as walking death machines as opposed to overtly sexual creatures. Along those same lines, 30 Days of Night was extremely violent and gory. It was also nice and scary...I don't think my girlfriend opened her eyes for more than 10 minutes of the entire film.

Bram Stoker's Dracula is my favorite treatment of vampires, ever. Gary Oldman can pretty much own any scene he's in...whether he's Count Dracula, Sirius Black, or Commisioner Gordon.

Another old favorite is Innocent Blood, about a french vampire taking on the mob. Ever imagined Don Rickles turning into a vampire? Well, it's in there!

If you want to see a truly wonderful vampire movie, check out "Let The Right One In". It's a Swedish movie, released about a year ago. I can't tell you how much I love this movie. It's about a young boy, maybe 12, and the girl who looks the same age who moves into his apartment building. But she's a vampire, naturally. It's almost a puppy-dog romance. Plus, she helps he learns how to defend himself against the school bullies. It's a phenomenal film.

"Shadow of the Vampire" is also incredible. John Malcovich and Willem Dafoe, in a fictionalized retelling of the making of the first vampire movie, Nosferatu.

Also, "Lair of the White Worm". It's Hugh Grant's first big movie. Very good.

ETA: Seriously? "The Lost Boys"? C'mon. Most. Overrated. Vampire. Movie. Ever.

Lost Boys: The Tribe was horrificly bad. I was so glad that I didn't spend money on it and just rented it with a freebie pass. I can't believe I even made it through it. There was another indie vamp flick I rented at the same time that looked like it was a step away from porno. The plot, the acting, the way it was shot. I was waiting for people to take off their clothes and the bam-chicka-wow-wow to start playing. I turned it off 30 minutes in. I wish I could remember the name of it now to warn others.

John Carpenter's Vampires was amusing but James Wood always entertains me. I haven't read the book. And 30 Days of Night...omfg, gore-fest. It was like nothing but gore. No sexy alluring vampires there. I almost couldn't get through it.

I have heard such good things about Let The Right One In. I really want to get my hands on a copy of it so I can watch it.

Oooh, Let the Right One In sounds interesting. Definitely will check it out.

I remember making a point to watch Shadow of the Vampire but never got around to it. But it's now on my list. :D

Aw, I love The Lost Boys, and think it's totally understandable that it's become sort of a cult hit. On the other hand, I can see how some might find it underwhelming.

Let the Right One In is getting an American remake...I think it's going to be called Let Me In. Whether or not that is a good or bad thing I don't know...