Lust for a Vampire
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Movie Reviews of Lust for a Vampire
Movie Review: Hammer was The Shakespeare of Horror
Summary: 4 Stars
While not my fave Hammer vampire flick, "Lust" is in the top 5. This DVD transfer by Anchor Bay should be held up as an example of superior craftsmanship. The color and detail are just beautiful, and I'm not even watching it in Progressive scan.
The plot is very loosely based on an actual 19th century horror classic "Carmilla" by french author Le Fanu. In fact it pre-dates "Dracula" by several years and probably inspired Stoker's work.
But this movie is way more fun than that. Hammer director Jimmy Sangster often comes up short when compared to Terence Fisher, however Sangster is just as capable, and he has great fun at the beginning of this film teasing the audience's expectations of the vampire movie genre. Check out the scene when the hero thinks he is surrounded by hungry vampire brides....
Yes, there are lots of gratuitous breast shots. This seems almost innocent compared to what you can see on late night cable these days....
Sangster uses some amazing deep focus camera shots. The main actors are surprsingly effective and believeable. In fact it occured to me that this 70's "B" movie looks like shakespeare compared to the awful teen slasher and zombie flicks Hollywood has spat out in recent years. But it's a fun movie with lots of blood and attractive, nubile girls parading about the beautifully photographed Gothic/Romantic English landscape.
If you're a fan of classic or cult vampire movies this won't disappoint you. And of course, you'll never forget the music video of "strange love"! This is not as good as the early Lee/Cushing flicks, but is much better than most of Hammer's later films. It's an absolute guilty pleasure...in fact a "StraaaAAAAnge LOOoove...."
Movie Review: Not as bad as people say.
Summary: 4 Stars
'Lust for a Vampire', I feel, is unfairly treated. It may not be the best Hammer film ever but it is not the worst.
Yutte Stensgaard plays Mircalla (Or would you prefer Carmilla?), she is quite stunning and while she is not as good as Ingrid Pitt in the role, she fairs quite well despite being dubbed.
The other cast members include the very underrated Ralph Bates, who plays Giles Barton, Suzanna Leigh as Miss Playfair, Barbara Jefford as Countess Heritzen and the famous DJ Mike Raven as Count Karnstein (he is dubbed also).
Kirsten lindolm (Betts), who played the first Vampire in 'The Vampire Lovers' also makes a return as a peasant girl.
I am going to us bullet points for this film.
The Good
*The Performances are reasonably good, despite what people say.
*Yutte Stensgaard plays one of the most beautiful vampires in film
*The death of Giles is very effective.
*The musical score is brilliant.
*The production values are excellent.
The Bad
*The Greco-Roman dance is very embarrassing and obviously for titillation.
*The continuity is not the best, and a lot of things are not fully explained.
I could say more things to put in both categories but it would take to long. The plot is still quite good and the infamous song ¡¥Strange Love¡¦ is not that bad really and can be quite catchy.
I suggest you buy this if you liked 'The Vampire Lovers' or if you like Hammer and Horror.
Thanks for reading my review.
Movie Review: Those Evil Karnsteins Have Moved Next Door! There Goes The Neighborhood!
Summary: 4 Stars
Beautiful Swedish actress Yutte Steinsgaard has reprised the role of the evil, bisexual vampire, Carmilla Karnstein in "Lust for a Vampire." This is Hammer's sequel to "The Vampire Lovers." Though not as violent and gory as the original, "Lust for a Vampire" is still a superb gothic chiller.
Through the blood of a virgin, Carmilla Karnstein is resurrected with the young body of an eighteen year old; she is enrolled in the nearby finishing school for wealthy girls. I suppose the producers felt that Ingrid Pitt who originally played Carmilla was too old to pass as a student. This is a shame because Ingrid Pitt was more voluptuous and sensual. She had quite a stage presence; she reminded me of a female version of Christopher Lee. (And I loved her accent.) Speaking of Lee, he should have been given the role of the vampire Count Karnstein.
Unable to control her blood lust, Carmilla begins seducing and murdering villagers, classmates, and teachers. Count and Countess Karnstein arrive at the school and do their best to cover up for her. Naturally, more deaths ensue.
Beautiful sets and costumes, eerie music, forbidden eroticism and gruesome murders make "Lust for a Vampire" a unique film from Hammer. It is highly recommended for fans of Hammer, gothic horror, and vampire films.
Movie Review: "I've Upended The Cross."
Summary: 4 Stars
LUST FOR A VAMPIRE is the second (and almost universally considered the weakest) of Hammer's "Carmilla Trilogy" based on J. Sheridan LeFanu's famed short story.
A bit loopy and campy, this film is nowhere as bad as its detractors want it to be, though DRACULA it isn't and can never be.
In LUST FOR A VAMPIRE, the lesbian vampire Carmilla Karnstein (played here by Danish actress/model Yutte Stensgaard, who is one of the blondest, most sensuous, and ethereal women to ever grace a movie screen) decides to make an 1830s girls' finishing school her favorite haunt. She spends a great deal of time finishing the girls, quite enjoyably. The women are all universally voluptuous and beautiful, and bare breasts and bodies are well in evidence.
As with all Hammer films, LUST FOR A VAMPIRE is stylish and visually attractive, though the script here is weak and a bit chaotic, leaving way too many loose ends, even for a Hammer production. But if you're watching LUST FOR A VAMPIRE for its storyline you're confusing it with some other movie. So sit back, and take in the unforgettably erotic spectacle of a chocolate-syrup blood smeared Yutte Stensgaard snacking on some of the sweetest eye candy in all filmdom.
Movie Review: Fun
Summary: 4 Stars
Today, Hammer studio's the Vampire Lovers (an adaptation of LeFanu's Camille) is an erotic gothic film that could be easily shown on prime time TV (except for a bit of nudity) and is still a good piece of filmaking. However, Lust for a Vampire, which was rushed out by Hammer to cash in on the Vampire Lovers' success, is a more exploitative piece of schlock, but one that is nevertheless fun to watch. An author arrives in a small town where women are being brutally murdered (the locals know it is a vampire, but he is too rational to believe this). Much to his sinful delight, he finds himself with the opportunity to replace the professor of literature at a local all-girls academy where every student is gorgeous and they exercise outdoors in flimsy gowns and no underwear. One of the students is a bisexual female vampire (who has a few sexy but very brief scenes with her roommates), and she and the author fall in love. Alas, their love is doomed for they are from two different worlds. The film is, by today's standards, also relatively tame and it gets a bit dull at times when the script attempts to become a more serious gothic thriller, but most of it is harmless exploitative fun with a self-depricating sense of humour.