Based on the Children’s book series The Little Vampire, from German writer Angela Sommer-Bodenburg, the story from the author has been adapted before, most notably in the 2000 live action kid’s film. This version is directed by Joann Sfar with about as much competence as is humanly possible, and it’s sadly hindered by the poor American dub that sadly almost seems exclusively available. I wonder if there is a version with the original voice track, but sadly the movie isn’t so good that I will necessarily go and seek it out.
Tag Archives: Vampires
The Night is Young (2024) [Popcorn Frights 2024]
It’s not many movies that begin feeling like some kind of goofy fun romantic comedy and transforms in to a war concerning vampires. Patrick Rea is up for the challenge of delivering on a movie with a firm tongue in cheek that’s mostly viewed through the lens of a modern video camera. I’m not too sure how vampires appear on screen but that’s for the artist to decide on terms when it comes to on screen vampires. “The Night Is Young” is a pretty good mixing of genres and sub-genres, centering itself on a woman who is on the hunt for a new girlfriend.
Slay (2024)
Now Streaming Exclusively on Tubi.
If you’ve seen the trailer or read about “Slay,” then yes, it is exactly the movie that you think it is. If you took “Priscilla Queen of the Dessert” and mixed it with “From Dusk Til Dawn” then you have what is essentially “Slay.” No more, no less. The thing about “Slay” though is that it is a siege horror comedy with vampires and drag queens it at least takes time to make up some of its own rules for vampire. This is a creative move despite the fact it’s also a trick use to cover up the movie’s obviously low budget. And I can’t complain, because the movie makes lemonade out of lemons.
Abigail (2024)
In a year filled with a ton of very serious horror, it feels good to see Radio Silence offer up a quick, breezy bit of survival horror that I could get behind. In fact the compactness can even tend to work toward the film’s detriment as it feels like an extended version of an anthology horror show, right down to the fact that it’s all one big chamber piece. “Abigail” watches a lot like the classic EC Comics, where our ensemble of ne’er do wells get what’s coming to them in a remarkable twist.
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (2023) [Make Believe Film Festival 2024]
I’ve been enamored with the French-Canadian “Humanist Vampire…” since the beginning of the year but didn’t quite have the means of being able to view it. I’m glad that I finally had a chance to, since Ariane Louis-Seize creates such a charming, and interesting coming of age horror comedy that re-thinks the whole idea of being a vampire, while also using it as an allegory for restarting our lives. Louis-Seize’s horror comedy, while not entirely original, still excels on being a great slice of life that embraces the absurdity of its premise.
The Monster Squad (1987) [4K UHD/Blu-Ray]
I’ve written in great length about director Fred Dekker’s “The Monster Squad” over and over. I love it. I’ve loved it since I was a kid, and I love it now. I wore out the VHS when I was a wee lad, I had a bootleg DVD in my collection when it was out of print for many years, and ever since I love to re-visit it whenever I can. “The Monster Squad” is a drastic departure from director Fred Dekker’s other cult classic “Night of the Creeps,” but like it, “The Monster Squad” is an unabashed love letter to horror movies, and the horror genre in general.
My Best Friend is a Vampire (1987)
It’s interesting that Jimmy Huston’s horror comedy has managed to rise above the rest of the teen horror comedies over the years. Even something like “Once Bitten” which had a young Jim Carrey, isn’t nearly as popular as “My Best Friend is a Vampire.” Despite being insanely silly, and features one of the most lackluster romantic interests of the eighties, “My Best Friend is a Vampire” (aka “I Was a Teenage Vampire”) has survived mainly for its very vocal LGBTQ overtones, and a soundtrack that’s better than it has any right to be.