Vampyres

Director - Victor Matellano (Stop Over in Hell)
Starring - Caroline Munro (Maniac), Veronica Polo (Wild Oats), and Christian Stamm (The Man with Thousand Faces)
Release Date - 2015
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "Lust for blood"
Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     Vampires has always been romanticized.  They are mysterious, magical, and most myths and folklore paint them as naturally beautiful and sexy.  When I hear vampire I think of a bloodthirsty fiend that preys on the living during the nightscape.  However, when some people hear the word vampire they think of orgies in blood and the perfect specimens of the human body covered in blood.  There has been countless vampire films depicting them in both manners. Back in 1974 director Joseph Larraz released his erotic horror film Vampyres which combined the sexual side of vampires with their bloodlust.  Fast forward to 2015 and Victor Matellano would remake the film which was recently released by Artsploitation Films.  I reached out to them and they were kind enough to send a copy my way.

     The film follows a group of twenty-somethings who are camping in the woods near a strange home that one of them finds mysterious and haunting.  The young girl in the group is a photographer and has been candidly taking pictures of the home.  One morning while everyone has left she is visited by a man who is weak with a horrible cut on his arm.  He tells her that he stayed at the home she is infatuated with.  He returns back there where there is two women living alone there.  They are lovers and they lure men into their home to feed on.  The group is now stuck in the woods with two beautiful and dangerous vampires living nearby.

     I went into this one not knowing anything about the remake or the original film.  I had heard great things about the original but I have yet to lay eyes upon it.  I was still very open minded to the film and still enjoyed it for the most part but there was some room for improvement.  The acting in this one is difficult to watch.  The entire cast acts as if they don't care.  They spit out dialogue with no attempt at acting.  The characters all fall flat.  The only saving grace in reference the cast is how sexy the two female vampires were.  They were very easy on the eyes.  The story for this one is very repetitive and leaves several dry scenes.  The film uses the same set up in several scenes which loses its desired affect.  The scene where the man leaves the home after spending the night with the vampire was somewhat effective but the second time we see this happens it loses what it had already established.  The story needed more to it than that.  Why were these vampires in that home, why were they vampires, and were they lovers before they were turned.  Answers needed provided and not just rehashing of scenes we already witnessed.  Finally, the film has several bloody kills that fit vampire lure but nothing really stands out.  We do get a similar kill to the Elizabeth Bathory kill in Hostel II but that is about the best the film can offer.  The effects are decent but due to the way the kills are shot and made we don't get to fully appreciate the craftsman ship of the effects.  Overall, Vampyres is a decent effort.  The cast misses their mark and the story could have been so much more.  The film deserves a watch but don't expect a vampire film that will stick with you like Fright Night, The Lost Boys, and Near Dark.