Vintage Vampires
As you know, vampires live forever, so Bella's just begun to experience eternity by the ending of the final film of the Twilight series, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PART 2. We've got a few older, more kitschy vampires who want to visit you this weekend.
Notorious director Roman Polanski is known for three things: 1) impeccable filmmaking, 2) sexual entanglements with underaged girls, 3) his marriage to Sharon Tate when the sexy actress, then 8 1/2 months pregnant, was brutally murdered by Charles Manson in 1968. It was while directing and acting in FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS, a vampire comedy, that he met Sharon Tate.
They were each at a turning point in their careers. With FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS, Polanski was directing his first color film, a relatively big budget spectacle that would allow him to branch out from the art house success of his thriller, REPULSION (1965). Tate had been a lifelong beauty and first started her film career while living in Italy with her Army family (she was an extra in BARABBAS), but floundered in Hollywood until 1965 when she scored her first major role in EYE OF THE DEVIL (1966). Polanski reluctantly cast her in FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS, dubious of her lack of acting experience, but fell in love with her during the filming in Italy. Their work together in this cult film rescues it from oblivion, as does the film's striking visual style. Now it enjoys pop culture revival, according to Wikipedia, inspiring Doom metal band Pagan Altar, a London alt rock band named "Fearless Vampire Killers," plus a Skinny Puppy song called "Rivers."
Another vintage vampire flick to put on your list this weekend is DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE. This 1968 horror film came from Britain's famed Hammer Film Productions, a long-lasting production house that turned towards horror in the 1950s to create legendary films about Frankenstein, The Mummy, and eight Dracula films. DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE is the first of this series to star Christopher Lee, and has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 79%.
These two films should be on the watch list of any fan of Bella and Edward.
Repulsion
- UK 1965 Dir: Roman Polanski
