Thanks to Netflix’s Castlevania, we can finally wash off the sparkly fairy facade of vampires introduced to us by the Twilight saga. Castlevania‘s vampires are brutal, scheming, and macabre master manipulators who view human beings as nothing more than livestock. Both the 2nd and the recent 3rd Season of the Netflix animated show reinforce this notion.
After all, most vampires are practically humans who have transcended and thus retain all the negative aspects that human beings are capable of. Luckily, there are plenty of films that also explore such concepts, meaning if Castlevania left you wanting more vampiric loneliness, craziness, and yes, bloodsucking, then here are 10 movies you can watch to satisfy that thirst.
UNDERWORLD
Critics don’t like this one too much but it’s a pretty good title exploring a fictional centuries-old war between vampires and their supposed mortal enemies, werewolves. Apparently, it’s a battle to see who has the worse halitosis between them, oh, and they also want to kill each other… just because.
While that premise is never really explained well in the film, you’ll still find plenty of vampiric action here and all the usual vampire tropes from BDSM iconography to Kate Beckinsale’s cold gaze. It’s dark enough with plenty of violence to keep you sated.
BLADE
Oh look, a half-vampire hunting vampires out of vengeance and justice, isn’t that familiar? Well, Blade did it so well back in the 1990s that it became a cult classic not just among Marvel fans but also in the sci-fi and fantasy genres.
When it comes to gore and vampire debauchery, Blade has them in spades and is not afraid to feature them. Moreover, Wesley Snipes just carries the movie quite well with his cool and angsty rogue persona that takes no backtalk from vampires or humans alike. It’s perfect if you love anti-heroes.
INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE
A vampire Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise being insecure around each other? Why this was the Twilight of the 1990s. That plot sounds simple but it chronicles the homoerotic tension between these two triple-A Hollywood actors– er, we mean vampires after one turns the other.
Their life is then turned upside down due to moral difference between the two male vampire characters where the older one has gotten criminally used to using humans as livestock while the fresh vampire still has reservations on killing humans. It’s a classic cinema dilemma for these night creatures.
MARTIN
Before Nicholas Cage started playing the crazed wannabe vampire of Vampire’s Kiss, there was Martin from 1978 directed by none other than George Romero. It was one of Romero’s lesser-known horror films overshadowed by the success of Night of the Living Dead.
Anyway, Martin is all about a teenage boy’s delusion, thinking that he’s becoming a vampire and choosing to enact upon such a thought. Since he has no fangs or any powers whatsoever, he improvises by sedating women and drinking their blood through razor-cut wounds in a disturbing fashion.
THE ADDICTION
The Addiction is a monochromatic vampire movie, so you know that it spares no expense on the blood props. It’s a similar filming technique as to why Schindler’s List was rendered in black and white as well, highlighting duality and the nature of good and evil. In this case, it applies for a vampire.
The movie follows the story of a philosophy student who was transformed into a vampire one night in New York. Now her hunger for knowledge has been replaced with a hunger for human blood and balancing her human nature and inherent needs as a vampire makes for deep cinema subject matter.
BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA
So we finally arrive to the first movie in this list that actually features Dracula. Thanks to Francis Ford Copolla, we get to see a more twisted and maniacal take on Dracula who’s always chasing after skirts in this movie (as expected of him).
He’s also played by none other than Gary Oldman. The film is all about Dracula’s chilling plight to pursue the reincarnation of the woman he loved where the forces of humanity have made it troublesome for him to enact upon this goal.
VAMPIRE HUNTER D
Do you fancy anime Van Helsing on steroids? Then look no further than Vampire Hunter D. It’s an energetic and animated take on the vampire slayer protagonist who’s also silent and quite possibly a vampire himself.
It’s originally a manga but received its first film adaptation in 1985. This time around, Dracula is absent but another takes his place which is pretty much another skirt-chasing vampire count who can’t keep his teeth to himself. It’s up to the acclaimed vampire hunter named “D” to rescue this fair maiden before she become’s a vampire’s mistress.
30 DAYS OF NIGHT
Now for those of you who prefer a more “realistic” and unapologetic take on how vampires will actually behave this day and age, 30 Days of Night is what you’re after. Unbeknownst to most human beings, some places in Alaska experience certain periods in a year where it’s always nighttime.
Some vampires got a little too clever and decided to take advantage of this planetary phenomenon. They rush to the town like piranhas as soon as the first day of night begins and started feeding on everything that isn’t them. It’s a gripping and high-octane survival story where vampires are a little more rabid than sophisticated.
NOSFERATU
No one can claim to be a horror movie pundit without having watched Nosferatu. It’s one of the earliest and most significant horror films ever and dates back to 1922. Since then, there have been many reincarnations and remakes of the film but the original remains irreplaceable.
Nosferatu is also a silent movie, which adds much to its tension. The film chronicles the struggle of Hutter and his wife Ellen as both of their lives got entangled with Count Orlok’s after the vampire count tricks them inside his castle.
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
Currently, Let the Right One In is the highest-rated vampire movie in Rotten Tomatoes. That should speak for the quality of this Swedish horror film. It’s a must-watch for any fan of the horror genre, not just those enthusiastic about vampires.
Anyway, Let the Right One In tells a tale of a bullied 12-year-old boy finding solace in the company of an odd new girl in the neighborhood. Pretty soon, the boy discovers that his new friend is a vampire and is actually responsible for a recent string of murders. It sounds simple enough, but watching it all unfold is worth your time and emotional investment.
