Vampire Films
Around the time of Halloween, vampire films become quite common. In the horror genre, vampire films bring in a quality of eroticism and even romanticism. Vampire films didn’t appear until the 20th century, of course, much later than novels and poetry. They were immensely influenced by other media, such as literature, including poetry, novels, and short stories. One great influence was probably Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula. What was probably the earliest vampire film was Nachte des Grauens, or Night of Terror, made in 1916 by director Arthur Robison. The first film to be made based on Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula was probably Drakula halala, or the Death of Dracula, made in 1921. The film, “Near Dark”, made in 1987, strays away from the typical vampire films, in the sense that it does not portray the vampire as a handsome man with a long cape, venturing out to seduce young women. Other unconventional vampire films include “Innocent Blood”, made in 1992, “Nadja”, made in 1994, and “The Hunger”, made in 1983. Most particularly, “The Hunger” is very unconventional and portrays vampirism in a different light. The vampires in the movie go out in daylight, and do many other things that conventional vampires are unable to do, according to legend. There are also several silent vampire films, made between 1909 to 1928. The list includes films such as Vampire of the Coast, The Vampire’s Trail, The Devil’s Daughter, Kiss of the Vampire, The Beloved Vampire, Drakula, and London After Midnight, among many others.
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