VAMPIRE CIRCUS: NO CLOWING AROUND

I can remember the first time I ever saw VAMPIRE CIRCUS. It was a dusk till dawn screening around Halloween and it was the last film being shown out of I think four movies that night. I’d never seen the film before but had heard it was from Hammer and that was all it took to convince me we had to see it. My friends and I went and I remember thinking how good the film was. I’d never had a chance to see the film again until recently when I picked up a copy from Synapse Films. With the stellar offerings they’d presented before I knew I’d be in good hands. I wasn’t disappointed.

The one thing I was surprised by was the amount of eroticism in the film as well as the amount of blood. Could it have been this was my first exposure to gore in horror films? Or was the version I saw the watered down version and this my first time seeing the film as it was originally shot? I can’t say for certain but it remains a good movie.

The film opens with Jenny, a young child, being escorted to a nearby castle by Anna (Domini Blythe) the wife of local schoolmaster Albert Muller (Laurence Payne) who follows trying to stop her. He fails and the young girl is presented to the evil Count Mitterhaus (Robert Tayman) who immediately drains her of blood before bedding down Anna. Returning with the local villagers as well as Jenny’s father and the Burgermeister. They break in to find the girl’s body and the count aloof and uncaring. When asked what he’s done with Muller’s wife he responds “Nothing she didn’t want me to”. Captured by the villagers and staked through the heart he swears vengeance on them all and their children before dying. They blow up the castle, Anna left inside along with the Count, before leaving.

Years pass, their children grow up and the town is now the victim of the plague. Cut off from the rest of the world many believe it is the vengeance of the count but the local doctor insists it is just the plague and sets out to bypass the guards along the road to get help and medicine. While he’s gone a circus comes to town promising delights to take people’s minds off of their troubles.

But the circus is merely a front for kin to the disposed count there to resurrect him using the blood of the children of the townspeople. While performing a tiger transforms into a body painted woman writhing about in ecstasy while her tamer cracks his whip, tumblers transform into bats flying above the crowd and back again before landing and a panther changes into a gypsy prince. All of this is used to lure the young children to check out things behind tents and for those who are older to seduce them and take them to the castle remnants.

As members of the village begin to realize what is actually taking place it may be too late. Children are murdered drained of blood, villagers attempt to leave only to be mauled by the panther and those older children who were seduced fall into bed with the enemy. It will take the village elders to muster the support they need to rid the town of the plague of vampires that now hold them hostage as they attempt to being Count Mitterhaus back.

For a movie made in 1972 the first striking thing is the amount of gore and nudity in the film. I know much of this had to have been removed from the version I saw because, as is noted on IMDB, the film only had a PG rating. That still didn’t prevent certain images from being seen like the body painted tiger woman. In watching Synapse version much more makes sense with the added images of vampires and women in seductive trysts.

But it’s not just the amount of nudity now found but the gore as well. That I actually can’t recall if it was included in that old version or not. But here we have plenty of brightly colored red blood spilled and on view as well as dismembered and mauled bodies. There are also several well done impalements with the most notable being a huge church cross.

One thing of note that makes this film different from two other Hammer titles released by Synapse is that this movie is definitely a horror film. While both COUNTESS DRACULA and HANDS OF THE RIPPER might be seen as drama pieces, this one is riddled with long fangs and blood gouged necks aplenty so that there is no mistaking it for anything but a horror film. And for horror fans that’s a good thing.

The movie holds up after all this time since seeing it over 40 odd years ago. The music is still eerily creepy, the vampires devoid of all morality and the circus has an almost surreal feel to it that makes you uneasy while watching the performances. The acting in the film along with everything from set design to costumes to makeup to directing combines to tell a tale that doesn’t feel watered down or old. It’s a solid horror film all the way.

As with their other Hammer releases Synapse has outdone themselves on this one when it comes to extras as well as presenting the film in 1080p high definition. They include “The Bloodiest Show On Earth: The Making of Vampire Circus” an all-new documentary with interviews of people like director Joe Dante, actor David Prowse who plays a strongman in the circus and more, “Gallery of Grotesqueries: A Brief History of Circus Horrors” a retrospective on circus/carnival themed horror films, “Visiting the House of Hammer” a retrospective on Britain’s popular horror magazine of the same name with author Philip Nutman, an interactive comic book of the movie with artwork by Brian Bolland, a poster and stills gallery and the original theatrical trailer.

If you’ve not seen the film this is your chance to see it in the best format possible. If you’re a horror fan it is a must have for your collection. Synapse shines once more with the release of a movie from Hammer making you wish they’d have access to more.

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THE DORM THAT DRIPPED BLOOD: COLLEGIATE SLASHING

If nothing else for horror fans the term slasher took on a whole new meaning in the eighties. Launched by films like HALLOWEEN and FRIDAY THE 13^TH in the last part of the seventies, the next decade saw tons of follow up movies and genre rip offs hit the screens not just at drive-ins but theaters as well. Almost all of these movies made money and cost little to produce. And some even made a reputation for themselves as much as for what wasn’t seen as what was. THE DORM THAT DRIPPED BLOOD is a case in point.

The story follows four students who remain behind over Christmas break to help close down a dorm that’s been scheduled for demolition. Led by Joanne (Laura Lapinski) their job is to clear out the old furniture, clean out what they can and get things ready over the next two weeks. While doing so they’ll be staying in the dorm and taking care of themselves there.

The group was supposed to have five students but Debbie (Daphne Zuniga) received a call from her parents saying they were taking her with them on vacation. While looking for an inventory list she misplaced her parents show. Impatient while waiting, her father goes looking for her only to confront a mysterious figure we saw kill someone in the opening of the film who then smashes his head in with a spike loaded baseball bat. The same killer disposes of Debbie’s mother and when Debbie finds her father’s body does the same with her.

The four remaining members have no clue what has happened. The next day they see a derelict named John Hemmit going through the dumpster. He creeps out the girls so the guys threaten him to get out of the area. Could it be he is the mysterious figure?

Also helping the students out is maintenance man Bill who complains when his drill is taken from his tool kit. Of course this is foreshadowing and we know that Bill will eventually be disposed of by the killer using said drill. This takes place onscreen and we see the drill enter the back of Bill’s skull.

Another potential suspect is added to the list in the form of Bobby Lee Tremble, a local salesman who is buying the used desks. He flirts with Joanne and later on leaves his girlfriend at home to go back and try once more. Or is that what he intends?

The body count continues to rack up, false scares are added to keep the movie going forward at various times and the eventual revelation as to who the killer is should not be too surprising for most gorehounds. But that doesn’t prevent the film from being a fun time for fans of the genre. The kills are there, there is less sex than usually found in the film and the clues are presented to all to decipher who the killer is.

The film was made by two UCLA students, Stephen Carpenter and Jeffrey Obrow, who made a trailer for the film in order to get financing. Their use of unknown actors and locations at UCLA helped make the film seem more realistic than most. What is most surprising is that the cast does a fantastic job here never coming off as amateurs or non-professionals. I was surprised to learn that this was the only film Lapinski ever made as she was the most convincing of the cast.

When released the film gained a certain amount of notoriety. Originally hitting screens under the title PRANKS rather than the director’s title DEATH DORM it didn’t fare well at first. It was later changed to the current THE DORM THAT DRIPPED BLOOD and fared much better at the box office. In England it was released as PRANKS as well before being placed on the list of “video nasties” in that country, an official ban on the film based on the violence found in the film. While made in 1982 it wasn’t until 1992 that the film was released in that country.

Critics have not been kind to the film but they miss the point. This movie wasn’t made to offer something new and original to the fans of the genre but to fulfill their need to see the movies they wanted. It also provided a jumping off point for the directing team involved. The cut on display here from Synapse is the original DEATH DORM with all of the original gore they were forced to trim to satisfy the MPAA censors placed back in. With additional scenes, more gore sequences and an alternate sound mix the film was restored from an existing 35mm answer print thought lost for over 30 years. Now fans can see the film as it was intended from the start.

If that weren’t enough to heap praise on Synapse they’ve also compiled some extras to keep fans happy and occupied. They include an audio commentary track with directors Obrow and Carpenter, interviews with composer Christopher Young who scored the film and Matthew Mungle who did the make-up effects, an isolated music score, the original theatrical trailers and a reversible cover with alternate artwork. Not bad for a little known slasher flick made in the eighties.

Horror fans now have the chance to not only see the film as originally intended but to own it as well. It’s a solid little slasher flick that doesn’t bring a lot new to the table but that provides exactly what fans of the genre are looking for. And with the fact that Synapse has done this much to make it appear that much better as well as complete, I’d suggest making sure you pick up a copy.

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OVERLORD: SUPER NAZIS

World War II movies and horror movies have been thrown together more often than you would think. With films like RED SNOW and becoming hits with the horror crowd it was only a matter of time before a mainstream film took the subject in hand. After all Hitler was supposed to have believed in numerous superstitions and various programs have discussed his search for ancient relics to help him win the war. Now we have OVERLORD.

The time is D-Day and a group of soldiers are being flown behind enemy lines with the intent of taking down a radio tower so that the air support for the beach invasion can assistance. Before they can get to their jump point their plane is shot down, half the men are lost in the plane and the rest tumble out in the nick of time. Boyce (Jovan Adepo) is lost and confused but find the remaining members of the team.

Now in charge is Corporal Ford (Wyatt Russell), the munitions expert whose job it is to take out the tower. Also on hand are the wise cracking New York accented Tibbet (John Magaro), wanna be writer Dawson (Jacob Anderson) and Chase (Iain De Caestecker). As they regroup and head into town Dawson is killed by a landmine. Continuing on they come across French girl Chloe (Mathilde Ollivier) from the village where the tower is located. With her own reasons for hating the Nazis she aids them by taking them to her home.

Living with her are her 8 year old brother and her aunt who has been disfigured due to some strange experiments taking place at the German headquarters where the tower is. While the team discusses what to do next a squad of Nazis arrives at the house. Led by SS man Wafner (Pilou Asbaek) he enters the house while they hide, flirts with Chloe before sending his men outside and then attempts to rape her. The team comes to her defense and captures the SS leader and kills his men.

Using what information they can gather from Wafner they devise a plan to get into the underground headquarters and blow up the tower. Separating with plans to regroup, Boyce comes across a group of Nazis dumping the bodies of disfigured experiments gone wrong and burning them. Concerned that more is taking place he gets on their truck and finds his way into the underground location.

As he wanders the halls attempting to avoid being discovered Boyce finds out the types of experiments that have been going on. Various dead bodies are being brought back to life. The most disturbing is a head with spinal cord still attached that is living. Sneaking out of the headquarters via a sewer tunnel, but not before taking a syringe filled with the Nazi serum, he meets the team and tells them what is taking place. They head back to the house to determine what to do.

Once there they begin discussing what to do next. Unfortunately they’re interrupted by a group of soldiers who shoot and kill Chase before they are all dispensed with. Not knowing what to do Boyce injects the Nazi serum into Chase who rises but begins to change. His body contorts, he strength increases and he loses control of himself. They then realize that the serum will be used to turn the Nazi soldiers into superhuman battle ready combatants that must be stopped.

The movie works well on many levels but at the same time becomes far too involved at others. It features so many story points that overlap and run on top of one another that by the end you’re left trying to remember if all of them have been answered or not. In spite of that it does provide an interesting film that will hold your attention from start to finish.

While most of the cast is rarely unknown (for me I only recognized Bokeem Woodbine as the squad leader killed early on and De Caestecker who stars as Fitz on TV’s MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D) they all do an admirable job here. Their fear is palpable and their incredulous looks when confronted by what could be the ultimate evil are quite believable.

In the end I would recommend the movie for an evening’s entertainment but perhaps not for the squeamish. The effects are well done and compliment the story and that story does draw you in. It ended up being a movie I enjoyed watching but also felt I’d never revisit.

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