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Nosferatu: Horror in the Silent Era
F.W. Murnau directs. Max Schreck stars.
A classic example of German expressionism, Nosferatu introduces the concept that sunlight destroys vampires. -
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Dracula Goes to The Movies
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Dracula: The Classic
Tod Browning directs. Bela Lugosi stars.
Perhaps the first film "franchise", Dracula sets the standard for dozens of movies that feature the iconic vampire. -
El Vampiro: The Appearance of Fangs
Fernando Mendez directs. German Robles stars.
The Mexican release El Vampiro shows the vampire's fangs for the first time on screen. -
The Omega Man: Sci-Fi Viruses
Boris Segal directs. Charleston Heston stars.
The sci-fi theme that a virus can affect populations and give them vampire-like qualities is based on the original "I Am Legend" story by Richard Matheson and recurs in several movies, from The Omega Man to the recent Will Smith vehicle Legend. -
Blacula: The Blaxplotation Genre
William Crain directs. William Marshall stars.
Produced and marketed for urban black audiences, Blacula was one of the few horror movies to emerge from blaxploitation, an early 1970s film genre that usually featured crime and martial arts themes. -
Love At First Bite: The Vampire Comedy
Stan Dragoti directs. George Hamilton stars.
A script filled with one-liners and sight gags guides this comedic interpretation of the Dracula legends. -
The Dark Crystal: Puppets!
Jim Henson directs.
Although not truly a vampire movie, The Dark Crystal features the Skeksis, creatures that feed on energy from other beings. Some fans consider it a different view of vampiric themes. -
The Hunger: Sexual Tension
Tony Scott directs. Catherine Deneuve and David Bowie star.
The obsession-and-surrender theme that permeates vampire movies is crucial to the heterosexual, gay and lesbian sexual content that appears in The Hunger and other vampire movies, including pornography and mainstream movies such as Interview with the Vampire and Queen of the Damned. -
The Lost Boys: Party All Night
Joel Schumacher directs. Jason Patric and Keifer Sutherland star.
The teenager vampires who rule a California surf town are poster children for pop culture, rock music and extreme experiences. -
Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Cheerleader By Day
Fran Kuzui directs. Kristy Swanson stars.
As a Valley Girl comedy, the movie based on Joss Whedon's story missed the subtle pop culture humor that characterized the television series that followed in 1997. -
Blade: A Comic Book Adaptation
Stephen Norrington directs. Wesley Snipe stars.
The first of a successful franchise, Blade follows a comic book hero, the vampire hunter who is half-vampire himself, in this merging of vampire lore and action-hero warfare. -
Let The Right One In: Imported Darkness
Tomas Alfredsen directs. Lina Leandersson stars.
In an unusual vampire tale featuring children, this Norwegian tale asks lots of psychological questions and shows lots of gore in a fascinating winter set. -
Twilight: The Teenage Romance
Catherine Hardwicke directs; Robert Pattinson stars.
A contemporary take on the Romeo and Juliet trope, Twilight introduces a family of "vegetarian" vampires who don't die in sunlight -- they sparkle.
