November is here, which means Halloween has come and gone far too quickly as usual. This week, we’re chasing the post-Halloween blues away with a whole lot of red- as in blood red. We’ve visited atypical takes on one of horror’s most enduring movie monsters before, but this week we’re taking a more traditional approach to the vampire.
More accurately, we’re setting our sights on vicious vampires that revel in their bloodletting.
From beloved horror comedies to visceral action horror, these vicious vamps paint the town red with blood. As always, they’re all available to stream this week.
Fright Night – Prime Video, Pluto TV
Jerry Dandridge (Chris Sarandon) might know how to charm the ladies, but underneath that sensual façade is a monstrous killer. Next door neighbor Charley Brewster (William Ragsdale) learns that the hard way when he spies on Jerry, discovering a trail of bodies leaving his house. Charley does what any suspicious teen would do (ha); he enlists horror host TV personality Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall) to help him slay the vampire. Writer/Director Tom Holland brings the horror and the comedy in equal measure. McDowall turns in an iconic performance as the skeptical and terrified horror host, but so does Sarandon as the magnetic head vamp. That’s before he transforms into a giant bat beast.
Blade II – Hulu
Guillermo del Toro takes over the director’s seat for the follow up to Blade, bringing a new species of vampires with him, the Reapers. The Reapers are so consumed by bloodlust that they feed on anything in their paths, threatening to exterminate vampires and humankind alike. Those that survive the attack become Reapers. That means that Blade (Wesley Snipes) is forced to team up with the ones he hates the most- vampires- to take down the Reapers before it’s far too late. Expect betrayals and backstabbing along with the carnage. The Reapers’ creature design is fantastic. This one, along with the first Blade, leaves Hulu at the end of the month.
From Dusk Till Dawn – AMC+
This vampire classic by director Robert Rodriguez and screenwriter Quentin Tarantino bides its time getting to the horror. The first act plays like a crime thriller, with the Gecko Brothers (George Clooney and Tarantino) taking a family hostage to get them across the border while running from the law. They wind up at an all-night truck stop, unaware that it’s home to a hive of vampires that use the place as their feeding ground. It’s the type of creature feature with it all- humor, action, and loads of viscera.
Stake Land – Prime Video
A plague has devastated the world and turned the country into a ravaged land of vampires. A vampire hunter (co-writer Nick Damici) travels cross-country with an orphan (Connor Paolo) he rescued, searching for the fabled safe haven. They encounter survivors and endless death traps along their journey. Director Jim Mickle takes a standard set up and gives it a brooding, dark fantasy spin. The vampires are downright monstrous, and humans sometimes fare no better. Above all, it’s the characterization that makes this one unique.
30 Days of Night – Prime Video, Tubi
The small town of Barrow, Alaska, experiences a month of complete darkness every year. A horde of ruthless vampires, discovering it’s the perfect scenario for an endless feeding frenzy, descend upon Barrow for an all-you-can-eat buffet. Sheriff Eben (Josh Hartnett), his wife (Melissa George), and a dwindling band of survivors must try to last until dawn eventually breaks. Directed by David Slade (Hard Candy) and adapted from the comic book series, 30 Days of Night goes full-throttle on the gore, violence, and ruthlessly mean vampires.