Anybody else sick of Vampires?

[Spaceman Spiff]

But my favorite monsters have always been Werewolves, and there is a definite shortage of good Werewolf books and movies. I don't think there's been a good movie since American Werewolf In London. There was one on Sciffy a while back that had the Hercules guy in it that was doing pretty good until the awesomely bad ending. I'm really psyched about the upcoming House Of Wolfman Universal homage, but I don't know of any other projects to look forward to.

Dog Soldiers, love. It's a B movie, but it's a B movie with good effects, decent acting, and an awesome sense of humor. You know you're in for a good time when one of the characters, after bare knuckle boxing a 10 foot tall werewolf and getting thrown around the kitchen like a rag doll, definitely glares at his enemy and declares that he hopes he will give it the shits after it eats him.

But, you're right, there hasn't been a good, big budget were wolf movie since American Werewolf in London.

^^ Thanks. I just put Dog Soldiers in my Amazon Shopping Cart.

I like Dog Soldiers quite a bit. I have some thoughts on it that I'll reserve until after RJDiogenes sees it, though.

I also enjoy the first Ginger Snaps movie.

 

[Australis]

What about the Jack Nicholson movie Wolf? Not seen it myself, just askin'.

 

[cultcross]

All I can say is: the less said of Dracula 2000, the better.

I believe mentioning it is now a federal offence.

I can understand the fascination with vampires, for the same reasons mentioned by Nile. Vampires are creatures of contrasts: forever young yet with old souls, animalistic instinct and refined manners, super-powered but vulnerable, capable of living for centuries yet always disconnected. And even if I am a guy, I can see why they appeal to a certain set of female sensibilities and fantasies. And I'm not even going into the sexual symbolism of blood and biting. There is a reason why "vampire" stories are ubiquitous in human mythology and literature, from African to Siberian folklore, from the distant past to the very now.

Nonetheless the ancient inspiration, the recent spawn of emo-vampires is really lame, taking away the limits of vampires or simply ignoring them. It is a Mary-Sueization of the vampire mythos, where they can do no wrong, the good guys (girls) love them and the bad guys (girls) hate them, and they spend their time pouting and brooding and reveling in angst for no discernible reasons.

Absolutely agree with all of this. I love vampire fiction done well. Interview with the Vampire remains a favourite film of mine, and Buffy and Angel have been arguably my two favourite shows ever. But then the later Anne Rice stuff, Twilight, the rush of crappy vampire stuff recently in Twilight's wake, it just bores me. When you have a concept as, frankly, silly as the vampire, you either have to be very good at 'scary', very good at 'epic', or very good at 'self aware tongue-in-cheek'. And I don't think the recent stuff has any of these qualities.

I am a big vampire fan, have been for ages, and when -I- was a teenager I don't remember vampires to be as boring, pointless and vacuous as they are in Twilight, but I certainly remember them to be definitely seductive, sultry, sophisticated creatures that could get under your skin in more ways than one. And more attractive than scary, to be honest. Or maybe that's just me.

I find this angle fascinating - being a bloke, I really don't get it, so I do find the 'attractive' aspect of vampirism interesting. As Juan said early on in the thread, to me a vampire is a symbol of dominance - in the traditional ages-old-vampire-with-teenage-girl setup, he is a (metaphorical) rapist. Taking the metaphor more literally, a guy who was actually like that would be vilified by women and quickly end up with a gazillion years in jail. Now I get some of the attraction; the mysterious element, a bit of 'bad boy' action, the, as Riley put it, 'billowy coat king of pain' thing. But it's the actual nature of the vampire itself that I cant' get past when dealing with them as a romantic figure.

And as for my avatar, I just think Mr. Pattinson looks good in this particular picture.

We won't hold it against you

 

[JuanBolio]

lookingglassman,

My young friend, the problems lay not with vampires, but with their portrayal.

Gone is the true monster and evil of the original vampire, a cruel, monstrous, demonic terror that stalks the living and feeds upon their blood.

Now, we have shimmering vampires, and before them, vampires in evening wear with nice hair and sex appeal.

Hopefully, the pendulum will swing, teenage girls' panties will dry up, and we'll see a movement away from "Barbie-vampires" and a return to the true bloodsuckers.

I hope so. I don't mind and even somewhat like the monstrous vampires as portrayed in films like Nosteratu and even Van Helsing. I can at least respect them as terrible adversaries.

"Sexy" vampires that exist only to get teen girls hot, though... I don't know if there is anything worse for me.

I am a big vampire fan, have been for ages, and when -I- was a teenager I don't remember vampires to be as boring, pointless and vacuous as they are in Twilight, but I certainly remember them to be definitely seductive, sultry, sophisticated creatures that could get under your skin in more ways than one. And more attractive than scary, to be honest. Or maybe that's just me.

I find this angle fascinating - being a bloke, I really don't get it, so I do find the 'attractive' aspect of vampirism interesting. As Juan said early on in the thread, to me a vampire is a symbol of dominance - in the traditional ages-old-vampire-with-teenage-girl setup, he is a (metaphorical) rapist. Taking the metaphor more literally, a guy who was actually like that would be vilified by women and quickly end up with a gazillion years in jail. Now I get some of the attraction; the mysterious element, a bit of 'bad boy' action, the, as Riley put it, 'billowy coat king of pain' thing. But it's the actual nature of the vampire itself that I cant' get past when dealing with them as a romantic figure.

Well put, sir. I suppose this kind of vampire, and the reaction girls like Niorah seem to have to them, is representative of a pattern I deeply dislike and oppose - that of girls being seduced by men with a facade of charm which covers a truly evil core that seeks only to manipulate and use. There's nothing sexy about a vampire to me, any more than there would be about a suave, rich, mysterious date rapist. Whenever I am presented with such characters I just want to see them dead and the threat ended. I have no sympathy at all.

 

[melancholymecha]

how do guys feel about female vampires? are guys drawn to them in the same way that women are drawn to male vampires? or are they more like another variation of the "alien babe".

 

[SilentP]

how do guys feel about female vampires? are guys drawn to them in the same way that women are drawn to male vampires? or are they more like another variation of the "alien babe".

I for one can say there is a definite attraction to female vamires, for me at least, though I wouldn't say it's a variant on the 'alien babe' theme (i.e. something exotic). I think it's a fascination with the image of a seductress whose also somewhat predatory towards getting the male under her spell. I don't know if there's as much of the 'rapist' connonation going with this gender match as other are assigning to the male vampire/female human pairing though. I guess for me, it's also that I like a forward, dominating woman on occasion, and the classic female vampire archetype fits the profile very well.

Plus, busty women with pale skin and piercing eyes are damn sexy (another archetype, and one that I love )

 

[JuanBolio]

how do guys feel about female vampires? are guys drawn to them in the same way that women are drawn to male vampires? or are they more like another variation of the "alien babe".

I feel about as hostile toward female vampires to males. Their only saving grace is that they're not after THE WOMEN!

Pretty much the same as any alien babe - she may look hot, but that's not nearly enough. I don't want an ovapositor rammed down my throat and eggs lain in my chest, and I don't want to be drained of blood and killed or bitten and transformed into that which I loathe. Plenty of girls in high school were hot, too, but underneath they were still complete and utter succubi - nothing but pieces of shit in pretty wrappers.

 

[RJDiogenes]

I like Dog Soldiers quite a bit. I have some thoughts on it that I'll reserve until after RJDiogenes sees it, though.

Glad to hear it has your seal of approval.

I also enjoy the first Ginger Snaps movie.

I don't think I've seen that one. I saw one set in the Old West that was pretty disappointing.

What about the Jack Nicholson movie Wolf? Not seen it myself, just askin'.

I've heard that it was not very good.

how do guys feel about female vampires? are guys drawn to them in the same way that women are drawn to male vampires? or are they more like another variation of the "alien babe".

Female Vampires can be attractive just by virtue of being attractive, but being Vampires is not a plus in and of itself.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

There was a Ginger Snaps movie set in colonial-era Canada. It's pretty much agreed across the board as the least impressive of the series. It has some pretty shots, but that's about it.

The first is much better. Pretty Hallowe'en-y, in fact, in terms of the setting, colors, etc. Definitely worth a rental to see if you like it.

 

[TorontoTrekker]

I liked Tanya Huff's portrayal of Henry Fitzroy. (I am Vampire. Behold and tremble, mortal!) Whenever a really good vampire book/movie/series appears, I'll be there. Ready made fan.

It took long enough for someone to mention the Blood series.

I haven't read the books yet (though I have four of them, plus one from the spinoff series), but I enjoyed the TV show. Pity nobody was watching it because it was on some obscure cable network in the US. Here in Canada, it aired on Space and I know a lot of people who were watching it. Every time I see Tanya I ask her, "When are the DVDs coming out?" (I think she said they were due out early in 2010, but I might be misremembering.)

I've heard that Let The Right One In is very good - it was nominated for a Constellation Award this past year, but it only drew about 2% of the vote. I'd never heard of it before it showed up on the ballot - it didn't get a lot of publicity, as far as I know.

 

[sidious618]

Despite earlier on saying that I'm not a Vampire fan, I'm now considering being a Victorian Vampire for Halloween.

 

[Australis]

Read a review yesterday for Let The Right One In, in SFX. 5 stars, and they don't just hand them out. While no horror movie guy, I might check it out.

 

[Kegg]

I feel about as hostile toward female vampires to males. Their only saving grace is that they're not after THE WOMEN!

Well. Um.

Lesbian vampires are as old as Camilla, which means they've actually been around longer than Dracula.

Curiously, for some reason they remain popular.

 

[RJDiogenes]

There was a Ginger Snaps movie set in colonial-era Canada. It's pretty much agreed across the board as the least impressive of the series. It has some pretty shots, but that's about it.

The first is much better. Pretty Hallowe'en-y, in fact, in terms of the setting, colors, etc. Definitely worth a rental to see if you like it.

Maybe it will be on Fear.Net for Halloween. I haven't rented anything since Blockbuster moved away from next door. Although I should probably sign up over at Hollywood Video....