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"The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

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"The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

Old 09-25-12, 11:17 PM
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"The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2






The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967)



Selected by orlmac



IMDB ENTRY

These "October Horror Movie Challenge" threads are for the discussion of the films in the 31 FILM SUBSET list.

MAIN THREAD | LIST THREAD

The plan is for everyone to watch this film on the October day in the thread title, and to start discussing it the morning of the following day.
You may start discussion early if you want, but the preferred plan is for this to be as much of a group exercise as possible, with all of us viewing it "together" and discussing after.

Of course, you are totally encouraged to participate in these threads even if you haven't watched the movie on the designated day.
Even if you haven't watched it in years, or are not participating in the Horror Challenge, please feel free to chime in.



Spoiler tags are unnecessary in here, so if you have yet to see the film BEWARE OF SPOILERS.

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Old 10-02-12, 10:27 AM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

Is this available to stream anywhere?
Old 10-02-12, 10:39 AM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

I have this at home. Hopefully I can find it somewhere today and watch it.
Old 10-02-12, 10:39 AM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

I so love this movie. The look and locations are stunning. Then there's the equally as stunning Sharon Tate. Great characters, fantastic villain and a gutsy ending. I still remember being shocked the first time I saw it. I love the ballroom sequence and the mirror.
Old 10-02-12, 02:53 PM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

Originally Posted by DaveyJoe
Is this available to stream anywhere?
Amazon has it for $2.99 to rent and $9.99 to own.

http://www.amazon.com/Fearless-Vampi...9207581&sr=1-1
Old 10-02-12, 06:40 PM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

I hope I didn't pick one here that is hard for people to find. I watched it for the first time today and really enjoyed it. I was hoping for a little Hammer vibe and I found I may have enjoyed it more than other Hammer films made during this time period. The humor was low-key but enjoyable to me. I thought that Jack MacGowran was very good as Professor Abronsius and Roman Polanski complimented him well as his assistant Alfred. I have never really noticed Ferdy Mayne before but he was very good in his role of Count Krolock so I will be looking for some of his other movies. I agree with Pizza that the look and locations are stunning. Just a very rich moive in many ways in my opinion. I hope that others enjoy it as much as I did.
Old 10-02-12, 09:59 PM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2


Of all the Roman Polanski films that I’ve seen, this one is probably my least favorite. I saw it long, long ago on the CBS Late Movie when I was a kid, and I slept through a pretty good hunk of it. Watching it for the Challenge for the first time in probably 35 years, I found myself dozing off several times again. I don’t know what it is about the film that lulls me to sleep, but it definitely makes me drowsy. So here’s what I like about it: the cinematography, the set and costume design, the music (most especially), and Ferdy Mayne as the head vampire. I do love the look of the film; it looks like Christmas. Now, here’s what I don’t like about it: everything else. The pace befits the setting, as the film moves at a glacier-like speed. The team of vampire killers are more annoying than amusing. The first twenty minutes are just awful--the only thing of note that really happens is that Jack MacGowran gets hit over the head with a salami. I really can’t blame MGM for cutting twenty minutes out of it when they first released it. The way I see it, it could only help the film. The word “brilliant” often gets tossed around when people talk about this film, but I just don’t see it. For me, The Fearless Vampire Killers is only about a half-rung up the ladder from Saturday the 14th in terms of effectiveness. Polanski certainly made up for this film’s shortcomings with his next film, however.
Old 10-02-12, 10:44 PM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

I actually enjoyed this one more than I expected when I saw it a few years back. I didn't love it but I was expecting to hate it.
Old 10-03-12, 06:20 AM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

My thoughts are more along the lines of rbrown498's. I thought the film was fairly awful.

The cinematography was nice, I liked the head vampire and even Jack MacGowran's goofy antics at times.

But the humor didn't work for me. I laughed maybe twice, lightly, and unless I'm wrong they were going for comedy here.
Old 10-03-12, 07:40 AM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

Originally Posted by Trevor
My thoughts are more along the lines of rbrown498's. I thought the film was fairly awful.

The cinematography was nice, I liked the head vampire and even Jack MacGowran's goofy antics at times.

But the humor didn't work for me. I laughed maybe twice, lightly, and unless I'm wrong they were going for comedy here.
I'm with rbrown498 and you as well. I wouldn't call it awful but I was expecting a bit more. the run time is too long for such a movie. at least 15 minutes should have been trimmed. I did like some of the humor, expecially some of the sexual innuendo, as its a vampire movie after all but to be a comedy the hunters weren't bumbling enough and it wasn't a "comedy of errors" type film although some of the vibe felt it would head in that direction. Polanski was good but to me one of his best acting roles was in The Tenant, one of my all time favorites Polanski movies.

Once the hunters go to the castle, it kind of dragged on for me, by the time of the ballroom dance that was too long, I was already thinking about what I was going to watch next.

Wanted to add that I found the Inn keeper hillarious, in a Mel Brooks way, but again for that there are dozens of Mel Brooks movies to watch. And Sharon Tate was dreamy.

Last edited by BuddhaWake; 10-03-12 at 07:50 AM.
Old 10-03-12, 08:11 AM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

First time viewing for me, and I really liked it.. there wasn't too much good humor, but a couple times I did chuckle. The cinematohraphy and acting are top notch. The Ballroom scene is the best in the film IMO. And Sharon Tate is hella pleasant on the eyes. That ending was sick too.
Old 10-03-12, 01:58 PM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

Originally Posted by Trevor
But the humor didn't work for me. I laughed maybe twice, lightly, and unless I'm wrong they were going for comedy here.
Apparently they played it up as a farce/slapstick comedy for the US release, but it seems the humor was actually quite secondary from Polanski's perspective.

That doesn't help the slow pace, of course. But overall I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.

I hadn't realized until I looked the film up on Wikipedia that this movie was the basis for the musical Tanz der Vampire. It was a pretty big hit in Europe but failed miserably in the US -- mostly because, while the original German version plays it pretty straight (inclusion of '80s power ballad previously written by the show's composer notwithstanding), the US version was rewritten to add lots and lots of ham-fisted jokes and puns.
Old 10-03-12, 05:05 PM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

Originally Posted by DaveyJoe
Is this available to stream anywhere?
Check out StageVu. I've never liked it. I've seen it a few times over the past few decades, and it has always seemed to be trying too hard, although the Grand Ball scene is a classic.

Last edited by Gobear; 10-03-12 at 05:26 PM.
Old 10-08-12, 12:00 PM
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Re: "The Fearless Vampire Killers" Reviews/Discussion - 2012 Horror Challenge: Day 2

After seeing the trailer for this movie some time last year on some other disc, I went in expecting to hate this movie. I mildly enjoyed the first half but once they got to the castle, the movie screeched to a halt. Movies of this type (farces) don't really do much for me anyway but the humor seemed to leave quickly and the dullness seeped in. Overall, just not my thing.

I will say the movie looked great though. I rented this on DVD and the transfer was so good that at times it appeared I was watching it on BD. I just wish it could kept up the pace it set in the first half.

My rating: ** out of *****

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