I can't help it, but the most fundamental pivot sequences in "Kiss of the Vampire" somewhat reminded me of Stanley Kubrick's much more recent "Eyes Wide Shut". The story of this shamefully underrated Hammer effort revolves on young newlyweds Gerald and Marianne who are slowly lured into a highly secluded society of bloodthirsty vampires, led by the prominent Dr. Ravna and his charming offspring. Critical turning points in the script, like the masked ball and the subsequent gathering of the society members for Marianne's initiation ceremony, looked so very familiar to the psychedelic scenes in "Eyes Wide Shut"! As if Kubrick tried hard to capture the atmospheric mood of this modest little UK horror film and transfer it to his own widely acclaimed final feature as a director. It probably never was anyone's intention to link these two movies, but it might be something fun to look out for during your next viewing. Anyway, that being said, "Kiss of the Vampire" is an exceptionally beautiful Hammer accomplishment and it urgently deserves a little more appreciation from all us fans of classic horror. It may lack the star-power (unfortunately) of Christopher Lee or Peter Cushing, but the photography and use of scenery are often superb and these aspects also definitely compensate for the occasional dull moment in the script. The opening sequence perhaps ranks amongst the absolute most powerful Hammer-moments ever, showing a young girl's funeral getting brutally interrupted by her own drunk father who plunges a shovel through the coffin and hereby prevents her from rising again as an undead. Although dealing with vampires, you totally don't see this twist coming and it's effectively shocking. The climax as well is incredibly ingenious, although it caused a delay a for the film's release since distributors feared it would be too reminiscent to Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds". Talk about underrated, Don Sharp directs with a whole lot of flair and Alan Hume's camera-work is downright breathtaking.
Review of The Kiss of the Vampire
