DVD Overview:
Movie: 3
Video: 3.25
Sound: 3
Extras: 2
Aspect Ratio 2.35:1
Anamorphic
108 minutes

"Vampires"
By: Bob Brown

If you’re the least bit squeamish at the sight of blood, then you might want to consider watching something a little tamer and less gory, such as Saving Private Ryan.

I think Vampires is a movie you’ll either thoroughly enjoy or will be completely repulsed by. For those of you with a skewed sense of entertainment and a love of horror films, I think you’ll enjoy this graphic version of an old story.

From a loving family to an Alter Boy to a Vampire Slayer...what's next?
Jack Crow’s (James Woods) entire family was killed by vampires. As a result, Jack was raised by the Catholic Church. They trained him to become a master vampire slayer (No relation to Buffy or Angel). Armed with an assortment of medieval and modern day weaponry, Jack is set on destroying the first and most powerful vampire, Valek (Thomas Ian Griffith).

Vampire or K-Tel Vegomatic food chopper?
Valek slices and dices Jack’s entire crew of slayer assistants, except for Montoya (Daniel Baldwin) and Katrina (Cheryl Lee). Katrina, is bitten by Valek. That officially changes her status from groupee to bait. Bait for what you ask? Valek! That is, before she fully develops into a full blown vampire. She would then have a psychic connection to Valek.

Jack has to find Valek before he obtains an ancient black cross. Should Valek obtain the cross and complete a necessary ritual, he will then have the ability to enter our world of sunlight with all of his powers intact. Valek will most assuredly need a good large brim hat and a sunblock with an SPF rating of 30 or better.

Vampires, Directed by John Carpenter, is a dark form of entertainment akin to the Creep Show comic books. At times you might find yourself watching this movie through your open fingertips. Of course, this is expected. After all, it is a horror film.

The visual special effects, make up, and the lighting, were top notch. We know what we are seeing is not real but it sure does look it. James Woods perfectly captured that campy horror flick feel.

This is not a sophisticated vampire film in the likes of Interview with a Vampire or Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Never the less, it was absolutely horrific, sick, morbid and demented. Oh yeah, and a lot of fun.

DVD Info:
Columbia TriStar did a great job on this 108 minute DVD. The 2.35:1 anamorphic image was sharp, detailed, and had excellent color saturation. I did notice some reddish hues emanating from the top of the screen in some scenes. I don’t know if it was intentional filtering or errors (not distracting either way). The Dolby Digital 5.1 sound was clean, very active, nice separation and will test the potential of your system. Special features included Languages/Audio, Subtitles, Scene Selection, Director’s Commentary, and the Theatrical Trailer.

** Overall DVD Rating Legend:
**Video, Sound, and Extras: 4 = excellent, 3 = good, fair = 2, 1 = poor, 0 = unacceptable