On October 26 Bloodsucking Cinema premieres on Starz at 8pm et/pt. This special examines the vampire film and the effect that it has had on both the cinematic landscape and the American landscape as a whole.

Movie PictureThroughout {1} we hear from people such as John Landis ({2}), Joel Schumacher ({3}), Cheech Marin ({4}), Len Wiseman ({5}) and others as they talk about what it is in this genre that evokes such a powerful following among its many legions of fans. We are also given a history of the vampire and Dracula characters beginning with Nosferatu, moving through characters like Bela Lugosi, and going all the way up to the vampire films of the 21st Century.
Movie PictureOverall {6} is a fairly enjoyable escapade into the world of vampires. While I don't think that this is going to tell anybody who knows anything about these creatures something new, at the very least the information that is presented here is nothing short of enlightening. To find out how the vampire myth came into being, where it originated from and how it changed over the years all plays very nicely into the story being told. Also, having people like Leonard Malton, Stan Winston an
Movie PictureAt the same time, {8} suffers because of how whimsically it is cut together. Since it doesn't really move in any particular direction in a historical sense (that would have allowed it to chart the evolution that is being looked at), things tend to feel a bit unfocused. It seems that this special might have benefitted by having more of a throughline as opposed to moving in a bunch of directions. Also, and many might call this personal opinion, but I really that they should have given

Movie PictureAll in all, despite what gripes I might have about Bloodsucking Cinema, I really do think that this special is a worthy viewing experience. It seems that Starz is really trying to court horror fans (heck, they did buy Anchor Bay, right?) and because of this I feel it only makes sense to support their efforts. The horror genre as a whole seems to be experiencing a highpoint right now. Granted a lot of the movies being made leave something to be desired, there are enough good ones that that should show people the genre still has a lot of life in it. Sure Bloodsucking Cinema might only play in an informational way for people just getting into the vampire genre, but this special's openended quality makes it so that if people are interested they can certainly look deeper.