Kiss of the Vampire – not to be confused with Vampire’s Kiss – is a lip-smacking good time.
Despite the absence of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, who alone or together were in nine Dracula Hammer Films (with Cushing also in the third installment of the Count Karstein trilogy, Twins of Evil) Kiss of the Vampire can “stake” its claim as one of the studio’s best and remains decidedly under the radar.
And that’s a shame: after all, it’s got all the warm blanket hallmarks of a good Hammer production: newlyweds, a dusky castle, ornate drawing rooms, lush oil paintings, sweeping staircases, candelabras, iron door knockers, suspicious villagers, and of course, a patrician sophisticate.
Mr. and Mrs. Harcourt are driving through a Bavarian forest. When their car runs out of petrol, they make their way to a local inn to get help, where they meet two of its idiosyncratic operators.
Par for the course, the place isn’t fully booked and hasn’t been for years. However, there is one fellow guest, a boozy professor theologian who resembles Coffin Joe and who’ll be called into service later.
As the Harcourts settle in, they’re invited to dine at the home of an upstanding gentleman, the one Herr Doctor Ravna, a Teutonic man of exquisite taste and refinement. They’re treated to weirdly stilted repartee and a truly oddly hypnotic piano recital by the doc’s son, Karl.
Soon, the Harcourts are waltzing about at a lavish masquerade ball, complete with a Viennese orchestra and fine French dining. With Mr. Harcourt indisposed by the drink, Karl dons his mask, and lures the misses up to Doctor Ravna’s bedroom.
As gorgeously colourful as fellow Hammer bloodsucking horror classic, Captain Kronos Vampire Hunter, Kiss of the Vampire bests that one with funnier, snappier dialogue.
Kiss sticks pretty close to the lore of the source material, save for the inclusion of a cult subplot, which actually works in its favor. The only thing that doesn’t, is the effects in the closing scene.
While not among the very best vampire films of all time (we can bestow that cape upon the likes of Nosferatu, Christopher Lee’s Dracula, Nosferatu the Vampyre and perhaps one or two others) Kiss of the Vampire comfortably sits among the “next best” tier of vampire horrors, alongside Near Dear and Martin.
**** (out of 5)
For a fuller discussion of Kiss of the Vampire, check out the Really Awful Movies Podcast.
Really Awful Movies 