Silly, scary or sparkly, the best vampire movies are a bloody good time
37 Best Vampire Movies to Sink Your Teeth Into
Updated on Jul. 10, 2025
The Lost Boys
Released: 1987
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “You’re a creature of the night Michael, just like out of a comic book … Oh, you wait till Mom finds out, buddy!”
Director Joel Schumacher set out to make a fresh, flashy summer blockbuster about two brothers whose overwhelmed single mom moves them to a coastal California town for a fresh start. Unfortunately, is also happens to be a haven for the undead. The Lost Boys is a little scary, a little funny and a lot sexy. With help from Kiefer Sutherland, Jami Gertz, Jason Patric, the two Coreys (Feldman and Haim) and a killer soundtrack, Schumacher helped resurrect the big-budget vampire flick—and redefined how an entire generation looked at these creatures of the night.
Bram Stoker’s Dracula
Released: 1992
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “I have crossed oceans of time to find you.”
Many have adapted Stoker’s seminal vampire novel, but Francis Ford Coppola’s rendition is far from run-of-the-mill or repetitive. With rich colors, ornate sets, creepy makeup and extravagant costumes, the film is a visual feast. A box-office success and winner of three Oscars, it’s a prime example of hit movies that were books first. Avoiding the campiness that previous Dracula flicks employed, Coppola instead leans into the novel’s eroticism, as well as Dracula’s tunnel vision around Mina, whom he believes is his true love reincarnated. The fated romance, framed by top-notch directing and acting, almost has you excusing his evil ways. It also doesn’t hurt that this vampire movie is peppered with marquee stars, including Anthony Hopkins, Winona Ryder, Keanu Reeves and, of course, Gary Oldman as Dracula himself.
Let the Right One In
Released: 2008
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “I’m 12. But I’ve been 12 for a long time.”
Let The Right One In didn’t top the box office in 2008 like Twilight, which came out the same year, but there’s no doubt that this Swedish coming-of-age import is far superior cinema. Set in 1982 in a snowy Stockholm suburb, it follows the perpetually bullied Oskar, whose revenge fantasies start to morph into reality after he befriends his peculiar, strong and encouraging new neighbor, Eli. As their bond grows, Oskar starts connecting the dots—she hates the sun, doesn’t eat, needs to be invited in and arrives in town as a string of mysterious deaths start occurring. As the hints start piling up, Oskar must determine how much he can excuse about his first love.
It’s a moody genre masterpiece sure to please fans of slow-burn storytelling. Let The Right One In does a fantastic job of building suspense by leaving some of the action and gore out of frame. With surprisingly powerful performances from the two young leads, this slow-burn vampire tale is a genre standout.
What We Do in the Shadows
Released: 2015
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “I go for a look which I call dead but delicious.”
Before it was one of the best TV shows on Hulu, What We Do in the Shadows was a funny scary movie that introduced us to a different kind of vampire life. Instead of following a quartet of Staten Island vampires and their loyal, lovable familiar, Guillermo, a film crew “documented” the daily life of four immortal flatmates in New Zealand.
The group consists of 12th-century tyrant Vladislav the Poker, 17th-century dandy Viago, 183-year-old traveling salesman Deacon and Petyr, an 8,000-year-old Nosferatu type, who are struggling to survive the mundanities of the modern world. After an intended victim is turned by Petyr, they must teach the new vamp the ropes. Outrageously chortle-inducing and irreverent, the mockumentary was written and directed by Jermaine Clement, who plays Vladislav, and Taika Waititi, who plays Viago, and they clearly love and respect the age-old tropes they take to task.
Only Lovers Left Alive
Released: 2014
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “How can you have lived for so long and still not get it?”
You think you’re depressed about the state of current affairs? Imagine if you’d been watching the downward trajectory of humanity for centuries like Adam (Tom Hiddleston), a cerebral and fragile musician/vampire who feeds on existential dread (and black-market hospital blood) in Detroit. Hearing of his despair, his longtime lover, Eve (Tilda Swinton), rushes from Tangiers to lift his spirits. The reunion works wonders … until Eve’s wild little sister shows up.
Swinton and Hiddleston are a mesmerizing pairing, cleverly matched in effortless wit, undeniable sexual energy and their ability to hold the audience’s attention. This is a thinking man’s vampire movie, and the more versed the viewer is in classic literature, the funnier it becomes. It unfolds in the hypnotic rhythm of underground alt-rock, and it’s ultimately a beautiful emo love story and one of the best examples of Jim Jarmusch’s peculiar, wry brand of creative genius.
Nosferatu
Released: 1922
Rated: Not rated
This black-and-white silent tale of terror is the one that started it all. An unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, it’s a masterpiece that created an entire horror movie subcategory and influenced generations of macabre mavens. Max Schreck’s Count Orlok, with his pointy ears, razor-sharp teeth, long fingernails, bald head and beady eyes, set the creepy standard for vampire looks for decades to come. German expressionist F.W. Murnau developed and employed film techniques like creeping shadows, stark contrasts of light and dark, and shot-from-below elongating camera angles that have been copied so often they’ve become a touchstone. Nosferatu has no memorable movie quotes—or even a single line of dialogue—but it still gives audiences nightmares more than a century later.
Interview with the Vampire
Released: 1994
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “You’re a vampire who never knew what life was until it ran out in a red gush over your lips.”
Based on Anne Rice’s beloved first novel, Interview with the Vampire is the emotional, guilt-ridden and bloody life story of vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac (Brad Pitt), as recounted to a reporter (Christian Slater) in a sort of verbal memoir. The flashbacks start with the man who turned him into a vampire, Lestat de Lioncourt (Tom Cruise), and continue through the saga of their on-again, off-again relationship. The two also tangle with their adorable but troubled vampire “daughter,” Kirsten Dunst, who resents the fact that she will never grow up. In this blockbuster, director Neil Jordan creates a feast for the eyes, starting with the smoldering cast and finishing with the extravagant set pieces and Sandy Powell costumes.
Dracula
Released: 1931
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “He came to me. He opened a vein in his arm, and he made me drink.”
While Nosferatu may have kick-started the genre, it was director Tod Browning’s vision, which debuted nine years later, that turned the Count into an enduring Halloween costume, cultural icon and sex symbol. (Bela Lugosi’s portrayal of the lifeless lothario as equally alluring and alarming didn’t hurt.) Based on one of the scariest books of all time and a hit 1924 Broadway play, the slow pace, black-and-white film stock and antiquated phrasings may bore younger generations, but they drive home the point that without this version, there would be no Lestat, no Edward Cullen, no Eric Northman and no Salvatore brothers. Without Dracula, vampires might never have become the dark, brooding icons we know today.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Released: 1992
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “I didn’t even break a nail.”
The small-screen Buffy is arguably one of the best teen TV shows ever made, with fans pledging Scooby Gang–level loyalty to Sarah Michelle Gellar. But the truth is, outside of the basic plot about a high school chosen one needing to rid her high school (and the world) of vampires, the TV and movie versions are tonally different—and both have their merits.
The movie version, starring Kristy Swanson, has a cult following and it’s both funny and campy. This slayer is more Valley Girl than vampire killer. She talks about L.A., boys and clothes in a way that will remind you of Cher from Clueless (even though Cher came years later). In fact, the movie wound up being far sillier than screenwriter Joss Whedon had intended, and that led him to pitch the darker TV edition. While this film didn’t win over critics, it did decently at the box office, and pop culture hindsight has also been kind. Plus, young Luke Perry is a dreamboat, and Paul “Pee-Wee Herman” Reubens’ over-the-top acting choices as a bloodsucker having a bad hair day are inspired.
Once Bitten
Released: 1985
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “I don’t want to be a vampire. I’m a day person.”
To sustain her eternal youth and infinite foxiness, an ancient vampiress (Lauren Hutton) must drink the blood of male virgins. She uses that aforementioned beauty, and a series of revealing outfits, to get those virgins in this comic caper whose true legacy is being Jim Carrey’s first substantial movie role. He plays a bumbling L.A. high schooler she sets her sights on. Some of the humor in this ’80s movie didn’t age well, but for the most part, it’s a harmless time capsule of feathered bangs, jean skirts and “did you lose it yet?” jokes.
The Hunger
Released: 1983
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “Are you making a pass at me, Mrs. Blaylock?”
Although underappreciated by the masses when it was released, this erotic vampire thriller based on a 1981 Whitley Strieber novel has enjoyed a long life as a cult classic, championed by goth kids, lesbians and David Bowie fans. It flips gender norms as the posh, calculated vampire Miriam (Catherine Deneuve) seeks companionship with a fresher face (Susan Sarandon) when her partner of centuries (Bowie) develops chronic insomnia and begins to age at an alarming rate. She’s the seducer and the predator, while he glowers in their Manhattan townhouse and contemplates his lost looks and mortality.
Hindsight, changing tastes and the clear influence it had on future filmmakers made some recant their “all style, no substance” judgments. Unapologetically sensual, ineffably cool and infinitely informed by Tony Scott’s start in music videos, his first feature is a fever dream of pop-music cues, billowy curtains, steamy close-ups, fast cuts and high-contrast lighting.
Shadow of the Vampire
Released: 2000
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “How dare you destroy my photographer? Why not the script girl?”
Eight decades after Nosferatu changed the film industry forever, Steven Katz (The Knick) wrote a brilliant making-of screenplay that takes viewers behind the scenes of the 1920s production, postulating that the reason Nosferatu was so terrifying was because its lead was actually a vampire. Willem Dafoe is so pitch-perfect as Max Schreck/Count Orlok/the thorn in director Murnau’s side (yet another amazing showing by John Malkovich), you almost accept the premise as possible. (We still think Dafoe was robbed at the Oscars that year.) Wickedly original, it is as much a send-up of Hollywood and temperamental artists as it is a vampire movie.
Hotel Transylvania
Released: 2012
Rated: PG
Memorable quote: “Classic human paranoia. Human blood is so fatty, and you never know where it’s been.”
Dracula has been a lot of things over the years—warrior, ladies’ man, monster, lover and in this film, which could easily be one of the best family cartoon movies, a hotelier. The Count has converted his castle into a monsters-only luxury resort where vampires, mummies, werewolves, ghosts and assorted ghouls can vacation in peace without having to worry about humans and their torches and pitchforks. But all hell breaks loose when a backpacker wanders in and falls for his daughter, Mavis. Dracula and his pals use all their scare tactics to send him packing before other humans invade their happy place. With a star-studded voice cast that includes Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Kevin James, Fran Drescher, Molly Shannon, Selena Gomez and CeeLo Green, this is lightly freaky fun for the whole family.
Cronos
Released: 1993
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “Senor Gris. You may continue the game. After all, you have the toy. But I’m keeping the instructions, and I’m open all night.”
This subtitled spookfest about an antiques dealer who stumbles upon an ancient scarab-shaped device, and is bewitched by the immortality it grants, introduced film fanatics outside of Mexico to the singular talents of Guillermo del Toro. And when you take in the audacious visuals, many of them done the old-fashioned way, right on camera, it makes sense that he would eventually blow our collective minds with Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy and The Shape of Water. This low-budget film with its unconventional storytelling also stars frequent del Toro collaborator Ron Perlman as a mystery man named Angel who hunts for the dealer and the device.
Blacula
Released: 1972
Rated: PG
Memorable quote: “He is a strannnnge dude.”
One of the top-grossing films of 1972, Blacula was more than just a horror flick—it was a game-changer. Directed by William Crain, this blaxploitation classic was revolutionary in its day. A dog-eared page in the history book of Black cinema, it ushered in a deluge of copycats, and it’s often credited as a precursor to movies such as Jordan Peele’s Get Out and Us, as well as the Candyman reboot. In it, an African prince (classically trained Shakespearean actor William Marshall) travels through Europe with his wife to rally against the enslavement of the Ibani tribe. On his trip, he encounters Dracula, who happens to be an unrepentant racist. Dracula turns the prince into a vampire, before sealing him in a coffin and killing his wife. When the prince awakens 200 years later in 1970s Los Angeles, he’s pissed off … and hungry. Be warned: Blacula is a product of its time, and some of the jokes are a bit off-color.
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
Released: 2014
Rated: Not rated
Memorable quote: “Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me alone.”
Just when you think the vampire-movie genre is all tapped out, a haunting story like this comes along and restores your faith in inhumanity. Written in Farsi and subtitled in English, it revolves around a chador-cloaked vampire girl who wanders the streets of her desolate town. She picks off predators like drug dealers, pimps and addicts, rendering the city a little safer for normal girls.
It’s a jumble of elements: female empowerment, revenge fantasy, Western and supernatural scary movie. We never get an origin story for this promising young woman, see her peers or even really establish where or when the action is unfolding. And your experience of the film will be slightly different depending on what language you speak. Director Ana Lily Amirpour most certainly worships at the altar of Jim Jarmusch and David Lynch, but also finds ways to make weird, dreamlike sequences her own.
Blade II
Released: 2002
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “Is the enemy of my enemy my friend or my enemy?”
This franchise is an all-around good time, and you really can’t go wrong with any of its three movies. The 1998 original, Marvel’s first box office hit, introduces the Daywalker (Wesley Snipes), a sarcastic human-vampire hybrid with ninja moves, sick motorcycles and lots of leather—all of which he uses to eradicate bloodsuckers. And the third movie benefits from Ryan Reynolds’ signature charisma and quips. But ultimately, the second movie slices ahead with Guillermo del Toro at the helm. Everything that worked in the first movie is leveled up as Blade is forced to work with a group of elite vamp fighters so he can curb a new and bigger threat.
Vampire’s Kiss
Released: 1988
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “I’m fighting this bat off all alone, and I’ll be damned if I didn’t get really turned on. I was a little drunk.”
Nicolas Cage is at his best in this vampire–adjacent portrait of a man who is convinced he’s turning into a vampire after a woman (Jennifer Beals) bites his neck and claims she’s a creature of the night. He goes through the motions, including avoiding daylight and creating a coffin-like place to sleep with his upturned couch, but he might also just be experiencing a psychotic break. In this dark comedy, Cage grows more and more unbridled in his acting choices as the character becomes more and more unhinged. This movie is brimming with quirkiness—he passes a mime fight on the street, chases pigeons and buys plastic fangs—but it has a dark, seedy underbelly.
Byzantium
Released: 2012
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “My mother lives on human blood and has done for two centuries. I am 16 … forever. It’s my burden.”
Irish filmmaker Neil Jordan, who also directed Interview with a Vampire, returns to the world of bloodletting, but this time he delivers a less glossy, more intimate allegory. Clara is on the run from a mysterious brotherhood, with her brooding kid, Eleanor, in tow. Clara keeps their secret by living under the radar as a sex worker, and her strategy has worked for hundreds of years, as both women are “sucreants.” (Imagine a pre-Stoker version of the undead that doesn’t possess superpowers and can walk among us in daylight.) But Eleanor’s teenage angst has had a lot of time to build up, and by the time she meets a beautiful boy in the British seaside town they’re hiding out in, she is ready to burst … and, as they say, loose lips sink ships.
It’s cinema for grown-ups that unfurls slowly, wallows in its melancholia, emphasizes acting over action and meditates on memory, sacrifice, mother-daughter relationships, trust and classism. Yep, this is a vampire drama that will make you think!
Underworld
Released: 2003
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “You’re in the middle of a war that’s been raging for the better part of a thousand years, a blood feud between vampires and lycans.”
With a mix of gothic horror, action and forbidden love, Underworld kicked off a five-film franchise, but let’s be honest, the original still stands tall as one of the best vampire movies ever. It has the unfair advantage of being the first look into this distinctive world that pits sexy, sophisticated vampires against brutish lycans (aka werewolves). The war has been waging for centuries, and one of the coven’s best weapons is Selene (Kate Beckinsale), a gorgeous and highly skilled Death Dealer whose recent interaction with an equally hot human (Scott Speedman) makes her question her directive to kill him. In her quest to figure out what her enemies want from him, she discovers the narrative her family has been feeding her is a lie. The vibe is dark and broody, the post-Matrix wirework graceful and fluid, and the Beckinsale-Speedman chemistry will have you biting your lips.
Thirst
Released: 2009
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “We can put the blood in Tupperware and keep it in the fridge.”
Lightly inspired by an Émile Zola novel, this dark South Korean morality tale took home the Jury Prize at Cannes. It’s about a priest who volunteers to be infected with a fatal virus sweeping through the world in order to test a clinic’s experimental cures. Nothing works, but an infusion brings him back from death’s door. But like with Pet Sematary, sometimes dead is better, and in this case, the man of the cloth now craves blood and carnal pleasures. Racked with guilt, he tries to behave, stealing blood from the hospital and assisting people who want to die. But things take a dark turn when he begins an affair with a woman whose bloodlust makes his look tame. With a mix of violence, dark humor, surprising tenderness and a critique of religious hypocrisy, this film is anything but ordinary. It’s the kind of story that lingers long after the credits roll.
From Dusk Till Dawn
Released: 1996
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “If you try to run, I’ve got six little friends, and they can all run faster than you can.”
After robbing a liquor store and killing a Texas Ranger, the sociopathic Gecko Brothers (George Clooney and Quentin Tarantino) carjack a Winnebago with a preacher (Harvey Keitel) and his kids still in it and hightail it to Mexico to escape the manhunt. They seek refuge in a border strip joint, where they are treated to a sultry performance by Santanico Pandemonium (Salma Hayek). Unfortunately, they’ve unknowingly walked into a lair of thirsty creatures, and there aren’t enough beer goggles in the world to unsee this nightmare.
Since it’s written by Tarantino, expect salty language, rapid-fire pop culture references and sarcasm. This vampire movie is also peppered with director Robert Rodriguez’s loud, flashy trademarks, including aggressive music, in-your-face machismo, lots of gunfire and a part for Danny Trejo.
Twilight
Released: 2008
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “It’s all superhero stuff, right? What if I’m not the hero? What if I’m the bad guy?”
Based on the best-selling teen books by Stephenie Meyer, the Twilight saga is a vastly popular YA riff on universal teenage emotions, filtered through the lens of vampires and werewolves. The franchise grossed a whopping $3.3 billion at the box office. Each chapter has its pros and cons, but the original had to do more with way less money. It built the world of the vegetarian vamp family who lived in harmony with the humans in their Pacific Northwest town—that is, until Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) moves to town and falls in love with sparkly vampire Edward (Robert Pattinson). She discovers his secret, demands a forever kind of love, if you know what we mean, and inadvertently reignites wars with werewolves and a powerful secret vamp council.
The epic plays out over five movies with progressively bigger budgets and bigger stars, but the first feels more intimate and relatable, with the goofiness of crushes and first love, as well as the fierceness behind a parent’s need to protect their offspring. It was also guided by a female director (Catherine Hardwicke).
Fright Night
Released: 1985
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “Shouldn’t lose your temper, Charley. It isn’t polite.”
Fright Night is an ‘80s cult classic that blends chills with chuckles. The film follows a typical high schooler, Charley, who has a crush on his new neighbor, Jerry, and he sucks … literally. But no one believes the new guy on the block is a bloodsucker, not the kid’s mom or the cops or even his girlfriend. But Jerry knows he knows, so Charley seeks help from an actor in a scary TV show. This film looks a little dated and campy now, but back in the day, it was the height of horror from prolific and respected director and writer, Tom Holland (no, not that Tom Holland), who also had a hand in Psycho II, Child’s Play, The Stranger Within and Tales from the Crypt. It was both ahead of its time—mixing jokes and scares—and extremely ’80s with its sexy innuendo, new-wave pop songs and clueless parents.
Fright Night
Released: 2011
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “That is a terrible vampire name. Jerry?”
Some remakes really do get it right, and the 2011 version of Fright Night is one of them. This reboot of one of the best vampire movies features a very sexy and sinister Colin Farrell as the unfriendly neighborhood batman, and the gone-too-soon Anton Yelchin as the sorry Charley, who discovers the terrible truth. It remains faithful to the original, which means Charley still has sex on the brain, lives with his single mom (Toni Collette), deduces that a string of murders can be traced back to Jerry and enlists the help of a TV star (David Tennant). It also means Jerry knows he’s on to him and comes after him and everyone he loves. While the action is slicker and the kills are more graphic, the movie also retains the humor of the original, and in fact ratchets it up a notch.
30 Days of Night
Released: 2007
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “That cold ain’t the weather. That’s death approaching.”
A gang of vicious monsters descends on the frozen Alaska town of Barrow for an all-you-can-eat buffet, just as Barrow is about to experience its annual month of darkness. It’s a pretty wily strategy, except the vamps didn’t account for a scrappy young sheriff (Josh Hartnett) and his drive to protect his estranged wife, little brother and the few remaining residents who haven’t yet been picked off. Produced by Sam Raimi and based on a graphic novel with a cult following, this vampire movie raises the stakes of the survive-the-night concept. Warning: A bloody and gruesome on-screen romp, it is not for the faint of heart.
Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Slayer
Released: 2012
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “History prefers legends to men, nobility to brutality, soaring speeches to quiet deeds. History remembers the battle but forgets the blood. However history remembers me, it shall only remember a fraction of the truth.”
Talk about revisionist history! Russian director Timur Bekmambetov digs deep in his bag of tricks, using slo-mo acrobatic action sequences, menacing fog and shadows, pyrotechnics and punchy CGI to turn the top hat–favoring 16th president into the Great Emancipator (of heads from undead bodies). Based on a best-selling book by Seth Grahame-Smith (who was also responsible for Pride and Prejudice and Zombies), the campy mashup sees vampires taking up arms alongside Confederate soldiers to bring forth a new nation of their own. Some of the connections between real-life events and the supernatural subject matter are weak, and the side characters can be a tad one-note, but if you can suspend your disbelief and just go with the (blood) flow, it’s a fun ride.
The Addiction
Released: 1995
Rated: Not rated
Memorable quote: “To face what we are in the end, we stand before the light and our true nature is revealed. Self-revelation is annihilation of self.”
Introverted NYU grad student Kathleen (Lili Taylor) is bitten by Casanova (Annabella Sciorra), and begins to hunger for hemoglobin in this gritty black-and-white indie. Because she’s a philosophy student, and because this is an Abel Ferrara film, she uses Sartre and Nietzsche to rationalize killing drug addicts and street urchins—and to assuage her guilt when she moves on to bigger targets. Then she runs into another vampire (Christopher Walken) who gives her something to chew on: He’s fought the urge long enough to pass as human. But does she ultimately want to give up her bloodlust? This vampire movie is a layered allegory of addiction and self-destruction that can also be viewed simply as a lo-fi supernatural story.
Daybreakers
Released: 2009
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “Humanity will vanish as soon as the blood does.”
A decade after a single bat caused most of the human race to become vampires (and sparked a global blood shortage), the living are hunted and farmed mercilessly by greedy conglomerates. One such company is run by Charles Bromley (an extra hammy Sam Neill), and employs Dr. Edward Dalton (Ethan Hawke). The hematologist knows that if feeding continues at the current rate, the human race will go extinct, which is why he is trying to develop synthetic blood—and a cure for vampirism. His extracurricular research is also why he is approached for help by an underground group of still-breathing rebels led by Elvis (Willem Dafoe).
Released during a glut of vampire, future-dystopia and disaster movies, Daybreakers was mostly overlooked when it came out. But it’s worth a proper look. Directors (and brothers) Peter and Michael Spierig spent a lot of time developing the film’s alternate reality, down to some very clever details, such as sub-walks instead of sidewalks, windows that auto-close at sunrise and espresso-like pumps of blood for daily Starbucks orders.
Dracula: Dead and Loving It
Released: 1995
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “Put him in a straitjacket and give him an enema! Wait, give him an enema FIRST, then put him in a straitjacket!”
Though far from his best farce (long live Spaceballs!), it is one of the best vampire movies, and Mel Brooks reframes the Bela Lugosi/Bram Stoker storyline as a slapstick comedy in this classic ’90s movie. Windows are closed just as the baddie in bat form tries to fly into a woman’s bedroom, Jonathan (Steven Weber) confuses Nosferatu for an Italian and Renfield’s family jewels get stepped on repeatedly. The plot itself centers on Dracula (Leslie Nielsen) moving to Victorian London and quickly setting his sights on Mina and Lucy (Amy Yasbeck and Lysette Anthony). When Mina starts acting strangely, her fiancé calls in Van Helsing for reinforcements.
Dark Shadows
Released: 2012
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “Madam, I am neither good nor gentle! And I do not forgive!”
This adaptation of the popular supernatural TV soap from the ’60s marries macabre melodrama, ’70s kitsch, an Addams Family aesthetic and Burton’s signature polished peculiarity. It centers on the long-gone patriarch Barnabas Collins—long gone because back in the 1780s, he made the grave mistake of not falling in love with a witch named Angelique. The enchantress convinced Barnabas’ true love to jump to her death, then cursed Barnabas with eternal life so that he’d have to live with the pain forever. In 1972, his coffin is accidentally dug up and he returns to his Maine manor, Collinwood, to find it, his descendants and his fish-canning business in disrepair. But Angelique looks as good as new, and is still determined to make him love her or to destroy all the Collins clan, which now includes Michelle Pfeiffer, Johnny Lee Miller and Chloe Grace Moretz.
Van Helsing
Released: 2004
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “My life, my job, my curse is to vanquish evil.”
Kate Beckinsale rejoins the land of the living as a local huntress who teams up with the titular vampire killer (Hugh Jackman) when he arrives in Transylvania. Though the main enemy is Dracula, the duo take on every legendary Halloween monster that director Stephen Sommers didn’t deal with in The Mummy franchise. Like those blockbusters, Van Helsing has a retro creature-feature vibe that boomers will appreciate, but it also has state-of-the-art effects that today’s younger audiences have come to expect.
Martin
Released: 1978
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “Do you believe God’s whole world runs by the laws of the few sciences we have been able to discover? Oh, no, Christine, there is more.”
Though the late horror master was known more for his contributions to the zombie movie category, Romero actually said that Martin was his favorite film. The low-budget movie is about a 17-year-old named Martin, who believes he’s a vampire. But he might actually just be a psychopath who drugs his victims and uses a razor blade to slice them open for a slurp or two. Much like with Vampire’s Kiss, the audience is never 100% sure of what is real and what is in Martin’s head. This film is somber, deliberately paced and psychologically twisted, and it even throws in a little social commentary about the urban decay, drugs and crime that many cities (in this case, Pittsburgh) dealt with in the late ’70s.
Blood Red Sky
Released: 2021
Rated: TV-MA
Memorable quote: “We have control of the plane. We want this little operation of ours to go off without a hitch. If not, well, use your imaginations.”
Blood Red Sky is a thriller that follows a very ill woman traveling with her young son. She is on her way to receive a miracle treatment in the United States when her transatlantic flight is hijacked by terrorists looking for a big payday. They swear everyone will be freed as soon as the check clears. When they don’t make good on their promise, Nadja stops taking her meds and goes into full beast mode to protect her son and the other passengers, giving the term “red-eye” a whole new meaning. It’s a German production with an international cast that includes Prison Break’s Dominic Purcell, Outlander‘s Graham McTavish and Peri Baumeister.
Ganja & Hess
Released: 1973
Rated: R
Memorable quote: “I will not be tortured. I will not be punished. I will not be guilty.”
Equal parts magic realism, vampire movie, art-house horror flick, scholarly treatise and blaxploitation picture, director Bill Gunn’s Ganja & Hess is far from the average throwaway popcorn movie. A wealthy anthropologist, the titular Hess (Duane Jones), and his assistant are studying an ancient African tribe of blood drinkers. His unstable helper stabs his boss with a ceremonial knife before killing himself, and Hess awakens after the attack with a hankering for O negative. Before long, the assistant’s wife comes looking for him, has a fling with Hess and eventually is transformed into his queen of the damned. For a time, they are both content living la vie vampire, but disillusionment and guilt come calling. While this one isn’t for all vampire-movie fans, it was influential for auteurs like Spike Lee, who based his more accessible Da Sweet Blood of Jesus on it in 2014.
Night Teeth
Released: 2021
Rated: TV-14
Memorable quote: “You can’t be alive for 200 years and not go a little crazy.”
When college student Benny picks up two flirty party girls, Zoe and Blaire, for his night job as a chauffeur, he has no idea how literally they intend to paint the town red. But as he drives them from stop to stop, his suspicion that they aren’t your average Hollywood party girls grows. Turns out they are just two of many vamps who run L.A. from the shadows, and they are settling old scores with mob bosses like Megan Fox and Euphoria‘s Sydney Sweeney in order to help Zoe’s beau move up the food chain. Filled with dance beats, glamour shots of the City of Angels, a diverse and photogenic cast, quippy lines, human kegs and lots of leather, it gives off CW-show vibes.
Priest
Released: 2011
Rated: PG-13
Memorable quote: “Is it true what they say about priests? That you wield the hand of God?”
Graphic novels are clearly great fodder for the best vampire movies, and this is yet another fang film that started on bookstore shelves. Tokyopop adapted this Western-themed manhwa (Korean comic) about an order of warrior priests—and one super awesome priestess, played by Maggie Q—who fought a great war against bloodsucking demons and won. Or so everyone was told. The church declared victory, retired the soldiers of God and maintained order and control within the walled city with lies. But when one priest’s (Paul Bettany) family is attacked and his niece is kidnapped, he tries to rally the troops once again. The monsignors command him to drop it. He disobeys, and with the help of a young sheriff, he heads outside the walls to rescue his niece—and discovers an even bigger problem. This is a highly stylized smoothie that also comes in an unrated version.
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