Vamp is a really good example of a very 80's vampire movie. It's one that is far less well-known than the likes of The Hunger (1983) or The Lost Boys (1987) but it has that unmistakable 80's gloss which makes it kind of fun even if overall it's a bit uneven. In true 80's tradition, its story is very simple too. Three frat boys go into the city in search of a stripper to perform at one of their parties; they wind up at a nightclub run by vampires. And that is really about it as far as any plot-line is concerned. The reason it works is that it has enough style about it to ensure it remains interesting.
It also adheres to that other sub-genre so very popular in the 80's, namely the horror-comedy. It's pretty rare for these types of films to truly be successful in that the horror is usually diluted, while the comedy is normally weak. To a certain extent that rule also applies here, with quite lame humour sprinkled throughout and nothing that really constitutes genuine horror. But this isn't such a deal breaker as this film benefits quite a bit from having a very colourful aesthetic, with lots of effective use of lighting of various hues. This ensures that there is a nicely hyper-real feel to events and it sort of creates its own little world. There are few locations used but the ones we have are integrated well enough. A strip club is a good central location for a vampire lair, while the catacombs below the streets make for an interesting nest for these creatures of the night. The two star performers in this one were probably the two main villains. Grace Jones is a very exotic Egyptian queen vampire, she is introduced while executing a dance routine while covered in zebra stripes and she adorns various elaborate costumes throughout; she also is made more mysterious by never uttering a word of dialogue at any point. The other most interesting presence was Billy Drago who successfully played a somewhat sinister albino gang leader. The rest of the cast are serviceable enough.
I think Vamp is a movie that has kind of gone under the radar somewhat. It's no classic to be fair but it definitely has a few good things about it. It's a bit of nicely stylised 80's vampire action and there's always room for a bit of that in my book.
It also adheres to that other sub-genre so very popular in the 80's, namely the horror-comedy. It's pretty rare for these types of films to truly be successful in that the horror is usually diluted, while the comedy is normally weak. To a certain extent that rule also applies here, with quite lame humour sprinkled throughout and nothing that really constitutes genuine horror. But this isn't such a deal breaker as this film benefits quite a bit from having a very colourful aesthetic, with lots of effective use of lighting of various hues. This ensures that there is a nicely hyper-real feel to events and it sort of creates its own little world. There are few locations used but the ones we have are integrated well enough. A strip club is a good central location for a vampire lair, while the catacombs below the streets make for an interesting nest for these creatures of the night. The two star performers in this one were probably the two main villains. Grace Jones is a very exotic Egyptian queen vampire, she is introduced while executing a dance routine while covered in zebra stripes and she adorns various elaborate costumes throughout; she also is made more mysterious by never uttering a word of dialogue at any point. The other most interesting presence was Billy Drago who successfully played a somewhat sinister albino gang leader. The rest of the cast are serviceable enough.
I think Vamp is a movie that has kind of gone under the radar somewhat. It's no classic to be fair but it definitely has a few good things about it. It's a bit of nicely stylised 80's vampire action and there's always room for a bit of that in my book.