Leptirica aka She Butterfly is an interesting little made for TV folk horror film, from the former Yugoslavia (now Serbia), based on the story After Ninety Years (1880) written by Milovan Glisic (who was konwn as the "Serbian Gogol", for it's six degrees of seperation to Mad Love).
The Balkans are home to polymath Johann Weikhard von Valvasor, who documented the world's first written account on vampires- about the legend of Jure Grando from Istria (now Slovenia)- in his encyclopedia: The Glory Of The Duchy Of Carniola.
His book was published 17 years before Stoker wrote Dracula; basing the story on folk tales he heard from the mountain dwelling villagers living along the Drina River Valley.
And so we have the tale of the Leptirica...the She-Butterly...a vampiric apparition of a beautiful young maiden, who shapeshifts into a werewolf, whenever she needs to feed.
She's already gone through 4 millers in the past year...and the villagers are starting to get suspicious.
The elders hold a town hall meeting and decide that they must take action.
Meanwhile, a poor, jobless young man has been wooing her in her maiden form. But her dad keeps intervening to stifle their love.
So he joins the older men, who suggest he take up the job of the miller, considering the position has recently been vacated by the death of the previous miller.
He agrees, hoping it will win things over with her dad, but it doesn't take long before he, himself, is attacked.
Luckily he survives...but it's the last straw.
The villagers fear a vampire is at work here. So they go to the town's old witch, hoping she'll have some advice.
She points the finger at an old grave. So the men set off to dig it up, so that they can stake the corpse and (hopefully) end the curse.
But they must use Parzivalian tactics find it.
However, when they do...a small butterfly is released...and they are unable to catch it.
It escapes.
But, now endowed with a newfound confidence (after having survived the attack)- alongside a little encouragement from his friends- the young man sets off to elope with his beloved (regardless of her father's wishes).
Everything seems to be going fine until he goes to consummate the marriage; at which point he discovers a gaping hole in her stomach...right about where they had staked that unburied coffin they were directed to uncover.
He tries to remove the stake, in hope it might save her soul, and return her to her former self.
But it's too late...she has now taken on her monstrous form permanently...ultimately leading to the film's conclusion.
I really liked pretty much everything about this film...but there is one thing I just didn't get.
What did her father do with the Butterfly when he caught it? (I guess I'll have to read the story...)
Otherwise it's a really enjoyable film.
I particularly enjoyed how they messed with the mad drunken priest.
If you are into folk horror, this will definitely be up your alley.
7 out of 10.
The Balkans are home to polymath Johann Weikhard von Valvasor, who documented the world's first written account on vampires- about the legend of Jure Grando from Istria (now Slovenia)- in his encyclopedia: The Glory Of The Duchy Of Carniola.
His book was published 17 years before Stoker wrote Dracula; basing the story on folk tales he heard from the mountain dwelling villagers living along the Drina River Valley.
And so we have the tale of the Leptirica...the She-Butterly...a vampiric apparition of a beautiful young maiden, who shapeshifts into a werewolf, whenever she needs to feed.
She's already gone through 4 millers in the past year...and the villagers are starting to get suspicious.
The elders hold a town hall meeting and decide that they must take action.
Meanwhile, a poor, jobless young man has been wooing her in her maiden form. But her dad keeps intervening to stifle their love.
So he joins the older men, who suggest he take up the job of the miller, considering the position has recently been vacated by the death of the previous miller.
He agrees, hoping it will win things over with her dad, but it doesn't take long before he, himself, is attacked.
Luckily he survives...but it's the last straw.
The villagers fear a vampire is at work here. So they go to the town's old witch, hoping she'll have some advice.
She points the finger at an old grave. So the men set off to dig it up, so that they can stake the corpse and (hopefully) end the curse.
But they must use Parzivalian tactics find it.
However, when they do...a small butterfly is released...and they are unable to catch it.
It escapes.
But, now endowed with a newfound confidence (after having survived the attack)- alongside a little encouragement from his friends- the young man sets off to elope with his beloved (regardless of her father's wishes).
Everything seems to be going fine until he goes to consummate the marriage; at which point he discovers a gaping hole in her stomach...right about where they had staked that unburied coffin they were directed to uncover.
He tries to remove the stake, in hope it might save her soul, and return her to her former self.
But it's too late...she has now taken on her monstrous form permanently...ultimately leading to the film's conclusion.
I really liked pretty much everything about this film...but there is one thing I just didn't get.
What did her father do with the Butterfly when he caught it? (I guess I'll have to read the story...)
Otherwise it's a really enjoyable film.
I particularly enjoyed how they messed with the mad drunken priest.
If you are into folk horror, this will definitely be up your alley.
7 out of 10.