{"id":21951,"date":"2019-09-12T14:04:36","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T21:04:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/?p=21951"},"modified":"2022-01-01T00:39:15","modified_gmt":"2022-01-01T08:39:15","slug":"review-vampires-collectors-edition-bd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moviemansguide.com\/main\/2019\/09\/review-vampires-collectors-edition-bd\/","title":{"rendered":"Vampires: Collector’s Edition Blu-ray Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Vampires<\/em><\/strong> isn\u2019t a great horror movie and certainly not top shelf in John Carpenter\u2019s vast resume, but it does have its moments, including a fun performance from James Woods, and an interesting, even unique, origin of the vampires.<\/p>\n

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Vampires
\n<\/span>\u2014 Collector’s Edition \u2014<\/span>
\n(1998)<\/span>
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Genre(s): <\/strong>Horror, Action<\/span>
\nShout Factory | R \u2013 108 min. \u2013 $29.99 | September 24, 2019<\/span><\/p>\n

Date Published:<\/strong> 09\/12\/2019 | Author:<\/strong> The Movieman<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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MOVIE INFO:
\n<\/u><\/strong>Directed by: <\/strong>John Carpenter
\nWriter(s): <\/strong>John Steakley (novel); Don Jakoby (screenplay)
\nCast: <\/strong>James Woods, Daniel Baldwin, Sheryl Lee, Thomas Ian Griffith, Maximilian Schell, Tim Guinee<\/span><\/p>\n
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DISC INFO:
\n<\/u><\/strong>Features: <\/strong>Commentary, Featurette, Interviews, Theatrical Trailer
\nSlip Cover: <\/strong>Yes
\nDigital Copy: <\/strong>No
\nFormats Included: <\/strong>Blu-ray
\nNumber of Discs: <\/strong>1<\/span><\/p>\n
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Audio: <\/strong>English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), English (DTS-HD MA 2.0)
\nVideo: <\/strong>1080p\/Widescreen 2.35
\nSubtitles: <\/strong>English SDH
\nDisc Size: <\/strong>46.93 GB
\nTotal Bitrate: <\/strong>44.89 Mbps
\nCodecs: <\/strong>MPEG-4 AVC
\nRegion(s): <\/strong>A<\/span><\/p>\n
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Shout Factory provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
\nThe opinions I share are my own.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

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THE MOVIE \u2014 3.0\/5<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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Plot Synopsis: <\/strong>“Forget everything you’ve ever heard about vampires,” warns Jack Crow (JAMES WOODS), the leader of Team Crow, a relentless group of mercenary vampire slayers. When Master Vampire Valek (THOMAS IAN GRIFFITH) decimates Jack’s entire team, Crow and the sole team survivor, Montoya (DANIEL BALDWIN), set out in pursuit. Breaking all the rules, Crow and Montoya take one of Valek’s victim\u2019s hostage \u2013 a beautiful but unlucky prostitute (SHERYL LEE). She is the sole psychic link to Valek and they use her to track down the leader of the undead. As Valek nears the climax of his 600-year search for the Berziers Cross, Jack and the new Team Crow do everything possible to prevent him from possessing the only thing that can grant him and all the vampires the omnipotent power to walk the world in daylight.<\/p>\n

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Quick Hit Review: <\/strong>John Carpenter is an amazing filmmaker not only for being the architect behind classics like Halloween<\/em> (1978), The Fog<\/em>, Escape from New York<\/em> and The Thing<\/em> and Big Trouble in Little China<\/em> but he has had some lesser movies including Ghosts of Mars<\/em> and to some extent Memoirs of an Invisible Man<\/em>, but I will say he never pigeonholed himself into one genre as he could\u2019ve easily just did versions of Halloween<\/em> over and over again.<\/p>\n

Vampires<\/em><\/strong> is a vampire-horror movie based off of a novel from John Steakley released back in 1996 and while this is not top shelf Carpenter, and it does seem he was losing a bit of his touch in his last few films (the last was back in 2010 with The Ward<\/em>) before I guess retiring from the director\u2019s chair and since focusing on some composing on the newer Halloween<\/em> films and a variety of projects. In any case, this one is by no stretch a favorite of mine and seeing it a few times over the years and this last time, it had some entertainment value and James Woods as usual was a blast, and the story in of itself was fine, the direction from Carpenter felt off, and the editing, especially towards the end, was messy perhaps due to a smaller budget where we only hear the slayers going after the vampires in voiceovers up against a dusk skyline. It was such an awkward cut that doesn\u2019t really appear before.<\/p>\n

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Along with Woods, I also actually enjoyed Daniel Baldwin. While he doesn\u2019t deliver some sort of career-defining performance, but he does well opposite Woods and Sheryl Lee does a fine vampire and has a strange semi-nude scene that doesn\u2019t make a whole lot of sense. Meanwhile Thomas Ian Griffith hams it up as the film\u2019s main baddie, Valek, the Master vampire; he tends to be ridiculous at times but oh so fun knowing just what kind of a movie he\u2019s in.<\/p>\n

Might not rank among the best of vampire movies or even in John Carpenter\u2019s esteemed career, Vampires<\/em><\/strong> had a few moments going for it.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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SPECIAL FEATURES \u2013 4.5\/5<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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This release comes with a matted slip cover<\/strong>. Although this previously did get a release on Twilight Time (now no longer available through their site, just this version), this one did get a few new features.<\/p>\n

Audio Commentary<\/u><\/strong> \u2013 Composer\/Director John Carpenter keeps the tracking going at a good pace, giving the listeners some behind-the-scenes information on certain locations, expanding on the plot and working with the various actors.<\/p>\n

Interviews:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n