It’s hard to narrow down my favorite 80s vampire movies. So many fun movies featuring bloodsuckers came out in that era. I know this list doesn’t include a lot of the great ones, but this is my personal top 5 list. What movies are on yours?
Vamp (1986) – Grace Jones’ Katrina has to be one of the best vampires ever. Though she doesn’t speak, her thoughts and emotions are clear through her actions and even her costumes, which sometimes seem to be characters of their own. The movie has great atmosphere and lots of twists to “normal” people and settings. Definitely a movie to revisit.
Fright Night (1985) – A movie with Chris Sarandon as the lead vampire and Roddy McDowall as the not so fearless hunter is hard to resist. Add a horror movie addict like Charley, a supporting character like Evil Ed and the final face of Amy’s transformation and you can’t go wrong.
Fright Night 2 (1988) – This sequel to Fright Night is just as good (maybe even better) than the first. Yeah, I miss Jerry Dandrige, but his sister, Regine, is just as intriguing. Charley Brewster is finally starting to overcome the horror from his confrontation with Jerry. He’s almost convinced vampires don’t exist, but Regine is out for revenge. To defeat her, Charley and vampire hunter Peter Vincent must team up again. Charley’s new girlfriend, Alex, along with Regine’s supernatural henchmen add a lot to this movie as well.
Once Bitten (1985) – Traditional vampire movies are great, but I can’t resist a little humor with my horror. Once Bitten has both. The Countess has traditional vampire traits, but underneath it all, is she really so bad? Mark wants excitement, but this “older” woman is way more than he bargained for.
Dance of the Damned (1989) – Dance of the Damned is one of my all time favorite vampire movies, mostly because it’s based on the idea that vampires aren’t magical, but a separate species. The movie takes place in a single night, but it packs in a lot–horror, romance, emotion, life and death. It’s a great vampire movie for any era.
Links courtesy of IMDb.