Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter (2001)

Director:

Lee Demarbre

Writer:

Ian Driscoll (written by)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Horror | Musical

Tagline:

The first testament says "an eye for an eye." - The second testament says "love thy neighbour." - The third testament ... Kicks Ass!!!

Plot:

Kung-Fu Action / Comedy / Horror / Musical about the second coming.

Plot Keywords:

Kung Fu | Vampire | Barefoot | Hand To Hand Combat | Fictional War

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Phil Caracas	...	Jesus Christ
Murielle Varhelyi	...	Maxine Schreck
Maria Moulton	...	Mary Magnum
Tim Devries	...	Father Eustace
Ian Driscoll	...	Johnny Golgotha
Josh Grace	...	Dr. Praetorious
Tracy Lance	...	Gloria Oddbottom
Glen Jones	...	Father Alban
Mike Funk	...	Danny Sabbath
Lucky Ron	...	Blind Jimmy Leper
Johnny Vegas	...	Himself
Jeff Moffet	...	Santo Enmascardo de Plata
Ivan Freud	...	Narrator
Erica Murton	...	Maggie
Alex Godin	...	Father Avellino
Shelly Pederson	...	Woman Blessed on the Beach
Thetis Bernard	...	Beach Vampire #1
Adel Croteau	...	Beach Vampire #2
Karen Friis	...	Dancing Angel #1
Marlene Friis	...	Dancing Angel #2
Guen Douglas	...	Dancing Angel #3
Sarah Levitin	...	Dancing Angel #4
Eva Colpaart	...	Dancing Angel #5
Ranita Raggo	...	The Straight Shooters Waitress
Christopher R. Bugg	...	Atheist #1
Ean Murphy	...	Atheist #2
Graham Collins	...	Allegro Clerk
Elinor Quesnel	...	Praetorius' Patient #1 / Wrestling Girl #1
Christine Demarbre	...	The Screaming Lesbian
Andy Smith	...	The Bishop
Marc Charron	...	The Cop
Jose Sanchez	...	The Transvestite
Sophie	...	Fifi the Dog
Jay Stone	...	God (voice)
Petr Maur	...	Photographer #1
Lyn Guerin	...	Photographer #2
Alana Ragbir	...	Photographer #3
Stu Hutchings	...	Danny Sabbath's Bodyguard
Rayna Farr-Dutchin	...	The Little Blind Girl
Harry Knuckles	...	Himself
Jenny Coutts	...	Virgin Mary
Nancy Riehle	...	Wresting Girl #2 / Praetorius' Patient #2
Milo	...	The Deaf Lesbian Dog
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mark Cayer	...	Worshipper
Olga Chrzanowska	...	Worshipper
Eric Demarbre	...	Hockey Jersey Atheist
Miles Finlayson	...	Atheist
Stephanie Halin	...	Lesbian Vampire
Claudia Jurt	...	Misty Winters
Yves Macra	...	The limo driver
Jason McMaster	...	Atheist 1
Karm Parker	...	Atheist #6
Mark Pollesel	...	Dancer
Steve Sauve	...	Pedestrian, Homeless Person
Casey Tourangeau	...	Singer, Musical Scene

Directed by
Lee Demarbre

Writing credits
Ian Driscoll		(written by)

Original Music by
Graham Collins

Film Editing by
Lee Demarbre

Art Department
Casey Tourangeau	....	propmaster

Sound Department
Ray Cook	....	optical soundtrack

Stunts
Jason McMaster	....	stunts

Other crew
Mark Pollesel	....	production assistant

Production Companies

• Odessa Filmworks

Distributors

• Gravitas Ventures (2009) (USA) (video) (VOD)
• Odessa Filmworks

Also Known As:

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Odessa Filmworks

Trivia:

The screaming lesbian lady in the lesbian drop off clinic is Lee Demarbre's mother.

Quotes:

[Jesus walks out of the lake with a small bottle of lemonade]
Jesus Christ:Lemonade?
Father Eustace:Will there be enough?
Jesus Christ:Oh, there'll be plenty.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Visionado obligado: El Vengador Tóxico (#1.7)" (2011)

Great comedy in this low-budget indie feature!

One cannot expect a serious film with a title like "Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter", but even when this low-budget b-movie delivers nothing but laughs, it still has an interesting point and an important message behind its blasphemous wackiness. It is definitely a comedy that replaces budget with brains and successfully transcends its own limitations delivering great entertainment.

The plot is certainly as bizarre as its title: the lesbians of Ottawa are the victims of the increasing population of vampires that seems to be focusing only in them. A group of young Catholic priests become aware of this and have asked the Catholic church for help, but the church doesn't want to help them because it doesn't want to get involved with homosexuals. The priests call their last resource, Jesus Christ (Phil Caracas) himself, who decides to come back to the world to help the lesbians and to prove that homosexuals should not be ignored by the Church.

The movie is a weird mix of good slapstick and well-written irreverent comedy, as it is probably the only movie where Jesus sings, smashes atheists with Kung-Fu moves and receives the aid of Mexican wrestler "Santo" (named "Santos" and played by Jeff Moffet). Independent filmmaker Lee Demarbre and writer Ian Driscoll create a wacky ride of action, horror and comedy in a charming way that one can't help but love their take on Jesus.

Phil Caracas is superb in the role of the messiah and carries the film over his shoulders with grace. His performance is very good, and even when his character has to use modern clothes, he still makes a believable Jesus. Caracas definitely has a bright future as a comedian. Maria Moulton plays Mary Magnum, an agent who is decided to help Jesus in his fight against the vampires. She probably is the best of the cast and her character is not only pretty, but also probably a very meaningful one. Jeff Moffet as Santo is very funny and while his portrayal of the legendary wrestler is a humorous one, it serves to prove the influence of Santo in horror films.

Probably many will be offended by this movie, however, the movie stays true to real Jesus' message of peace, love and understanding. It is an intelligent critic to the homophobic attitude of the Christian religion (specially the Catholic branch) with clever references to the biblical stories and a healthy dose of good humor.

The budget constrains really hurt the film but it is admirable how far the crew went despite their limitations. With a clever use of edition barely manages to "cover" the low-budget problems but still, those problems just add charm to the whole image of "Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter". While the film is by no means perfect, it is a very good effort by these filmmakers.

"Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter" may not be attractive for those expecting well-done acting and effects, but it will please the crowd eager for independent films with more heart than budget. Hopefully in the future the crew behind this small indie masterpiece will receive enough support to create bigger and better films than this. 7/10. Very Recommended.