I am a huge Romero fan but had never seen this gem due to poor video distribution. I just picked up the new DVD and watched Martin for the first time. It truly demonstrates Romero's genius. He takes the classic , Gothic vampire movie that we've seen done a thousand times and manages to put his unique stamp on it creating a deep, philosophical social commentary.
Is Martin really a vampire? What is the definition of a vampire in modern society? Just because Martin does not have fangs, garlic has no effect on him and he is more or less immune to sunlight that doesn't mean he is not a vampire. Romero leaves a lot of questions open ended in this film like Martin's mortality or immortality and whether he physically needs to drink blood to survive. Maybe he really is nothing more then a mentally ill, sexual deviant ....but is that really different then any other vampire that we've seen portrayed in any other movie? As you can tell by my comments, this movies raises more questions then it answers and it certainly will make you think more then the average horror movie...which isn't a bad thing.
Stylistically, I love the way Romero weaves the current time (the late 70's) in color with the black and white footage of the turn of the century era Martin. That gives a nice contrast between the Bela Lugosi Gothic vampire image and the updated version that is Martin. The cinematography is great and it is just a well crafted film.
At it's heart this is the same vampire movie we've seen remade over and over just with some new twists on the genre and in an updated setting. But it is more then that because it really is a mashing of various genres. There are the excorisism sequences which are not common in vampire movies, there are elements of the serial killer thriller genre, some elements of the teenage coming of age story and even hints of melodrama but it all blends seamlessly and keeps the viewer's interest throughout.
Is Martin really a vampire? What is the definition of a vampire in modern society? Just because Martin does not have fangs, garlic has no effect on him and he is more or less immune to sunlight that doesn't mean he is not a vampire. Romero leaves a lot of questions open ended in this film like Martin's mortality or immortality and whether he physically needs to drink blood to survive. Maybe he really is nothing more then a mentally ill, sexual deviant ....but is that really different then any other vampire that we've seen portrayed in any other movie? As you can tell by my comments, this movies raises more questions then it answers and it certainly will make you think more then the average horror movie...which isn't a bad thing.
Stylistically, I love the way Romero weaves the current time (the late 70's) in color with the black and white footage of the turn of the century era Martin. That gives a nice contrast between the Bela Lugosi Gothic vampire image and the updated version that is Martin. The cinematography is great and it is just a well crafted film.
At it's heart this is the same vampire movie we've seen remade over and over just with some new twists on the genre and in an updated setting. But it is more then that because it really is a mashing of various genres. There are the excorisism sequences which are not common in vampire movies, there are elements of the serial killer thriller genre, some elements of the teenage coming of age story and even hints of melodrama but it all blends seamlessly and keeps the viewer's interest throughout.