I find the above, or below review, depending on where they place this, of not much use. I actually am a horror fan, and I did feel this movie was made for me. This is a bad movie written and directed by horror movie host John Stanley. Of course, probably over 90% of the horror movies I've enjoyed throughout the years are bad movies. If you're not real fan of the genre or just enjoy finding an oddball offbeat piece of crap to watch once in a while, you'll hate this. It's not made for you, anyway. Move on. But pointing out the obvious that this is a bad film seems like standing outside a burning building long after the fire department has arrived and yelling fire. This bad movie is plenty good in my estimation and worth a look from any real horror fan.
12 Reviews
It's kinda fun, but...
MailCrapHere12 June 2006
Warning: Spoilers
This is a quaint cultural artifact of the early '70s. It's an independent film, made by people who loved horror films but weren't able to actually make a scary or terribly involving movie. There are endless references to horror film icons and fandom which are nice but unless you have fond memories of Count Yorga, this movie is bound to disappoint... Because it's on about that level.
The San Francisco locations (A murder at Lincoln Park golf course, with the Golden Gate Bridge in the BG - The Kerwin Mathews film-within-a-film was shot at a WWII gun emplacement in the Presidio - The theater where most of the action occurs was actually in Oakland)are nice and I have happy memories of Bob Wilkins, the San Francisco TV horror host on whom a character in the film is based. Beyond that, the film is slow, the characters are thin and the plot is weak.
The protagonists, who are involved in putting on a Horror Convention at a San Francisco movie palace, include a horror novelist, a Sherlock Holmes buff and a mystical hippie comic-book guru (No, really, he wears a Jesus robe and goes on about the "comic ethos".) The villains are a horror film star named Makakai, who plays vampires and "lives" his role off-screen, and his pair of PR men, who are actually Burke and Hare, the 19th century body-snatchers. Oh, and Malakai is a real vampire - Not much of a spoiler there.
The acting is good and, while it looks pretty dark on my TV, the film is technically well done... But, the writing is weak and despite a bit of gore, it never manages to be remotely scary.
The San Francisco locations (A murder at Lincoln Park golf course, with the Golden Gate Bridge in the BG - The Kerwin Mathews film-within-a-film was shot at a WWII gun emplacement in the Presidio - The theater where most of the action occurs was actually in Oakland)are nice and I have happy memories of Bob Wilkins, the San Francisco TV horror host on whom a character in the film is based. Beyond that, the film is slow, the characters are thin and the plot is weak.
The protagonists, who are involved in putting on a Horror Convention at a San Francisco movie palace, include a horror novelist, a Sherlock Holmes buff and a mystical hippie comic-book guru (No, really, he wears a Jesus robe and goes on about the "comic ethos".) The villains are a horror film star named Makakai, who plays vampires and "lives" his role off-screen, and his pair of PR men, who are actually Burke and Hare, the 19th century body-snatchers. Oh, and Malakai is a real vampire - Not much of a spoiler there.
The acting is good and, while it looks pretty dark on my TV, the film is technically well done... But, the writing is weak and despite a bit of gore, it never manages to be remotely scary.
NOT for Kerwin Mathews fans!
jgall3620 January 2006
If you're a Kerwin Mathews fan and want to see this movie to see him, DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME....as I DID! Mathews appears only in the opening segment (a movie within the movie) for less than 3 minutes - and has NO speaking lines! And the remaining 87 minutes of the film are incredibly dull and sluggish. (I watched until the end, hoping that Mathews would reappear...and TALK - while constantly checking my watch to see how much time was left in the film.) Avoid this film, unless you're an obsessive-compulsive Kerwin Mathews or horror film completest. (And this can barely be called a Kerwin Mathews OR a horror film.) I guess the producers needed a "name" for the credits - and Kerwin needed to pay the rent.
Avoid this piece of total crud
Doctor-3212 May 1999
Don't waste your time
susand110815 September 2023
Let me start by saying I really love horror movies, and I especially love the old-fashioned vampire type that are supposedly satirized in this film. And I'm not offended by a cherished genre being sent up in good fun. Indeed, I enjoy a good spoof on a genre. But let me tell you, this movie is perfectly awful. The production values rate no better than a D-minus. The sound is so terrible you often cannot understand the dialogue. Unfortunately, when you do hear it, it's usually pretty lame. Following the story is a challenge, too. Entire minutes pass when you are at a loss to know what is happening. I don't know how viewers gave this enough stars to land it over a four-star rating. Take my advice. Hard pass.
Enjoyable film has a vampire running loose in San Francisco.
tpw170521 May 2003
This film has a little of everything for fans of horror films, comics, horror conventions,and the like. It has that 70's feel to it and a lot of fun to watch. If your a fan of low budget shockers, it's right up your alley. Just set back on a stormy Saturday night and get ready for a Creature Feature.
horror blending into suspense blending into funny
emilita4 September 2006
I watched this movie without any expectations. That made this one a great find because it's cheesy and self-acknowledging without being over the top. Sure, it won't win an Oscar, but it was a fun ride!! The idea behind this movie, that it's been done before, and over again is what makes the movie funny, suspenseful, horrific and sometimes just downright silly. This is more a homage to horror films than a movie itself. If ever a drinking game screamed to be created, this is the movie. The clichés are there, the blood is there, the references to Night of the Living Dead are there. But these ingredients are not overwhelming. Keep the pen and paper handy, as you'll need them to keep track of numerous nods to horror films. Perhaps, many a long night was spent in production, doing so. And it was done well.
A fun horror comedy
watrousjames17 August 2016
This film is hard to find. It was directed by John Stanley who was the horror, science fiction, and fantasy critic for the San Francisco Chronicle for three decades. He also hosted Creature Features TV show in the SF Bay Area. He's the author of THE CREATURE FEATURE MOVIE GUIDE and I WAS A TV HORROR HOST.
The film is tongue-in-cheek horror film about a famous horror actor, noted for playing vampires, coming to a Horror Convention in San Francisco, and turning out to be an actual vampire. There are a lot of in-jokes for horror fans. It's fun. It was an independent film shot on a low budget and it sometime shows. If you a horror fan you will probably get a kick out of it.
The film is tongue-in-cheek horror film about a famous horror actor, noted for playing vampires, coming to a Horror Convention in San Francisco, and turning out to be an actual vampire. There are a lot of in-jokes for horror fans. It's fun. It was an independent film shot on a low budget and it sometime shows. If you a horror fan you will probably get a kick out of it.
Intended for horror aficionados.
Hey_Sweden10 October 2012
Horror genre icon John Stanley of 'Creature Features' fame does a nice job with this very knowing, fairly tongue in cheek homage to the genre. Its central conceit is a solid one, and prefigures "Shadow of the Vampire" by 23 years. It also proved to be very prophetic in its portrayal of a horror convention, long before these things would be very big business worldwide. The people behind this convention, including Professor Seabrook (Dan Caldwell), Cindy (Barrie Youngfellow), Scotty (John Cochran), and comic book expert Gary form a team as they slowly come to the realization that their star attraction, veteran horror film actor Malakai (Jerry Walter), is not just a pretend vampire but the real deal. Moreover, he utilizes the services of B.B. (Ray K. Goman) and Harris (Hy Pyke), who are in reality the legendary graverobbers Burke and Hare whom Malakai has kept alive for centuries using alchemy. Our intrepid team unites behind Nazi hunter turned vampire hunter The Avenger (Mark Anger), who's vowed to destroy this evil. Now, "Nightmare in Blood" is not for all genre fans, as it's low budget enough that it's often more talk than action. Some people may grow impatient with its deliberate pace and its minimal amount of gore. Still, it's impossible to dislike this film. It's ingratiating and irresistible, and it's always nice to see a film meant for genre fans made BY a genre fan. The dialogue is often very amusing, and often quite self-referential, with names such as Lee, Price, Atwill, Lugosi, and Karloff dropped. There is brief footage of a film within the film, as fantasy film star Kerwin Mathews appears alongside Walter. His appearance is fleeting enough that his admirers will likely be sorely disappointed. Still, Stanley does give this little film some atmosphere and gets a delightfully theatrical performance out of Walter, who looks like he's having a hell of a time. Most of the acting is very much of the amateur variety, but the performers are quite engaging nonetheless; the man playing Gary in particular is a hoot what with his deadpan delivery. And Justin Bishop is a riot as anti-horror crusader Dr. Unworth; his acting is atrocious but his facial expressions just priceless. The scenes with Seabrook, Unworth, and Malakai on the TV horror show have to rank as the best in the film. It's likewise great to see our heroes think on their feet when faced with the prospect of killing foes that are seemingly immortal. While admittedly "Nightmare in Blood" is going to strike some people as being merely dull, others will surely find it fascinating, even if one couldn't consider it a "good" film. It's still an entertaining one, though. Seven out of 10.
Nifty 70's vampire horror outing
Woodyanders18 January 2016
Warning: Spoilers
A group of oddball horror buffs involved in organizing a horror convention discover that eccentric and enigmatic guest Malakai (robustly played with plummy eye-rolling aplomb by Jerry Walter) is a real-life vampire.
Director John Stanley displays a winningly sincere affection for classic old fright fare (there are loving references to everything from Bela Lugosi to "The Thing from Another World"), keeps the clever and entertaining story moving along at a steady pace, presents a colorful and interesting depiction of the 1970's California horror scene, and delivers several cool bits of gore. Moreover, the witty script by Stanley and Kenn Davis not only offers a crafty and novel spin on the standard vampire premise (for example, the Van Helsing figure in this movie turns out to be a Jewish Nazi hunter known as the Avenger), but also possesses a knowing self-aware sensibility that prefigures "Scream" by twenty years. Granted, the acting by the bulk of the cast shows more raw enthusiasm than actual ability, but the quirky characters are nonetheless still likable -- flaky comic book aficionado Gary in particular is an absolute hoot throughout! -- and have a fierce camaraderie with each other that one can't help but admire. Kerwin Matthews has a small part as a swashbuckler at the very start of the picture while unsung hambone thespian Hy Pyke attacks his juicy role as creepy lackey Harris with his customary delightfully theatrical panache. An extremely fun fright flick.
Director John Stanley displays a winningly sincere affection for classic old fright fare (there are loving references to everything from Bela Lugosi to "The Thing from Another World"), keeps the clever and entertaining story moving along at a steady pace, presents a colorful and interesting depiction of the 1970's California horror scene, and delivers several cool bits of gore. Moreover, the witty script by Stanley and Kenn Davis not only offers a crafty and novel spin on the standard vampire premise (for example, the Van Helsing figure in this movie turns out to be a Jewish Nazi hunter known as the Avenger), but also possesses a knowing self-aware sensibility that prefigures "Scream" by twenty years. Granted, the acting by the bulk of the cast shows more raw enthusiasm than actual ability, but the quirky characters are nonetheless still likable -- flaky comic book aficionado Gary in particular is an absolute hoot throughout! -- and have a fierce camaraderie with each other that one can't help but admire. Kerwin Matthews has a small part as a swashbuckler at the very start of the picture while unsung hambone thespian Hy Pyke attacks his juicy role as creepy lackey Harris with his customary delightfully theatrical panache. An extremely fun fright flick.
Nightmare in Blood
Scarecrow-881 October 2011
Warning: Spoilers
There's nothing cooler to a horror buff like me than to, on opening day of Rocktober (this year, 2011), discover, upon my very first viewing for Halloween month, a nice surprise certain to become a favorite I will watch every year. What's neat about this film is that it predates the horror conventions that now pop up all over the world, not just in America—they are now all the rage. In San Francisco, a horror novelist, Professor Seabrook (Dan Caldwell) is able to bring to life the very first Horror Con, with an established horror icon as the featured guest, Malaki (Jerry Walters who is a blast), known for his many vampire films. Malaki takes his status in the genre (and, refreshingly, the genre itself) very seriously, and when horror show hosts, like George Wilson (Morgan Upton), poke gleeful fun at schlock or other horror films featured prominently on his line-ups, his ire is inflamed. What Seabrook and his friends behind the invention of the San Francisco Horror Con couldn't possibly expect is that their star is an actual centuries-old vampire! Yeah, imagine if a horror con presented a star attraction who was actually the very monster he supposedly portrayed fictitiously! Oh, it doesn't end there, this movie even throws in Burke and Hare (!), still alive and kicking thanks to Malaki, hunting his prey so that they can keep their master happy.
I really miss the way films could shoot on authentic city streets, using actors who look like the kind of folks who would populate San Francisco. There's this one fellow who runs a comic store and bases his whole life's philosophy around the art and stories of the books that line the shelves. He's very soft-spoken, stolid, and serious, much like Malaki is about his beloved horror genre. The script is chock full of loving nods to, and acknowledgment of, the horror genre and the many stars and movies that we fans know and love. Being that the film is set in contemporary San Francisco in 1978, the likes of Bela Lugosi, Christopher Lee, and Lon Chaney come up in conversations often, which brought a smile to my face time and again. For those who love their gore, "Nightmare in Blood" has lots of blood-letting (that thick bright red Herschel Gordon Lewis film blood I adore) as Burke and Hare hunt down characters associated with the Horror Con. The Van Helsing of this film is a Jew Nazi Hunter (!) who thought Malaki was a member of Hitler's Reich, only to discover that his quarry was a vampire instead! This guy goes by the name "Avenger" (or that is what Malaki refers to him as) and is a nuisance, an absolute thorn in the side, to Malaki. As long as Avenger lives, Malaki knows his existence is threatened. When a colleague of Seabrook's, Scotty (John Cochran) loses a girlfriend to the dastardly trio, hears a conversation between Burke and Hare that's more than a bit suspicious, and starts putting two-and-two together, the Avenger (Mark Anger) may finally have a legitimate ally in his fight to stop Malaki. The Mina of this film is Barrie Youngfellow, as Seabrook's girlfriend, Cindy. You just know her life will be in jeopardy before the film is through. I definitely believe horror fans and devotees to our genre owe it to themselves to check out "Nightmare in Blood", it is, in my mind, the very definition of a sleeper. Walters really "sinks his teeth" into the role, with the posture and thick accent mimicking Lugosi effortlessly—I considered him a pleasure to watch in the role of a bloodsucker easily offended by those who slander his movies and the genre, his reactions of repulsion towards Wilson especially funny.
I really miss the way films could shoot on authentic city streets, using actors who look like the kind of folks who would populate San Francisco. There's this one fellow who runs a comic store and bases his whole life's philosophy around the art and stories of the books that line the shelves. He's very soft-spoken, stolid, and serious, much like Malaki is about his beloved horror genre. The script is chock full of loving nods to, and acknowledgment of, the horror genre and the many stars and movies that we fans know and love. Being that the film is set in contemporary San Francisco in 1978, the likes of Bela Lugosi, Christopher Lee, and Lon Chaney come up in conversations often, which brought a smile to my face time and again. For those who love their gore, "Nightmare in Blood" has lots of blood-letting (that thick bright red Herschel Gordon Lewis film blood I adore) as Burke and Hare hunt down characters associated with the Horror Con. The Van Helsing of this film is a Jew Nazi Hunter (!) who thought Malaki was a member of Hitler's Reich, only to discover that his quarry was a vampire instead! This guy goes by the name "Avenger" (or that is what Malaki refers to him as) and is a nuisance, an absolute thorn in the side, to Malaki. As long as Avenger lives, Malaki knows his existence is threatened. When a colleague of Seabrook's, Scotty (John Cochran) loses a girlfriend to the dastardly trio, hears a conversation between Burke and Hare that's more than a bit suspicious, and starts putting two-and-two together, the Avenger (Mark Anger) may finally have a legitimate ally in his fight to stop Malaki. The Mina of this film is Barrie Youngfellow, as Seabrook's girlfriend, Cindy. You just know her life will be in jeopardy before the film is through. I definitely believe horror fans and devotees to our genre owe it to themselves to check out "Nightmare in Blood", it is, in my mind, the very definition of a sleeper. Walters really "sinks his teeth" into the role, with the posture and thick accent mimicking Lugosi effortlessly—I considered him a pleasure to watch in the role of a bloodsucker easily offended by those who slander his movies and the genre, his reactions of repulsion towards Wilson especially funny.
Made for all us horror geeks
rickmacnamara2 June 2022
I agree with the other reviewers who said this is a well made homage to horror movies by movie host John Stanley. I never heard of this one, but found it on the Cinema Insomnia channel on YouTube and it was a delight to watch it hosted by Mr. Stanley himself. Maybe a few decades of horror movies with production values borrowed from mainstream movies has raised expectations too high for the occasional horror movie consumer and the cheesy crap loved by true horror geeks disappoints them. As someone who grew up watching really bad but entertaining sci-fi and horror movies like Plan 9, Crawling Eye, all the Universal monsters,,etc., Nightmare in Blood was a lot of fun.
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