The Return of the Vampire is a good B-movie that came at the end of the gothic horror cycle, before supernatural horror gave way to the mutant horrors of the 1950s. As such, it became lost in the changeover. It still retains a unique gothic atmosphere as it places the last vestige of supernatural horror in the midst of the then present age, immersed in the real horrors of World War II.
Ian Woolstencroft: Martin (1977)
Vampires. The word conjures up images of cloak-enshrouded men with piercing eyes and gleaming fangs and beautiful women in nightdresses with heaving bosoms. Well you won’t find any of that in Martin.
Two things are made clear right from the start: this isn’t your usual vampire movie and Martin is one very disturbed young man. Traveling by train to stay with his elderly cousin Cuda, Martin attacks a woman in her sleeping car, rendering her unconscious before feeding on her blood. It’s obvious from the practised nature with which he goes about the task of subduing her and cleaning up afterwards that this is not the first such incident.
Upon arrival he’s met by Cuda and the old man is in no doubt he’s a vampire. His home is festooned with crosses and garlic but such things have no effect on Martin; to all outward appearances he’s a normal young man.
The is-he-or-isn’t-he question is at the heart of George Romero’s film. In one particular scene, talking with Cuda’s niece in the kitchen, Martin seems almost like a normal guy, telling her he’s glad she doesn’t believe in the “magic.” Then when she asks him how old he is he replies “eighty-four.” It wrong-foots the viewer and reinforces the sense of doubt.
Martin is one of the most complex characters in horror cinema and John Amplas brings him to life brilliantly. Martin doesn’t talk much and Amplas has to convey most of the character's emotions without words. At times we sympathise with the shy, sexually repressed young man, at others we’re horrified by the coldly methodical killer who not only drinks his victims' blood but sexually abuses them as well. That Amplas can elicit such diverse reactions is a credit to his ability.
Martin is Romero’s most interesting film, both visually and intellectually. With Night of the Living Dead he reinvented the zombie movie and here he does something similar with the vampire film. The flashback/fantasy scenes pay homage to the traditional bloodsucker flick while the rest of the film has a more documentary feel, particularly where Martin’s methodical preparations are concerned.
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1 - El Bicho
No "Love at First Bite"?