Grace Jones in Vamp (1986)
Clips
Pics
Review
The recipe: After Hours meets An American Werewolf in London meets Dick Tracy.
Vamp really comes from the American Werewolf in London school of filmmaking, in the sense that it is a somewhat grotesque horror-comedy focusing on two average guys, one of whom joins the undead with unpleasant cosmetic consequences, while the other fights to escape the clutches of the creatures. The already undead guy continues to communicate with the normal guy, and continues to be his friend in certain ways, although he also has an urge to kill him and drink his blood.
As you can deduce from the title, this time the menace comes from vampires rather than werewolves. The modern day vampires run a strip joint in a really seedy neighborhood in L.A., and this seems like the ideal minority business if the minority is day-impaired Americans. Strippers work at night, and the guys who go to such a place make perfect victims. They usually come alone and live alone, so they will not be missed, and when one goes to such a place in such a neighborhood, one doesn't tell people about it, so the victims will not be traced.
The vamps even have a fully-integrated business which includes a waste disposal truck to transport the bodies elsewhere, thereby assuring that the drained corpses won't attract police to their neighborhood.
Our heroes are college students trying to get into a fraternity, hoping to prove their mettle by acquiring a stripper for a frat party. They are accompanied by Gedde Watanabe as a rich, geeky student who provides the transportation in return for companionship, and Dedee Pfeiffer, as a new stripper who has not yet joined the undead.
The film's plot is uninspired, but it is a cut above most genre film DVD's because:
It makes excellent use of the unique look and talents of Grace Jones. It has an exceptionally striking look in general. The art design and lighting were conceived to make it look like a comic strip, filled with bright colors and vivid patterns. It is not unusual to see red and green buildings in the background, or to see buildings with brightly colored windows, all images created by lighting tricks (Warren Beatty used the same techniques in Dick Tracy, which came after this film).
The "average person among the undead" motif sometimes works surprisingly well. Gedde and Dedee were especially good at creating the feel of average people coping with a chaotic situation.
The commentary on the DVD is a treasure. It is done by the director, the star (Chris Makepeace), Gedde, and Dedee. It's obvious that they all had a great time making the movie, and all like each other. They rib each other unmercifully, like college frat brothers, and this can be really funny. At times they even dub in their own new dialogue, ala MST3000. (E.g., Gedde hits on a stripper: "Hi, remember me from 16 Candles?") Two of them mentioned that making this film was the greatest time in their lives. Dedee is about the most down-to-earth person you can imagine.
There is a short film by the same director on the DVD. It is only 22 minutes long, and was made right after he graduated from film school. It is so good, that showing it around got him the job of directing Vamp.
There is additional footage on the DVD from the director's own private collection: outtakes and gag material. This is rare for a DVD based on a fifteen year old movie.
A couple of notes:
1. This isn't a great movie, but it has some moments, and it showed some inspiration. It seemed to promise a good future for the boy director, Richard Wenk. That same talent is visible in the 22 minute short which is also on the DVD (also a humorous movie about vampires, singing ones this time, and featuring Steve Rubell of Studio 54 fame).
Despite his evident talent, Wenk would not direct another full-length feature for 13 years, and then had to take one which was really not right for him. (Andy Garcia in The Scalper, aka Just The Ticket, a little-seen 1999 film). Wenk is currently working on a Meat Loaf film called Wishcraft, which is supposed to be a "teen horror" film. That's more up Wenk's alley, I guess. Not sure what his alley might be these days.
2. Gedde Watanabe is the guy who played "The Donger" in 16 Candles. I thought he created an appropriate and amusing character in both films, although his career seemed to languish until he landed on ER, perhaps because he didn't seem to have much else in his repertoire. The interesting fact to me is that Gedde was 29 when he played the teenager in 16 Candles, and was 31 when he played the college boy in this film.
Other interesting facts about him: (1) He is an accomplished singer whose singing voice had to be dubbed in Mulan because his real voice sounded too professional for the role (2) He may have become famous playing Long Duk Dong, and his family certainly has an Asian heritage, but he's as American as anyone can be. He has no foreign accent, speaks no Asian languages, was born and raised in Utah, and moved after high school to northern California. Not only that, but his ancestors are Japanese, not Chinese.
Nudity Report: Grace Jones performs most of the film in a strange bikini which doesn't hide much, but she is never actually naked. Her nipples can clearly be seen underneath her wire bikini. Bodybuilder Lisa Lyon appears in tassels and thong, and is all but naked. Two unnamed extras, playing strippers, are topless in the background.
Critics Vote: General consensus: less than two stars. Ebert 2/4, Maltin 1.5/4
IMDB Summary: 4.4 out of 10
Box Office: it grossed 5 million in the USA
DVD Info: Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1; good DVD. See the main commentary.
Written by: Scoopy …scoopy.net