Popularity of Vampires movies
Friday November 20, 2009
Vampires have always held a principle place in pop culture with the human fascination with the supernatural being a strong foundation for many entertainment mediums and successful movies. The whole vampire sub-genre goes back as far as the entertainment mediums themselves, ranging from horror movies to romance to thrillers and dramas.
Currently experiencing a major resurgence in pop culture, vampires in movies and television series are now dominating many entertainment landscapes through various approaches with such titles as the Twilight saga, television's True blood series and Vampire Diaries which are all recording massive success with audiences worldwide. The Twilight saga in particular is based on the hugely popular novels written by Stephanie Meyer which was first published in 2005 and have sold over 70 million copies worldwide.
Yet the audience fascination with vampires and vampire movies started well before Twilight ever came into existence with Dracula and the infamous Nosferatu, widely believed to be one of the most successful vampire movies in the sub-genre, holding position as some the classic movies. In fact, Nosferatu was originally released in Germany back on 4th March 1922 and there have been over 170 versions of Dracula movies produced to date. Vampires have formed a strong basis in literary and cinematic fiction with different movies reflecting different ideals and perceptions of the vampire. For example, there is the romantically unparalleled world of Twilight and Edward Cullen to the hideous flesh tearing vampire creatures of 30 Days of Night, another highly successful film out of Hollywood.
So what is the attraction to these fictitious creatures and why do audiences continually flocked to this sub-genre of movies? As with all supernatural themes there is the unknown and the appeal of the immortal.
Comparing older vampire movies, they were typically of a horrific nature where the creatures were feared. However it was in Bram Stoker's Dracula, first released in 1897, which gave the vampire the infamous charm and allure while emphasising the eternal life and immortality that is now assume as part of the vampire image. In fact, the strange and strong attraction to the vampire in the world of movies is thought to have begun with this very film.
Newer films tend to represent the supernatural world with more light and shade with good and bad characters within this category, even making the vampires the heroes of the movie. Of course, at the centre of this entire sub-genre of movies is the relationship between humans and the immortal, the connection between hunger and lust that dominates many of these films.
Alan Ball, creator of hit series True Blood stated in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald that vampires are a very potent symbol in audience's collective consciousness.
''Part of it is the whole immortality aspect. Part of it is it's a fantasy way to live out the dark side. Vampires are certainly erotic - just the whole way they feed is very sexual. There is penetration of flesh, there is exchange of body fluids; there is certainly a surrender to a creature that is bigger and more powerful ... It's a safe way to explore some really dark impulses.''
So is this the true fascination with vampire movies, are they presenting a safe way to explore the darker elements of humanity or is it just the fun of yet another horror movie? The latter can certainly be supported with such popular movies as Blade and Underworld, which blended extreme action/adventure with the dark world of vampires and forbidden love.
Essentially, audiences love vampire movies. They love the unknown, the dark and disturbed, the lust and the hunger and, more recently, the epic love stories that dominate these movies.
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