Lust for a Vampire Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Lust for a Vampire Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson March 9, 2021

Lust for a Vampire (1971) is the middle entry in Hammer's Karnstein Trilogy, sandwiched between The Vampire Lovers (1970) and Twins of Evil (1971). Each film is based on J. Sheridan LeFanu's novelette Carmilla (1872). Lust for a Vampire opens in a beautiful Viennese countryside ca. 1830. A lovely village girl (Kirsten Lindholm) enters the forest and is lured into a black carriage by a cloaked figure. After a loud scream, the action resumes post-titles in Castle Karnstein where Count Karnstein (Mike Raven; voice dubbed by Valentine Dyall) and Countess Herritzen (Barbara Jefford) are initiating a sacrificial ceremony on the kidnapped girl. The Countess slits her throat and pours her blood on to the skeletal remains of Carmilla Karnstein, who becomes resuscitated as Mircalla (Yutte Stensgaard). Unbeknownst to anyone, Karnstein and Herritzen plan to use the revivified Carmilla (posing as student Mircalla) as an infiltrator in a nearby girls finishing school where she'll lure both female and male victims. Traveling writer Richard LeStrange (Michael Johnson) is researching a book on the Castle Karnstein and upon meeting Mircalla, is bewitched by her seductive beauty. Richard applies for and receives a substitute teaching job at the boarding school so he can be around Mircalla. Giles Barton (Ralph Bates), a history teacher and the headmaster at the school, suspects that the castle has elements of the occult that probably transformed Mircalla into a vampire.

Lust for a Vampire was a troubled production from the start for Hammer. The studio lost Terence Fisher as director after he broke his leg in an automobile accident. Peter Cushing was set to play Giles Barton but had to remove himself from the film to tend to his gravely ill wife. (He reportedly had to back out of The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb for a similar reason.) Ingrid Pitt, was was unforgettable as Carmilla in The Vampire Lovers, declined to reprise her role either because she didn't like Tudor Gates's script or had already committed to another project (accounts differ).

As I watched Lust for a Vampire for the first time, I thought it would turn into more of a detective yarn with Richard LeStrange trying to uncover what happened to the missing peasant girl. He snoops around the castle but becomes so enthralled with Mircalla that he loses the focus of his inquiry. I also noted plot holes early on. For example, where's the scene with the young lad, who flirted with Kirsten Lindholm's character before she took off, going on a search for her? Also, Gates underwrote Helen Christie's part as the headmistress of the boarding school. She not only acts weak but is also submissive to the wishes of Herritzen. She may be scared of what Herritzen may do to her if she doesn't comply but does she want her school to be colonized by vampires? Further, Hammer deploys Mike Raven, a rhythm and blues disc jockey, as more of a ceremonial host than a carnal participant in the proceedings. The fact that the studio inserted extreme close-ups of Christopher Lee's bloodshot eyes from Horror of Dracula (1958) rather than photographing Raven's own shows Hammer's uncertainly of what it wanted in Karnstein. Swedish blonde Yutte Stensgaard is the movie's central attraction and Hammer often lets the audience gaze at her bare bosoms in large quantities. But Stensgaard doesn't exude any natural acting ability and Ingrid Pitt must have been missed. The equally (if not more) beautiful Suzanna Leigh, who plays exercise instructor Janet Playfair, is perhaps given more to do in her role but still receives lesser screen time. Author Jack Hunter (House of Horror: The Complete Hammer Films Story) summed up this film well: "A veritable orgy of black magic, lesbianism, blood-letting and, almost in passing, vampirism....The gore, lesbian and nudity quotient in Lust for a Vampire exceeded even that of The Vampire Lovers."

Lust for a Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Scream Factory has brought Lust for a Vampire to North American Blu-ray for the first time on this MPEG-4 AVC-encoded BD-50. The studio performed a new 4K scan of the negative and presents it in two aspect ratios: 1.85:1 (31000 kbps) and 1.66:1 (26000 kbps). I've inspected both and prefer the 1.66:1 since it brings in more picture information on the top and bottom without chopping much off on the sides. The image boasts a shiny and clean transfer without hardly any dirt present. Grain is most noticeable during the Castle Karnstein scenes and the outdoor night scenes that were shot in moonlight blue.

Scream has provided twelve scene selections for the 95-minute feature.

Screenshots 1-10 = 1.85:1 Version
Screenshots 11-20 = 1.66:1 Version

Lust for a Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Scream offers a DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono mix (1625 kbps, 24-bit) on the 1.85:1 version and a Dolby Digital Audio Dual Mono (192 kbps) on the 1.66:1 version. The lossless track reproduces dialogue and effects relatively well. The underscore by composer Harry Robertson (credited as Harry Robinson here) comes to life when it accompanies the song, "Strange Love," during a lovemaking scene.

Scream delivers optional English SDH for the main feature only.

Lust for a Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• NEW Audio Commentary by Author/Film Historian Bruce Hallenbeck (on the 1.85:1 version) - Hallenback delivers a scholarly critique of Lust for a Vampire and its production. He discusses its themes and connections to other Hammer titles during this period. In English, not subtitled.

• Audio Commentary by Director Jimmy Sangster, Star Suzanna Leigh, and Hammer Films Historian Marcus Hearn (on the 1.85:1 version) - Hearns moderates this feature-length track with Sangster and Leigh. Sangster appears bashful and embarrassed about much of what happened on and to the film but gives candid remarks. Leigh is far less shy, providing some amusing anecdotes about her performance and fellow actors. The track was originally recorded for Anchor Bay's 2001 DVD. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Just One of the School(girls): An Interview with Actress Melinda Churcher (3:35, 1080p) - Churcher recalls how her agent got her to appear in Lust for a Vampire, the outdoor dancing scenes she best remembers, Ralph Bates, and a still photographer on set. In English, not subtitled.

• Theatrical Trailer (2:41, 1080p) - Lust for a Vampire's original trailer presented in 1.85:1 (MPEG-2, 24843 kbps) with Dolby Digital Dual Mono (192 kbps). The print is unrestored with lots of speckling and some tramlines. The sound has been cleaned up, however.

• Radio Spots (1:33) - two radio spots for Lust for a Vampire that were produced by American Continental Films.

• Still Galleries (9:49, 1080p) - a long side show comprising 103 still images.The first fifty-seven are in color and last forty-fix in black and white. These feature snapshots of Yutte Stensgaard, Suzanna Leigh, Barbara Jefford, Mike Raven, Michael Johnson, and others. While a number of these stills were probably used in the studio's publicity campaign, others exposing a bare-breasted Stensgaard certainly were not published in the trades. It's clear that Hammer were banking on Stensgaard to be film's sexiest vampiress. Other photos show Sangster directing actors and working with his crew. A great pictorial collection assembled by Shout!

• Poster Gallery (4:57, 1080p) - this slide show contains fifty-one images. Posters and lobby cards of Lust for a Vampire are shown in color and black and white. In addition, there are pages reproduced from a UK exhibitors manual, which were printed and circulated by Anglo-EMI Film Distributors. Shout! also includes several newspaper adverts.

Lust for a Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While Lust for a Vampire is a much uneven film, it showcases some rapturous cinematography amid the Viennese summer countryside and exquisite costumes on the nubile young ladies in the finishing school. It's also arguably the most queer vampire film in the Karnstein Trilogy or any to come out of the Hammer canon. Scream Factory utilizes a fresh 4K scan that looks scrumptious on Blu-ray. The label recorded an excellent recent commentary with Bruce Hallenbeck. RECOMMENDED to Hammer's legion of fans.