Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		1.5

Vampire's Kiss Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 10, 2022

Even diehard fans of Nicolas Cage might not argue too vociferously if confronted with the attitude that the actor is not exactly a paradigm of subtlety, arguably more often than not, in his many film performances, and even Cage himself seems to be in on this "joke", at least as evidenced by the cheekily titled The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (due soon on Blu-ray as this review is being written). There's probably no better example of just how unsubtle Cage can be than Vampire's Kiss, which is back from the dead (so to speak) for another Blu-ray release after a 2015 "double feature" from Shout! Factory that offered Vampire's Kiss and High Spirits as a "two fer".

For my thoughts on the film in general and the Blu-ray release from Shout! Factory, please consult my Vampire's Kiss Blu-ray review of that version. This release ports over the commentary and trailer from the previous release, and adds a couple of other items that may be of interest for some fans.

Vampire's Kiss Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Vampire's Kiss is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of the MVD Rewind Collection, an imprint of MVD Visual, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. This is another re-release where I think many would be hard pressed to cite any huge differences between the transfers, and a lot of the same pluses and minuses I noted in the review of the Shout! Factory release are duplicated here. The palette is really nicely suffused for the most part, once things like the optically printed credits sequence are finished, and while there is the same kind of minor age related wear and tear here that I mentioned with regard to the Shout! release, there's also nothing really egregious in that regard, and the entire transfer benefits from a nicely organic appearance. In fact, grain may arguably be just slightly more visible in this version, though again, probably to negligible degree. As I attempt to do with re-releases, I've done my best to come close to duplicating some of the screenshots from that first review of mine, so that those interested can do side by side comparisons in full resolution.

Vampire's Kiss Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

This version of Vampire's Kiss sports an LPCM 2.0 track in lieu of the Shout! Factory version's DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track, but much as with the video side of things, I think any differences between these two audio presentations are virtually indistinguishable, or at least were to my ears. I actually kind of got more of a kick out of Colin Towns' score, which plays with some minor tonalities in a relatively evocative way. Dialogue (such as it is) is presented cleanly and clearly. Optional English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.

Vampire's Kiss Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary with Nicolas Cage and Robert Gierman can be accessed under the Setup Menu.


• Photo Gallery (HD) is authored without a timecode, but does advance automatically, so have the pause button on your remote handy if you want to linger on any given image.


• Trailers include Vampire's Kiss Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:04) and Vampire's Kiss TV Spot (SD; 00:30), along with trailers for other releases from MVD Visual.

Additionally, the keepcase houses a foldout mini poster and packaging features a slipcover.

Vampire's Kiss Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Nicolas Cage almost exults in his own gonzo proclivities, and without meaning to damn with faint praise, he's given ample opportunity to strut his bizarre stuff in Vampire's Kiss. I'm kind of amazed to see the price that the old Shout! Factory double feature seems to be fetching at certain online emporia, and for those who don't want to shell out a Benjamin or two and who may in fact have no interest in High Spirits one way or the other, this release from the MVD Rewind Collection offers the same generally solid technical merits as the first Blu-ray release, along with repeated and new supplements, in a decidedly more budget friendly way.