If one erases the centuries long horrible treatment of animals, circuses were a lot of fun; a place for families to go and see acrobats and feats of derring-do and munch really stale boxed popcorn. Now we’re left with Cirque De Soleil, in which only the humans die trying to entertain us. You could skip all that though and just head to the Vampire Circus (1972), where the performers will gladly strip you of your coin and your life. It’s a Hammer event, and those are always worth a peek behind the tent.
Released by Twentieth Century Fox stateside in October, Vampire Circus received middling reviews at best; however, modern critics have cited it as one of Hammer’s better latter day efforts – an opinion I’m more than happy to share.
But first, a story. It’s the mid 1800’s, and a little village in Eastern Europe has...
Released by Twentieth Century Fox stateside in October, Vampire Circus received middling reviews at best; however, modern critics have cited it as one of Hammer’s better latter day efforts – an opinion I’m more than happy to share.
But first, a story. It’s the mid 1800’s, and a little village in Eastern Europe has...
- 2/22/2020
- by Scott Drebit
- DailyDead
Iconic Hammer actresses Martine Beswick, Veronica Carlson and Caroline Munro. (All photos copyright Adrian Smith. All rights reserved.)
Retro-active: The Best From Cinema Retro's Archives
(The following article was originally run in November, 2014)
By Adrian Smith
With around sixty special guests in attendance, the Westminster Central Hall on Saturday the 7th of November was packed to its domed roof with excited Hammer film fans.
Familiar faces including Caroline Munro, Valerie Leon, Madeline Smith and Martine Beswick were providing some glamour, but the organisers managed to make the event extra-memorable by securing the presence of Edina Ronay, George Cole, Freddie Jones and others who had not signed autographs at a fan event before. At times queues to meet them ran out of the building and down the street! Other rare UK appearances were made from Veronica Carlson and Linda Hayden, flown in from the Us to meet their fans. It was...
Retro-active: The Best From Cinema Retro's Archives
(The following article was originally run in November, 2014)
By Adrian Smith
With around sixty special guests in attendance, the Westminster Central Hall on Saturday the 7th of November was packed to its domed roof with excited Hammer film fans.
Familiar faces including Caroline Munro, Valerie Leon, Madeline Smith and Martine Beswick were providing some glamour, but the organisers managed to make the event extra-memorable by securing the presence of Edina Ronay, George Cole, Freddie Jones and others who had not signed autographs at a fan event before. At times queues to meet them ran out of the building and down the street! Other rare UK appearances were made from Veronica Carlson and Linda Hayden, flown in from the Us to meet their fans. It was...
- 3/4/2015
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
The St. Louis Globe-Democrat is a monthly newspaper run by Steve DeBellis, a well know St. Louis historian, and it.s the largest one-man newspaper in the world. The concept of The Globe is that there is an old historic headline, then all the articles in that issue are written as though it.s the year that the headline is from. It.s an unusual concept but the paper is now in its 25th successful year! Steve and I collaborated last year on an all-Vincent Price issue of The Globe and I’ve been writing a regular movie-related column since. Since there is no on-line version of The Globe, I post all of my articles here at We Are Movie Geeks as well. In honor of the 40th anniversary of Blueberry Hill, the landmark St. Louis restaurant and music club that.s filled with pop culture memorabilia, this month.s St.
- 9/7/2012
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Reader and contributor Gemma St. Clair returns this weekend with a new list of horror trivia:
1. The Phantom of the Opera: There are multiple versions of this film, including the original silent 1925 release (107 minutes long) and the 1929 re-release (98 minutes long). There was a third version with talking scenes, but it is now considered lost.
2. Cat’s Eye: Stephen King wrote the part for Drew Barrymore in Cat’s Eye because he was so impressed with her in Firestarter.
3. Freaks: This film was banned in the UK for nearly 30 years after its release.
4. Willard (2003): A picture of Willard’s Father in the film is actually Bruce Davidson who played Willard in the 1971 original.
5. House of the Dead: The Sega logo can be seen in the background of the rave.
6. Alone in the Dark (1982): The house that was used for Dr. Potter’s home actually belonged to a psychiatrist.
1. The Phantom of the Opera: There are multiple versions of this film, including the original silent 1925 release (107 minutes long) and the 1929 re-release (98 minutes long). There was a third version with talking scenes, but it is now considered lost.
2. Cat’s Eye: Stephen King wrote the part for Drew Barrymore in Cat’s Eye because he was so impressed with her in Firestarter.
3. Freaks: This film was banned in the UK for nearly 30 years after its release.
4. Willard (2003): A picture of Willard’s Father in the film is actually Bruce Davidson who played Willard in the 1971 original.
5. House of the Dead: The Sega logo can be seen in the background of the rave.
6. Alone in the Dark (1982): The house that was used for Dr. Potter’s home actually belonged to a psychiatrist.
- 8/14/2011
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
The Film:
Where would Hammer Films be without the vampire film? A struggling studio back in the 1950s emerged as a heir to Universal’s throne when they released the first color Dracula film in 1958′s The Horror of Dracula starring the immortal Christopher Lee. Yes, the studio would go on to other creatures of the night, including my personal favorite Curse of the Werewolf, but the kept coming back to the vampire film, even in their recent resurrection in last year’s Let Me In. Obviously, the studio was fading in the 1970s and their need to keep the old creatures fresh was apparent in funky films like Dracula Ad 1972. But the oddest of the bunch was this lesser known vampire film in Vampire Circus.
Hypnotically directed by a documentary film maker Robert Young, the film was a mixture of the classic horror Hammer was known for and new...
Where would Hammer Films be without the vampire film? A struggling studio back in the 1950s emerged as a heir to Universal’s throne when they released the first color Dracula film in 1958′s The Horror of Dracula starring the immortal Christopher Lee. Yes, the studio would go on to other creatures of the night, including my personal favorite Curse of the Werewolf, but the kept coming back to the vampire film, even in their recent resurrection in last year’s Let Me In. Obviously, the studio was fading in the 1970s and their need to keep the old creatures fresh was apparent in funky films like Dracula Ad 1972. But the oddest of the bunch was this lesser known vampire film in Vampire Circus.
Hypnotically directed by a documentary film maker Robert Young, the film was a mixture of the classic horror Hammer was known for and new...
- 6/2/2011
- by Jon Peters
- Killer Films
Hammer Films was a premier company when it came to making horror films in the 1950′s and 1960′s. But as times were changing, the company started faltering and were putting out watered down stories and sexually exploitative cinema. It seemed as if there were no more gems in their collection and that they’d just crank out the same old Dracula films with Christopher Lee starring in them. But then came a title that just sounds so interesting, you can’t believe it’s a real film. Vampire Circus is a bright spot of the later Hammer Films and thankfully Synapse Films has put it out on Blu-ray.
Vampire Circus begins with a prologue, showing a little girl frolicking in the forest. She is being led by a beautiful woman, Anna (Domini Blythe) to the castle of Count Mitterhaus (Robert Tayman), a sadistic and handsome vampire. He feeds on the...
Vampire Circus begins with a prologue, showing a little girl frolicking in the forest. She is being led by a beautiful woman, Anna (Domini Blythe) to the castle of Count Mitterhaus (Robert Tayman), a sadistic and handsome vampire. He feeds on the...
- 4/4/2011
- by James McCormick
- CriterionCast
This week is the lightest in recent memory with only four (barely) notable horror releases. Synapse Films' 100th release, Robert Young’s classic Vampire Circus, will be gracing our screens and so will Dear Mr. Gacy, the adaptation of The Last Victim, the memoirs of Jason Moss, who corresponded with serial killer John Wayne Gacy. Read on to see what the other two are.
Vampire Circus (1972)
Directed by Robert Young
Starring David Prowse, Robert Tayman, Anthony Higgins, Thorley Walters
A little girl is brutally slain by a vampire in a tiny 19th century Austrian village. Seeking revenge, the townspeople invade the foreboding castle of Count Mitterhaus and kill him for the crime. As the Count falls, he curses the villagers and vows that their children will all die so that he may someday return to life. 15 years later, as the village is ravaged by the plague, a traveling circus...
Vampire Circus (1972)
Directed by Robert Young
Starring David Prowse, Robert Tayman, Anthony Higgins, Thorley Walters
A little girl is brutally slain by a vampire in a tiny 19th century Austrian village. Seeking revenge, the townspeople invade the foreboding castle of Count Mitterhaus and kill him for the crime. As the Count falls, he curses the villagers and vows that their children will all die so that he may someday return to life. 15 years later, as the village is ravaged by the plague, a traveling circus...
- 12/13/2010
- by kwlow
- DreadCentral.com
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