John Carpenter is a favorite filmmaker of mine. He's knows what he's good at and sticks to it. What he's good at is dark action films. Escape From L.A. aside, he's had a great career.

Carpenter has belted another one out of the park with Vampires. He's got a Slayer (James Woods) with an attitude, a very bad, bad guy, and finally, an explanation of why and how the original vampire was created.

Like many of his previous films, Vampires is gritty and unsanitized. It's crude at times, bloody at times and humorous at times. In many ways, the film looks like a documentary, by avoiding a fast editing pace.

I think it's safe to say if you liked Starman and can deal with some gore and nudity, you'll like Vampires.

Jammed Pipe!

Film Facts

Cast
• James Woods
• Daniel Baldwin
• Sheryl Lee
• Thomas Ian Griffith
• Tim Guinee
• Maximilian Schell
• Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
• Mark Boone Jr.
• Thomas Rosales
• Frank Darabont
• Marjean Holden
• Anita Hart
• Henry Kingi
• Gregory Sierra

Directed by John Carpenter

Released in 1998

MPAA Rating: R

Reviewed by Mongo