Vampires and Werewolves: 58

Let Me In (2010), a romantic horror film written and directed by Matt Reeves, is a remake of the 2008 Swedish film Let the Right One In. The original was based on John Ajvide Lindqvist’s novel of the same name. The story takes place in March 1983, in Los Alamos, New Mexico. A disfigured man is brought to the hospital where he becomes a suspect in a recent murder case. As an unnamed detective tries to question him, the man escapes through a window leaving behind a note that reads: ‘I’M SORY ABBY’. Prior to this incident, Owen, an unhappy ...

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009) is an action-packed horror movie directed by Patrick Tatopoulos. It was written by Danny McBride, Dirk Blackman, and Howard McCain based on a story by Len Wiseman, Robert Orr, and McBride. The plot revolves around Lucian who is both the first werewolf to take human form and the first to be ...

The American romantic fantasy film, The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), was directed by Chris Weitz and written by Melissa Rosenberg. Based on Stephenie Meyer’s 2006 novel of the same name, it follows the story of Bella Swan in Forks, Washington. On her eighteenth birthday, Bella wakes up from a dream where she is elderly and her immortal vampire boyfriend, Edward Cullen, remains young. Despite her reservations, Edward’s family throws her a birthday party at their home. Unfortunately, when Bella receives a paper ...

The Vampire Diaries (2009–2017) is a supernatural teen drama TV series adapted from L. J. Smith’s book series of the same name by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec. Set in Mystic Falls, Virginia, the show premiered on The CW in 2009 and ended in 2017 after eight seasons and 171 episodes. It centers on Elena Gilbert, a teenage girl who loses her parents in a car accident and falls for Stefan Salvatore, a 161-year-old vampire who she believes to be human. Things get complicated when Damon Salvatore, Stefan’s ...

Catherine Hardwicke directed the American romantic fantasy film Twilight (2008), which was based on Stephenie Meyer’s 2005 novel and written by Melissa Rosenberg. Seventeen-year-old Bella Swan moves from Phoenix, Arizona to live with her father, Charlie, who is the police chief in Forks, Washington. Her mother Renée is remarried to a minor league baseball player named Phil. In Forks, Bella reunites with her childhood friend Jacob Black, who lives on the nearby Quileute Indian Reservation with his father Billy. At ...

Let the Right One In (2008) is a Swedish romantic horror film directed by Tomas Alfredson, adapted from John Ajvide Lindqvist’s 2004 novel of the same name. Set in 1982, the story follows 12-year-old Oskar and his mother Yvonne, who live in the western Stockholm suburb of Blackeberg. Oskar is constantly tormented by his peers and takes solace in collecting news articles about murders while daydreaming about revenge. One night, he meets a pale girl named Eli who has recently moved in next door with her caretaker Håkan. At first, Eli rejects Oskar’s friendship ...

Underworld: Evolution (2006), an American action horror film, is directed by Len Wiseman and written by Danny McBride, based on a story developed by both of them. In the year 1202, an army led by three vampire elders (Markus, Viktor, and Amelia) attacks a village occupied by werewolves. During the assault, Markus’s twin brother William Corvinus, the first and most powerful werewolf, is captured by Viktor and Amelia. Despite Markus’s objections, Viktor orders William to be imprisoned in a hidden location for eternity. In present day, vampire Selene brings ...

Blade: Trinity (2004), an American superhero film, was written and directed by David S. Goyer, who also penned the screenplays for Blade and Blade II. In the movie, a group of vampires investigate an ancient tomb in the Syrian Desert believed to belong to Dracula, also known as ‘Drake’. To prevent Blade from interfering, they frame him for the murder of a human familiar. Subsequently, FBI agents locate Blade’s hideout and fatally wound his mentor and friend Abraham Whistler. Feeling defeated, Blade turns himself in and is taken into custody. The vampires’ familiars arrange for Blade to ...

In the action horror film Van Helsing (2004), written and directed by Stephen Sommers, we are taken to 1887 Transylvania. There, Doctor Victor Frankenstein works with his assistant Igor and Count Dracula in creating a monster. However, when Frankenstein refuses to follow Dracula’s plans for the creature, he is killed by the vampire. Meanwhile, Igor stands by and watches without emotion. As a mob approaches the castle, the monster escapes to a windmill with Frankenstein’s body. The windmill is set on fire by the angry mob, seemingly killing the monster. One year later, Gabriel Van Helsing, a renowned monster ...

TNT aired the two-part television miniseries Salem’s Lot (2004) on June 20 and June 21 2004. On Thanksgiving in Detroit, Ben Mears attacks priest Donald Callahan at a homeless shelter. As they confront each other in Callahan’s office, Mears is shot and the ensuing struggle sends them both out a window onto a police car below. They are then hospitalized, where an orderly questions Mears about his motives for attacking a priest as a fellow Christian. Mears responds with ‘Jerusalem’s Lot’ before recounting his past to the orderly. Two years prior, he had returned to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot (also known as ‘Salem’s ...

Underworld (2003) is an action horror film that marks Len Wiseman’s debut as a feature film director. The screenplay was written by Danny McBride, based on a story co-authored by Kevin Grevioux, Wiseman himself, and McBride. For centuries, vampires and Lycans – an ancient race of werewolves – have been locked in a hidden battle. After the apparent death of Lycan leader Lucian at the hands of vampire Kraven, ...

Scooby-Doo and the Legend of the Vampire (2003) is an American direct-to-video animated adventure film, and the fifth installment in a series of movies based on the classic Scooby-Doo cartoons. The Mystery Inc. gang find themselves aboard a cruise ship headed to Australia for a much-needed vacation. After exploring Sydney and its famous Bondi Beach, they stumble upon a flyer advertising a music festival at Vampire Rock. Intrigued, they decide to venture into the outback to check it out. Along their journey, they encounter various native animals and learn about the legend of the Yowie Yahoo, an Australian vampire said to inhabit Vampire Rock. As they approach the ...

Blade II (2002), an American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character, was directed by Guillermo del Toro and written by David S. Goyer. In Prague, our protagonist Blade sets out to find his mentor Abraham Whistler, who was believed to be deceased after an attack by Deacon Frost but instead was turned into a vampire and held captive for two years. After questioning vampire Rush about Whistler’s whereabouts, Blade successfully rescues him and cures him of his vampirism. Whistler then meets Scud, a young and talented technician working with Blade. ...

Queen of the Damned (2002), a horror film directed by Michael Rymer and written by Scott Abbott and Michael Petroni, is based on the 1988 novel The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice. This adaptation incorporates elements from its prequel, The Vampire Lestat, published in 1985. A nu metal band’s music awakens the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt from a long slumber, prompting him to join as their lead singer. The ensemble, known as The Vampire Lestat, finds global ...

Angel (1999–2004), an American supernatural TV series, is a spinoff of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was created by Joss Whedon, who also created and directed Buffy. Along with David Greenwalt, Whedon produced the show which aired on The WB from October 5, 1999 to May 19, 2004 for five seasons and 110 episodes. Like its predecessor, Angel was also produced by Mutant Enemy. The show chronicles the challenges faced by Angel, a vampire whose soul was returned to him after a Romani curse as punishment ...

Blade (1998) is an American superhero film directed by Stephen Norrington and written by David S. Goyer. It is based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. In 1967, a pregnant woman is attacked and dies, while doctors are able to save her baby. Thirty years later, that baby has grown up to become Blade, a hybrid with supernatural abilities similar to those of vampires. However, unlike them, he does not have their weaknesses except for the need to consume human blood. During a raid on a Los Angeles rave club owned by vampire Deacon Frost, Blade encounters Karen ...

The American horror film, The Night Flier (1997), is an adaptation of Stephen King’s short story from 1988 with the same title. It follows Richard Dees, a skeptical journalist who lives by the motto ‘Never publish what you believe and never believe what you publish’. His boss at Inside View, Merton Morrison, tasks him with investigating a string of murders at small airports. The killer, known as Dwight Renfield, fancies himself a vampire. At first, Dees declines the assignment and it gets passed on to rookie reporter Katherine Blair. However, after two more killings occur at another airfield with ...

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003) is a popular American supernatural drama television series, written and directed by Joss Whedon. It is based on his 1992 film of the same name, although the two are separate productions. Whedon headed Mutant Enemy Productions as executive producer and showrunner. The show has been highly acclaimed, often being ranked among the greatest television series of all time. Original airings reached four to six million viewers, which was considered successful for the relatively new and smaller WB Television Network. While it did not receive ...

From Dusk till Dawn (1996), a thrilling American action horror film, was both directed and written by esteemed filmmakers Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino. In the opening scene, fugitive brothers Seth and Richie Gecko commit a violent robbery at a liquor store that results in the deaths of a clerk and Texas Ranger. As they flee, they accidentally cause the building to explode. Later on, while hiding out in an inn room, Seth is livid to discover that his brother has killed a hostage they had taken. In another part of town, Jacob Fuller, a pastor struggling with grief ...

Tales from the Crypt Presents: Bordello of Blood (1996) is an American horror comedy film directed by Gilbert Adler. After an argument with his sister Katherine, Caleb Verdoux seeks refuge at a nearby dive bar. It’s there that he encounters an eccentric man named Jenkins, who reveals the existence of a secret brothel hidden within a funeral home. Intrigued, Caleb and his friend Reggie decide to investigate, only to be held at gunpoint by mortician McCutcheon. They are then forced to enter a coffin which leads them to the brothel – unbeknownst to them, it is run by vampires under the command of Lilith. As ...