To Die For

To Die For (1989) was just another d.t.v. feature that made an appearance on cable ad nasuem during the early nineties. The only thing notable about this feature was the last movie Duane Jones appeared in. Other than that there's no reason to watch this vampire flick unless you like pseudo chick flicks masquerading as a horror film. A tired vampire longs for love and searches the back streets of L.A. looking for it. Will he succeed or will Vlad just strike out again like he has for the last century?

This movie must have been big because a couple of sequels soon followed. They're so bad they make this one look like a classic. I know this is a movie about vampires but the film makers could have used to lighting.

Not recommended by me because I didn't like it.

'nuff said?

What a gem of a movie, so good that they made a sequel.

The film starts off really good with a nasty monster who eats a few people and a party where the 2 main characters first set eyes on each other.

Bendan Hughes plays the eccentric Vlad, a bit of an inkling there to who this character is, who has moved into town and uses the services of a particular real estate agent to find him a house.

Hell, we've all seen vampire movies, we know the format.

The movie is watchable, but the actors' performances are very wooden and they seem as they don't want to be in this film, but may be that's just all part of the decadent ambiance.

Didn't like the ending, but there is a sequel, must track it down.

When I watched the film I thought Brendan Hughes didn't really fit the part. Later on, I couldn't stop thinking about him, he sort of exudes an eerie sensuality, so maybe he was right for the part.

BRENDAN HUGHES Last seen in 'Hitler - the rise of evil' as Lt. Guffman.

Where is he now?

The pacing of this movie was much too slow (it takes a full 3 minutes just to start), and, aside from the initial meeting at the party, you can pretty much skip ahead to thirty minutes in without missing anything important. However it isn't until halfway through that things get more interesting. Vlad's old nemesis livens up an otherwise plodding storyline.

Special effects wise, some of the scenes are quite gruesome, while others are cheesy. The monster-like vampire design is unappealing and adds nothing to the story. Indeed, all the mysterious vampire attack scenes feel like they are from a different movie all together. The castle facade looks horrible by day light, and there being only one such scene,you get the idea they didn't realize that till it was too late.

The acting is also uneven, sometimes cheesy and overdone, sometimes compelling. (The actress playing Cici did evil rather well) The investigators/cops were completely pointless, doing little more than being scene filler.

The ending is much to melodramatic.

That being said, I don't think it's a bad movie, but do yourself a favour and multi task while it's on!

Real estate broker Kate Wooten (Sydney Walsh) is having trouble finding love while her roommate Ceila (Amanda Wyss) is now engaged to her fiancé Mike (Micah Grant). While attending a business party with her friend Martin (Scott Jacoby), Kate meets the enigmatic and charming Vlad Tepes (Brendan Hughes) who cultivates a romantic relationship with her unaware he is in fact the infamous Vlad the Impaler inspiration for the legend of Dracula.

To Die For is a 1989 low budget horror film produced by Greg H. Sims who was a fan of horror films including Dracula films and sought to approach the material more in the vein of a love story than a standard horror film. While only a modest performer in its initial release (though successful enough to spawn a direct-to-video/cable sequel) and mostly forgotten today, To Die For is actually a reasonably enjoyable film.

While To Die For doesn't stray too far from the established formula of vampire films trading in 19th century Wallachia for contemporary West Coast United States, the movie still tries to play itself as a straight gothic romance only within a modern day setting. With movies such as The Lost Boys and Fright Night became commercial successes by incorporating both horror and camp (as per the style of the time) while more serious such as The Hunger tended to be ignored by the public, you have to admire Sims for his commitment to making a vampire movie without a single twinge of irony to it despite the pethora of comparatively lighter teen skewing fare that had dominated the decade's depiction (for better or worse). Brendan Hughes and Sydney Walsh have solid chemistry as Vlad and Kate respectively and you do find yourself invested in the outcome of this story. I will say the writing is maybe a touch sloppy with a few too many characters and tangents for an 84 minute runtime with Scott Jacoby feeling somewhat edged out of the movie along with Micah Grant who probably could've been merged into the same character, and parts involving Celia or Steve Bond's Tom feel like they could've used some more breathing room. But minor gripes aside, Sims and his crew set out to create a serious minded vampire love story and they delivered on that front. I'd also be remised in my duty if I didn't mention they impressive effects work of John Carl Buechler (which also earned the film an X rating before an appeal) and we get some solid if sparingly used vampire slaying sequences and transformation effects even if parts like the Vampire's telekinesis are a little eyebrow raising.

I'll be the first to admit I have a soft spot for vampire films and you could argue maybe I'm being a little too generous here, but I like what I like. For a scant $1 million To Die For delivers on what it promises.

I watched movie few times since I was a teenager. I did like it , yes it could use some work and added some more in scenes that were lacking, but overall decent movie.