Malenka

seen this one.. crazy little 60's flick. If you are a bad movie lover then you will love this one. Get a group of friends and trash on this one!

In commenting on the above comment from acidxian, I have this on dvd and it does have the ending with the vampire chasing the inn keeper lady, not sylvia. and the burning of the uncle is absolutely hilarious.. his head looks like a roasting marshmallow haha!

There are at least three prints of this film running loose these days ... Readers should NOT let the negative nellies dissuade them from seeking this film out -- it is a marvelous little bit of Eurotrash from one of the genre's finest directors when he was just flexing his muscles.

Most literature I have encountered on MALENKA agree that Ossorio's main inspriration was THE FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS aka DANCE OF THE VAMPIRES, but he injected the film with a decidedly Medeterranian air that caught on: In many circles, it is considered classic must-have required viewing at the Academy, Mr Spock kind of stuff.

BUT, you need to select your home viewing version carefully -- of the three most common forms that exist, the most familiar to us in America is a 75 - 80m "public domain" print that used to run on TV a lot, with the vampire chasing ending in place ... we have all seen it at one time or another. Then there is a second 96 - 98 minute European cut exported from Holland in the late 1980's -- it contains some additional "scientific" scenes and other dialogue, but NOT the gag ending with the vampire chasing Rosanna Yanni. The recommended version is actually out on DVD right now at places like Amazon under the name FANGS OF THE LIVING DEAD and released by a smallish company called Retromedia who "restored" a widescreen uncut British print for their DVD; uncut meaning that some of the slower scenes trimmed from the 80m public domain print are still in place.

What makes their DVD really come to life, though, is the care that went into making the print look good again. And after so many years of dingy, sepia rotted TV prints you will be shocked at what a beautiful, HARMLESS and fun movie this is -- I'd rather watch MALENKA with my eyes held open by toothpicks than ever have to sit through garbage like INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, DRACULA 2000 or FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA PRESENTS BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA: A FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA FILM ever again. Gawd ...

Amando de Ossorio was one of the great directors of Spanish horror, and this film, also known as Malenka, occurs when he was really hitting this stride.

There are reportedly three versions of this film, and this one is the best. It is a beautiful print, and we see Swedish star Anita Ekberg (La Dolce Vita, Boccaccio '70, Killer Nun) in all her beauty.

It is a campy film, so there is no nudity or blood here. Despite the buxom women throughout, it is harmless fun.

Sometimes a vampire movie is more than blood and nudity. Sometimes, it's just a great way to kill 75 minutes.

FANGS OF THE LIVING DEAD (1969) * Anita Ekberg, Julián Ugarte, Gianni Medici, Diana Lorys. In this 1969 film by Amando de Ossorio (Tombs of the Blind Dead) Ekberg plays an Italian fashion model who inherits a creepy Spanish castle, only to learn that her ancestors were vampires. The sets and costumes are beautiful, but can't compensate for the stiff performances, poor dubbing and slow pacing. Avoid the Retromedia DVD version. Even though it purports to be the 88-minute "Americanized" version of the film, it's only 74 minutes and appears to be an edited-for-television version.

"Fangs of the Living Dead" or "Malenka" (depending on which version) is a decent film of the genre. Some of the cast actually starred in "Frankenstein's Bloody Terror": Julian Ugarte, Rosanna Yanni and Carlos Casaravilla. Anita Ekberg is passable as Silvia Morel, a model who inherits a castle. Come to find out, her uncle is a vampire and he has plans for Silvia to join him. The question I have about the ending is what happens to the two vampire chicks at the end? This may be an edited version that leaves out the answer. The acting is decent but the dubbing isn't very good. The sets and backdrops are almost the equal of Hammer studios. Rosanna Yanni and Diana Lorys are very beautiful. The character of Pietro's friend provides comic relief-he really stands out in this film. This is worth viewing at least once.