Sang et passion

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?

I love vampire films, except for when the vamps in question are emotionally tormented lovesick romantics: I want my vampires to be thoroughly evil and vicious, ripping out throats and draining virgins of blood, not getting all sappy over a woman. To Die For is a tacky, '80s, straight-to-video effort that features a particularly drippy vampire in the form of Vlad Tepish (Brendan Hughes), who falls for L. A. real estate agent Kate Wooten (Sydney Walsh), whose job it is to find Vlad a suitably gothic property in which to hold lavish soirées (she finds him a really gaudy mock castle). Out to sabotage Vlad's romantic intentions is rival vampire Tom (Steve Bond), who holds a centuries-old grudge against Tepish; meanwhile, Kate's friend Celia (Amanda Wyss) develops an obsession for Vlad.

The bulk of this film consists of the aforementioned mawkish romance, and it is extremely tedious, with very little in the way of horror. MUFX man John Carl Buechler provides some rubbery vampire hands and impressive sets of fangs (when in full on vamp-mode, Vlad and Tom possess several rows of sharp gnashers), but he is only given the chance to really impress with his effects in the film's two vampire melt scenes: Celia becomes a gloopy mess after been partially decapitated and staked through the heart, and Vlad disintegrates in the final act, committing suicide by exposing himself to sunlight.

If Embrace of the Vampire (1995) and Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) are your idea of a good vampire films, then have at it, but To Die for is anything but in my opinion.

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!

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.

This is a very underrated vampire movie. I think it was one of the best vampire films ever made. It has a great cast (Brendan Hughes is just so sexy), good acting, a traditional, but different story, it has everything. The only thing I did not like about this movie was that SOME, not all, of the death scenes are cheesy. This movie was very romantic and when you watch it, you feel hypnotized. I strongly recommend this movie to everyone!