Blood

BLOOD starts out as a story about a woman named Lix (Lee Blakemore) who is rescued by two men from a horrible situation. Lix has been found strapped to a chair with a muzzle on her face. Her captors have been systematically draining her of blood.

However, all is not as it appears to be, and Lix's rescuers soon discover the terror they've inadvertently brought upon themselves.

BLOOD is a British horror film reminiscent of early Cronenberg. It's strange and disturbing in that sort of cold, clinical way.

Recommended for those looking for a radically different take on the vampire story, with an addiction subtext...

I'll admit right off the bat that there are some very graphic and disturbing scenes involving sexual intercourse and blood-drinking done simultaneously. But those scenes only enhance what is essentially a moving and powerful melodrama.

There are so many themes and ideas involved with this movie, like drug addiction, infidelity, shattered dreams, alienation, doomed love...the list goes on. This is one of a few "horror" movies where in the end, I really felt more sad and depressed for the characters rather than shocked or frightened. The writing and especially the performances are superb and they bring the insanely original and unique premise down to earth, making it perfectly understandable. And they leave enough information of the origin of Lix out during most of the movie so you're allowed to guess and wonder where exactly she came from.

The direction is also done very well. It's stylish, but not too stylish, not too over-the-top. Charly Cantor never once goes for style-over-substance. If I have one complaint about the movie, it's that the scene involving the three junkies coming back for Lix is done a bit carelessly and hustled. But I think that whole subplot might have been unnecessary anyway, so I'm not too hung up on it. The music, done by Erasure's Vince Clarke, is also fantastic. His deep dark synths and mournful piano melodies fit the mood of the movie perfectly, and the songs picked for the soundtrack fit rather nicely as well.

This movie is literally a rare find. On Dec. 30th, 2003, I suddenly found it brand new for rental at a videostore. So hopefully anyone who ever wanted to see this will finally get a chance, or anyone who was never aware of it will be treated to something very special indeed. But I am afraid this will likely stay one of the most underrated and unappreciated (as well as unknown) movies ever made, which is such a shame. My rating: 8/10

The ideas about genetic engineering in this film are great. Way ahead of its time. It is for sci-fi and horror fans who like to see, "this could really happen," types of films. It is emotionally creepy. Like you kind of know you'd screw up too if put in the same situations. It is funny too. I know people seem to like high flash, high-tech, and high suspense. But all of that is just cheap when you have a good story. It should be re-released with a different name and it would do well, perhaps, "Genetic Freak" or "I really need you." This film is about the failure of love and the arrogance of thinking you can make the world a better place.

Good idea, good filming, fair/good acting BUT who forgot to cut the film, and was it really necessary to explain the plot down to the last comma for the audience? Both these problems will be fairly solved if approximately one hour is removed, preferably by razors

This film was originally completed in 1998 but the end result was so long and so boring that I still found myself yawning whilst watching it on fast forward. It obviously didn't sell so the producers re-cut it and re-released it in 2000. However, I doubt this act of desperation can undo the tedious self indulgence of this amateur work.