Horror Classics: Lust for a Vampire (1971)

The second entry in the Karnstein Trilogy Falls Short

Hammer’s posters were great back then (Pinterest)

[embed]Horror Classics: Lust for a Vampire The second entry in the Karnstein Trilogy Falls Shortvocal.media

So, I posted a review that I’d written on The Vampire Lovers. The film received mixed reviews, but it was successful enough to warrant a sequel… Well, two sequels, actually. Lust for a Vampire was the first one.

Behind the Scenes

Lust for a Vampire was released in 1971. It was written by Tudor Gates and directed by Jimmy Sangster, and it was met with mixed-to-negative reviews. Getting the money to make the film was a challenge, as the first one (The Vampire Lovers) hadn’t even finished filming when the sequel was being pitched, and nobody knew whether it was going to work or not.

Additionally, there was some bad blood between the producers (Harry Fine and Mike Style) and director Jimmy Sangster. Originally, the film was meant to be directed by Terence Fisher — a veteran of Hammer Studios. Unfortunately, however, he ended up with a broken leg (if I remember right, he was hit by a car), and Sangster stepped in. Jimmy Sangster had a history of his own, having written both Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula in 1957 and 1958, respectively.

These films were very successful, but that didn’t stop the producers from treating him like dirt. This, of course, had a massive impact on the film as a whole.

The Story

The Awakening (The Movie Scene)

40 years after the last appearance of the Karnstein family, a mysterious man resurrects Carmilla Karnstein. The vampire temptress subsequently enrolls in a nearby finishing school for girls to feast on the students.

As one might expect, things go downhill very, very quickly from then on.

General Pros and Cons

1. The cinematography is very nice; this is something of a guarantee with Hammer productions, as they almost always have nice landscapes.
2. The music is…mostly good; the exception is a pop song called Strange Love which was included without the director's knowledge. Worse yet, the song was included in the film’s one and only sex scene.
3. Speaking of the sex scene, let’s look at that next. Apart from the song — Strange Love — the scene is set in a graveyard…weird and uncomfortable, yes. Worse yet, the scene is preceded by blackmail, which is just gross.
4. The film is also ridiculously slow, and the tone is also far campier than the previous films. Likewise, the characters are largely two-dimensional, and the costumes look like cheap Halloween costumes.

Standout Performances

Most of the performances, I thought, were pretty good, but there were a couple that were much stronger than others.

Mike Raven as the Man in Black

Mike Ravens (Pinterest)

I wasn’t too keen on seeing the man in black again, but this time he actually has a purpose. Apart from resurrecting Carmilla, he also helps to cover up her kills. Mike Ravens, the guy who played the character, was a radio DJ who had a major interest in the occult and used that to add a few bits of dialogue to the resurrection sequence.

Yutte Stensgaard as Carmilla Karnstein

Yutte Stensgaard (For It Is Man’s Number)

Ingrid Pitt was intended to reprise her role, but she was unavailable — having already been contracted to another Hammer production (Countess Dracula) to be released later in 1971. This was where Yutte Stensgaard came in.

Stensgaard was a Danish model and actress whom I believe had only a few bit-parts in television commercials. Her performance is a mixed bag. Sometimes it seems like she’s trying to emulate Ingrid Pitt’s performance in the previous film. Other times she seems to be very unsure of what she’s doing.

That said, she’s breathtaking on screen, and she has a definite presence even if her role feels largely underdeveloped.

Standout Scene

Giles Barton’s death stands out to me, as it’s one of Yutte Stensgaard’s more effective scenes. Barton and Carmilla meet in Karnstein Castle’s graveyard, and the teacher reveals that he knows who and what she is. From there he starts to plead with her to make him a servant — I’m throwing out a guess here because I don’t know if he wants to be a vampire himself or serve Carmilla as a human.

Either way, Carmilla just stands there. She says nothing, just smiles and feeds on Barton before walking away and leaving him to die. This is one of Stensgaard’s more effective scenes, as she acts entirely through facial expression. It’s probably the only scene where she seems genuinely threatening.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Lust for a Vampire is flawed, but it’s worth checking out if you’re into classic horror films. It’s got merit to it and I’d say it’s worth checking out.