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Daughters of Darkness | Classic I'm delighted this will be available on DVD. I watched it on VHS a long, long time ago. I'd heard about it in various books on vampire films and haunted every video store I could find to locate a viewing copy. When I finally found it, I watched it with the enthrallment of the very young with the object of an obsession. Based loosely on the story of Elisabet Bathory, this "contempory" tale is of a young newly wed couple who are seduced by a mysterious woman whose interest in them is predatory. Compared to current movie fare, this is extremely tame with it's allusions to S A mesmerizing and atypical vampire film "Daughters of Darkness" (originally titled "La rouge aux lèvres") is a 1971 Belgian-French-West German production directed by Harry Kümel that stars Delphine Seyrig as the Countess Elizabeth (Erzsebet) Bathory (a real historical figure who murdered hundreds of young women in her quest for immortality). In the film, Bathory and her young female companion (Andrea Rau) cross pathes with a young couple, Valerie and Stefan (played by Danielle Ouimet and John Karlen - Willie Loomis from TV's "Dark Shadows") who are honeymooning during the off-season in Europe. At first the couple seem fairly normal, but things quickly sour, as the woman is shown to be emotionally unstable and the man is very violent and turned on by death. Their relationship is also undermined by homosexuality on both sides. There are intimations that Stefan is in thrall to an older man back in England, and Valerie - of course - soon falls under the spell of the ageless and beautiful Countess Bathory. This mesmerizing and hypnotic film makes brilliant use of sound, mood, and color to paint an understatedly savage tableau, and it has a well-deserved cult following. It's probably too slow-moving for the average horror movie fan, however. "Daughters of Darkness" is very self-consciously an "art" film. The carefully constructed images, the nonsensical dialogue, the use of vivid reds and blues, and the extremely deliberate pacing all serve to create a film that - despite a few shockingly strange death scenes - is much closer in spirit to "Last Year at Marienbad" than it is to "The Lost Boys." A Bewitching Vampire Tale... Stefan, a British aristocrat with sadistic tendencies, and the beautiful Valerie, a simple girl, have eloped and are on their way home to break the news to Stefan's mother. However, Stefan is hesitant to bring his wife to see his mother as he delays the trip back to England on purpose by making up stories. The newlyweds decide to stay in an extravagant hotel on the seaside while Stefan attempts to buy some time. Stefan and Valerie are the only guests at the hotel besides the flamboyant Countess Bathory and her seductive secretary since it is off-season. During the stay the Countess Bathory has taken a liking to the couple and begins to seduce them both as she begins setting her wicked plan into action. Buy Daughters Of Darkness at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Daughters Of Darkness Search with the Priority Search Engine on Daughters Of Darkness This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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