Vampire story. Even though it has vague origins, many people connect it with the literature, art and cinema that gave birth to the likes of Dracula. In medieval times during the onset of plague in the feudal societies, these whispers about a horrifying creature could be heard. The telltale signs of plague victims had blood dripping from their mouths which gave rise to dread that they might be supernatural beings who had come to sip lifeblood from innocent souls. But like many other mythical creatures, vampirism has transcended human natures and its 21st century example is Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
However, with the inception of film and moving pictures as forms of artistic media, vampires got a whole new lease on life in popular culture. This undead monster metamorphosed into something different in various contemporary movies such as Twilight and Buffy the Vampire Slayer or even silent films for instance Nosferatu in 1923 thereby becoming a multifaceted metaphor for immortality’s dangers, betrayal, solitude and abandonment of humanity. From society’s point of view this vampire can be seen as either an avenging villain or an enticing lover who drags another person into sin.
In 1839 Aleksey Tolstoy published a gothic novella called “The Family of The Vourdalak.” It started as a French story by Tolstoy before being translated into Russian prior to publication. There were several vampire related stories written by Tolstoy throughout his life but none ever saw the light of publishing day. In this tale, a young Frenchman ends up in a Serbian village where he discovers that its patriarch has gone missing. When he returns he is no longer alive; consequently his family along with his fellow village dwellers must bear the brunt thereof. The novella was adapted for feature film release under the title ‘The Taste of Blood’ in 2022.
In fact, it was released in 2020 during international film festival circuits as an Argentina-Singapore joint production. Spanish horror films have been popping up with deserved recognition lately and this is one of them. It is being distributed more extensively by Cleopatra Entertainment, the movie arm of indie music label Cleopatra Records. This is not surprising since most of the company’s movies lean on darker elements of horror genre, and they picked this film. It comes out on Blu-Ray and streaming May 10th, 2022.
A Taste of Blood was directed and written by Santiago Fernández Calvete who has been a key part of Argetinian film for years now. As a writer he has previously worked on titles like The Exorcism of God and The White Devil while his directed projects include Intimate Witness and The Second Death. He also has a number of other horror and thriller movies as well as TV shows to his name thus making him potentially befitting for such content as that found in this new movie among others. German Palacios, Tomas Carullo Lizzio, Naiara Awada, Lautaro Bettoni, Alfosina Carrocio are some notable cast members in A Taste of Blood.
A Taste of Blood is a very ambitious movie even at the beginning. Too much is revealed in the opening scenes, possibly spoiling some parts of the story for viewers through a prologue. Saying simple things about a doll like “her eyes are bigger” so “she can see the whole world,” is two-edged; something loaded with sense. When their eyes are bigger, they truly do see the world—but this also means that it may be looking at it through fear with wide open eyes.
After having hunted vampires all night long, a father who knows all about these shadows returns home late in the evening. After going past a vampire on her way home from school, his daughter gets entangled in this unfortunate sequence of events. She was defying him by sneaking out to see a boy but when she runs into an unknown deadly stranger claiming to be related to her, that begins the main conflict of the movie.
His family, not suspecting anything wrong, did not know that he has become one of them –a vampire. It was sunrise when he came back home leaving questions as to whether transformation had taken place or not. The vampire is known as vourdalak in this particular world just like in its original Tolstoy story and it must feed upon and transform only those within its bloodline. Of course, if he actually turned into one then this could go horribly wrong but he wouldn’t make a good film if he stayed human would he?
The core theme of this movie, however, is family drama.A romantic subplot between his daughter and her boyfriend serves as one thread running underneath; while it’s Vourdalak nature keeps driving forward both conflict and story line.Family members start arguing over whether or not he has been bitten leading to lack of trust amongst themselves and suspicion that maybe other members too might not be what they seem.Their fears about their father become externalized; worrying more that other vampires out there are targeting them specifically, rather than the world around. All of a sudden, the estate that had previously been so safe with nobody allowed to go out has become a dangerous place where everything is possible.
Paranoia runs through this movie even after it could have ended far earlier than it does. The Spanish to English transition by the characters is extremely methodical and awkward especially in the beginning of the film. This might well have been intentional as it creates a barrier and an unsettling rhythm that sets its pace apart making some characters look like strangers even though they are at home in society. On second thought, though, something was not quite right about the English dubbing. A few characters seemed to speak in dialects used within their setting while for others, nothing changed.
The father, who speaks Spanish exclusively and has the languages juxtaposed, seems like someone out of time. When he catches her daughter with a boy, he grounds her for one year and that makes her decide to run away from home. In this contemporary setting, it is surprising that he initially knows and believes in old myths about vampires. Additionally, he subjects his daughter to many strict rules. She is not permitted to date, have friends or even leave the family’s premises according to him. Although he resembles another epoch in cinema history gone by, the vampires in this film are far different from those seen in most Westerns. Possibly they’re immortal; however, it’s made known later on that they drink their relatives’ blood.
Cinematography is by far the best part of A Taste Of Blood. The movie starts off with an open tracking shot of a car moving along some back roads before cutting to a girl fixing her dress inside a car mirror. Throughout the movie there is always generous amount of rich visuals and images with lush scenery as well as vivid pictures such as when a girl fixes herself up inside a car mirror and it is all through cuts like these ones that you can see just how liberal film actually is today. These indie songs scattered throughout could almost be considered distracting at times rather than helpful because they seem out-of-place for a horror thriller especially during scenes where characters are talking about relationships or doing other non-threatening things but no matter what happens they still seem appropriate enough without going too far out into left field.
If A Taste Of Blood were able to overcome its limitations then it would stand above all other vampire films ever made. That was until she went back upriver after and saw the final panel according to him which says “I’m sorry”. For instance here’s what she said during one scene: “What happened?” Unfortunately though unlike most modern day vampire movies featuring action sequels today we never ever get any answer about this question being ignored on the screen of A Taste Of Blood. As soon as the story starts to suck you into its vortex, an ill-timed song completely changes the film’s atmosphere.
A Taste Of Blood could have been a standout vampire film if it did not have these shortcomings. The movie would be better without its original subtitles and music; it would actually exhibit a kind of newness that no other vampire films have had for some time now. Apart from English dubbing, the cast’s acting is pretty good adding to the overall mood of tension throughout. The two main actors in this film are those who give the best performances. In fact, despite all arguments against it ever working out because father happens to think they’re just out there somewhere else beyond his reach where life goes on with or without him even though deep down inside him we know that things can never really be like before again.
Santiago Calvete Fernández deviated from the original story when he was making this movie but was rewarded for his creativity and innovation. It jumps straight into suspense after one arc dedicated to establishing characters in this world through first half of the picture. Yes, it may seem logical that they should get out of there as quickly as possible because nobody would want their own sibling killed whereas family will always remain by your side until death regardless what anybody says although at times we should really wonder why any parent would not simply pack up their bags and flee town forever rather than staying behind while letting these vampires continue preying upon others’ lives right under noses? And that is the charm of a movie like A Taste Of Blood: It’s not just another vampire flick! It asks moral questions like this: Could you kill your own dad if it meant your survival?
Watch free movies on Fmovies
