Lesbian Vampire Killers
UK, 2009
Director: Phil Claydon
Starring: Mathew Horne, James Corden, Paul McGann, MyAnna Buring
IMDB: 5.1
With a title that combines three staples of exploitation cinema - lesbians, vampires, and killers - I was hoping this might be another entry in the ever-growing pantheon of superb modern exploitation films. Unfortunately, its not that kind of film.
LVK is in fact a low-brow horror comedy that seems firmly geared towards the teen market, rather than a genre entry for exploitation or horror aficionados. You could be excused for expecting, from the title alone, a mysogynistic guilty pleasure ... hot naked vampire chicks getting it on in a hedonistic orgy of blood and sex. And while there is certainly a bit of that in the mix, its very much 'hedonism-lite'. A homogenised, watered down facsimile of our fevered imaginings.
There are a few wet and squirty kills, but they're played for laughs. In the LVK universe vampire blood looks suspiciously like man-yoghurt, which if intentional, adds another layer of meaning to the double-entendre infused script. This is something different and works well.
The art direction was very impressive, working with what looks like a fairly small budget and achieving some memorable visuals (see screenshots). There are also some genuinely funny moments of physical comedy.
Overall however, LVK was a disappointment - a film that for me at least, does not live up to its raunchy title. This is certainly due to the fact I was hoping for something more exploitative. I suspect that if you go into this expecting your average horror comedy, you will come out quite happy ... especially if you are a fan of silly Brit comedies like Hot Fuzz.
Rating: 5.5/10
Screenshots (click to enlarge)
