SYNOPSICS
Vampyr (1932) is a German movie. Carl Theodor Dreyer has directed this movie. Julian West,Maurice Schutz,Rena Mandel,Sybille Schmitz are the starring of this movie. It was released in 1932. Vampyr (1932) is considered one of the best Fantasy,Horror movie in India and around the world.
Allan Gray arrives late in the evening to a secluded riverside inn in the hamlet of Courtempierre. An old man enters his room, puts a sealed parcel on the table, blurts out that some woman mustn't die, and disappears. Gray senses in this a call for help. He puts the parcel in his pocket, and goes out. Eerie shadows lead him into an old house, where he encounters a weird village doctor. The doctor receives a bottle of poison from a strange, old woman. Through the window of an old castle Gray recognizes the old man from the inn. A shadow shoots the man, who drops dead. Inside the house Gray finds his two daughters, Gisèle and Léone, and some servants. He opens the parcel, and finds an old book about vampires. Léone is seriously ill after being bitten by a vampire. Instead of helping her, the village doctor places the bottle of poison at her bedside table, and then abducts her sister Gisèle. An old servant starts reading the old book, and finds out that the vampire in Courtempierre is a ...
Fans of Vampyr (1932) also like
Same Director
Vampyr (1932) Reviews
A Note About the Film and Sound Quality
I can't improve on the fine reviews of the movie itself, but there are two major factors connected with the making of the film that may have been overlooked. If by "poor quality," the reference is to the washed out, somewhat spotty look of the print, please be aware that this was deliberate. Cinematographer Matté had accidently opened a can of exposed film, and when Dreyer saw the result, he was delighted. It was just the effect he had been looking for. "Vampyr" was originally shot as a silent. It was only later half-dubbed with voice-overs. Again, however, like the fortuitous "damage" to the print, the sparse and somewhat vague, even incoherent, dialogue contributes to the sense of dislocation which, I believe, is one of the great virtues of this genre masterpiece. Like many, the first time I saw "Vampyr" I was put off by its obscurity and, yes, the "mutilated" video and audio. But as I saw more Dreyer and learned to stop trying to deconstruct the thing, I really began to like it. Now, I love it. If your first viewing of "Vampyr" leaves you the way it left me the first time, don't give up on it. It's on video, so buy a copy and pick your moments to watch it. You'll be rewarded. An aside: Julian West, who played the lead, was also backer of the film and is credited, along with Dreyer, as producer. He is said to have been as spacey in real life as he was in character.
Visually stunning: The artistic representation of a nightmare
"Vampyr", one of the first horror movies with sound, is the work of the highly influential danish director Carl Theodor Dreyer. After directing the monumental "La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc" in 1928, Dreyer decided to make this modest film based on the novel "In a Glass Darkly" by Sheridan Le Fanu; while this is indeed his first movie with sound, it was conceived as a silent film, and the movie contains very few dialog. I must admit that as many, I was left with a big question mark in my face as the story was progressing; but the apparently disjointed storyline do make sense, as it is worked as a surreal experience of the lead character, it is as if Dreyer had filmed a nightmare, complete with the haunting images and eerie atmosphere. The movie is about a traveler, named Allan Grey (Julian West), who gets involved in a nightmarish plot when the owner of the inn where he is staying asks him for help to save his family from what he believes is a vampire. We follow Allan Grey in his surrealistic trip to madness as he finds out more and more about the supposed vampire that haunts the manor turned inn. The highly inventive camera work is truly outstanding, the combination of light and darkness is among the finest work in a black & white film and alone makes the movie worth a look; the movie not only has the structure of a nightmare, it also looks like one. The Gothic manor and the lonely rural exteriors increase the haunting atmosphere and the beautiful images Dreyer conceived are the work of a genius. The structure of the script may be complicated, but it shows its influence over David Lynch and other filmmakers with similar surrealist story lines and dreamlike sequences. It is probably not a masterpiece of the likes of the aforementioned "Passion" or the more well-known "Day of Wrath" (Vredens dag, 1943), but "Vampyr" shines with its own light as one of the finest horror movies of that period. The only real flaw in my opinion, was that the lead actor, Julian West, was probably not the best choice for a lead role, as his acting seems unnatural and not believable. I'm not sure if this was intended that way or had more to do with the fact that West produced the film, but it is my only complain about "Vampyr". This modest masterpiece is a must see for any horror fan or anyone who likes silent movies. It is a nightmarish trip to the darker parts of the subconscious mind. 8/10
Required Viewing!
Brilliant! Breathtaking! This film was worth the long wait I imposed on myself to see it. It is not the most cohesive narrative about, but it has images that linger with you....haunt you. The film is basically a silent with some speaking. It tells a story about Allan Grey and how he was introduced into a vampire's conspiracy to kill two sisters. Grey is brought in for aid by their father who dies while trying to fight the infection coursing through his daughter's veins. What then follows is pure cinematic magic as Grey...opening a book that the father wrote was to be opened upon his death...begins reading the book on vampires whilst it is going on right around him. The mixture of action and the text from the book create a wonderfully eerie atmosphere and convey a feeling of dread and despair. There are many scenes in Vampyr, directed with fluidity by Carl Dreyer, that are incredibly well-done. The dream sequence in particular explores various camera angles, hitherto not used. As I said before, it is not the tightest story and it has some gaping holes in the plot that are never explained, but that really is not very important because the film succeeds as a film of haunting imagery...fear based on illusion and shadows.
Rewards the patient viewer.
Vampyr is the strange and dream-like tale of Allan Gray, seeker of the supernatural, encountering a case of vampirism in a small French village. Images of ghost-like forms flit across a small river, shadows detach themselves from their owners and move around of their own accord; astral forces impinge upon this never-world and at the heart of all the horror is a crone-like vampire, preying on the life blood of a young girl. For those used to a narrative story-telling style of cinema - well, you'd better forget it right here. Much is left unexplained, characters wander in and out of the film with no introduction, and in one sequence in particular the astral shade of the hero departs his body and witnesses it being placed in a coffin and buried, while the vampire and her slaves look in through the glass face plate. This scene has an eerie power that is unforgettable. Many modern viewers will no doubt dismiss Vampyr as slow and boring; certainly the film takes some effort to absorb. However the oneiric flavour of the piece will come to haunt you; you will feel yourself becoming a part of this shadow-realm as you watch. You can ignore the sudden shifts in both language and conversation - everyone seems to be on the verge of saying something important, and then stops. Indeed sometimes the dialogue makes no logical sense. It is the pervading mood that is important rather than the story, or lack of it. But what you are left with is a feeling of evil incarnate in the form of the vampire, and perhaps it's her influence that turns the film into this compelling and starkly imaged nightmare. Once seen Vampyr is never forgotten, but it certainly isn't for everyone.
Surrender to Vampyr's eerie, dreamlike world....
With its fragmented plot, eerie imagery, and air of undefined menace this film more nearly realises the dream state than any other film I've seen. The story, which follows a young man's discovery of vampiric doings while on a trip to the country, is secondary to the fascinatingly uncanny mood generated by the cinematography and effective use of sound and silence. Yes, yes, it's old and unconventional, and requires either some extra concentration or complete surrender to its unique world, but the effort is worth it. Vampyr should especially appeal to fans of cinefantastique, cinema history and maybe even the arthouse crowd.