Director: Michio Yamamoto
Year: 1971
Country: Japan
Alternate Titles: Noroi no yakata: Chi o suu me; Bloodsucking Eyes, Dracula's Lust for Blood
Genre: Vampire
Plot:
Arriving at a small lake-side town, a new teacher comes to suspect that someone is behind the strange incidents and dead bodies piling up around town, and when she learns that a master vampire has moved into the area she sets out to stop his blood-soaked reign against the villagers.
Review:
This was a decent enough if slightly flawed vampire effort. One of the few solid points involved here comes from the way this goes about trying to instill the idea of the vampire in the area as the build- up here is somewhat credible. Building the strange crate delivery alongside her arrival at the same time is quite nicely handled, and the first attacks, as well as the discovery of their aftermath, all come off rather well as the mystery starts to unfold. Even some of the fine action scenes throughout here, from the abduction in the woods before being startled away and the hospital resurrection of the first body to the idea of the nightly romps through the woods where he's able to feast on her friend despite continually denying it all makes for a rather fun time here and sells the idea of her mental competence rather well which runs through the first half of the film. Once it's confirmed that there are vampires involved, things pick up far more here with the Gothic action scenes really enhancing this one from the ambush in the car at the same time the two of them trap her in the home and begin tormenting her or the hospital awakening sequence give this some really energetic and lively moments. However, it's really the big confrontation at the end which really works best here with the Gothic imagery and action really making for a great finish and gives this one a lot to really like here with the way it all wraps up inside the basement and spreading throughout the rest of the house.
The cast is certainly a decent bunch yet don't get that much to work with. Midori Fujita is the best of the bunch as Akiko Kashiwagi, the woman returning to the house as she has plenty of depth, warmth and a fun backstory that makes her appealing and sympathetic despite some moments where she seems a bit wooden and blank. Her sister Natsuko, played by Sanae Emi, is a bit of a wet-blanket with her worrywort behavior and constant attempts to help her even though she does disappear in the second half as it becomes more horror-based. Chôei Takahashi plays Dr. Saeki, Akiko's boyfriend, much as one would expect as he's essentially there to be the one to discover everything and rush into action without doing much else here so he's merely a decent enough inclusion. Shin Kishida is a fine and chilling vampire, essaying the savageness and feral actions needed to convey a bloodsucker with a heritage which is conveyed really well in the few lines he has which make him a truly compelling and frightening figure easily stealing the film as a whole. The rest of the cast is there mainly for a body-count or just to spout off dialogue about the films' backstory so they're quite one-note side characters for the most part. Still, while these are the film's good points there are a few negative issues.
One of the main problems is the fact that the film really suffers from a stiff and dragged out beginning where not a whole lot really makes an impact. Despite the series of events that play out here detailing the emergence of the vampire around the village, it's still a somewhat dull and dragged-out effort where those brief spurts feel like exceptions to the bland dialogue-heavy sequences that are much more commonly featured so this one really feels like it takes a while to get going. By focusing on her burgeoning mental instability doesn't make for a fun time here regardless of how well the vampire storyline is built through these events, this one really takes more time than it should in letting loose with its story and comes across as somewhat duller than it should be considering what goes on. Likewise, there's also the rather economical manner this one manages to make the heroine think of her predicament and how she buys into it all, as a few throwaway lines regarding the Western methods of dealing with vampires and yet it's completely bought into without so much as a real questionable thought. This makes for a tough time overall, although it does still have its moments.
Overview: ***/5
While it has a few minor elements that don't make it as impressive as the original, there's more than enough to like here that it becomes an enjoyable enough effort on its own. This is certainly recommended to fans of the original or those seeking more of these particularly European-style Gothic horror efforts, while those that aren't that interested in these types of films should heed caution here.
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