''Lust for a Vampire'', also known as ''Love for a Vampire'' or ''To Love a Vampire'' (the latter title was the one used on American television), is a 1971 British

Hammer Horror Hammer Film Productions Ltd. is a British film production company based in London. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic fiction, Gothic horror and fantasy films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Many of thes ...

film directed by Jimmy Sangster, starring Ralph Bates,

Barbara Jefford Mary Barbara Jefford, OBE (26 July 1930 – 12 September 2020) was a British actress, best known for her theatrical performances with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Old Vic and the National Theatre and her role as Molly Bloom in the 1 ...

, Suzanna Leigh, Michael Johnson, and

Yutte Stensgaard Yutte Stensgaard (born 14 May 1946) is a Danish actress born in Thisted, Jutland, Denmark, best known for her starring role in Hammer's '' Lust for a Vampire'' (1971). Career Born Jytte Stensgaard, she moved to the United Kingdom to improve her ...

. It was given an ''R'' rating in the United States for some violence, gore, strong adult content and nudity. It is the second film in the Karnstein Trilogy, loosely based on the 1872 Sheridan Le Fanu novella ''

Carmilla ''Carmilla'' is an 1872 Gothic novella by Irish author Sheridan Le Fanu and one of the early works of vampire fiction, predating Bram Stoker's '' Dracula'' (1897) by 26 years. First published as a serial in ''The Dark Blue'' (1871–72), the ...

''. It was preceded by ''

The Vampire Lovers ''The Vampire Lovers'' is a 1970 British Gothic horror film directed by Roy Ward Baker and starring Ingrid Pitt, Peter Cushing, George Cole, Kate O'Mara, Madeline Smith, Dawn Addams and Jon Finch. It was produced by Hammer Film Productions. I ...

'' (1970) and followed by ''

Twins of Evil ''Twins of Evil'' (also known as ''Twins of Dracula'') is a 1971 British horror film directed by John Hough and starring Peter Cushing, with Damien Thomas and the real-life identical twins and former ''Playboy'' Playmates Mary and Madeleine ...

'' (1971). The three films do not form a chronological development, but use the Karnstein family as the source of the vampiric threat and were somewhat daring for the time in explicitly depicting lesbian themes. Production of ''Lust for a Vampire'' began not long after the release of ''The Vampire Lovers''. The film has a

cult following A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

, although some Hammer Horror fans have accused it of being overly

camp Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

. Its most noted scene shows Yutte Stensgaard drenched in blood and partially covered by blood-soaked rags, although the filmed scene is not as explicit as that shown in a promotional still. Other notable actors in the film are Harvey Hall (who has a different role in each film of this series), David Healy and popular radio DJ

Mike Raven Austin Churton Fairman (15 November 1924 – 4 April 1997), who used the name Churton Fairman but was more widely known under the pseudonym Mike Raven in the 1960s and early 1970s, was a British radio disc jockey, actor, sculptor, sheep farmer, ...

as Count Karnstein. Karnstein's voice, however, is dubbed by an uncredited

Valentine Dyall Valentine Dyall (7 May 1908 – 24 June 1985) was an English character actor. He worked regularly as a voice actor, and was known for many years as "The Man in Black", the narrator of the BBC Radio horror series '' Appointment with Fear'' ...

Plot

The film is set in 1830, 40 years after the events of ''

''. In the deserted chapel at Castle Karnstein, Count and Countess Karnstein conduct a Satanic ceremony to resurrect the body of their daughter Carmilla. Richard LeStrange has come to the village to get background for his books about witches, vampires and black magic. Warned to beware of Castle Karnstein, he takes no heed. Immediately upon entering the castle, he is set upon by three women dressed in shrouds. They turn out to be students on an educational tour from Miss Simpson's fashionable finishing school. As LeStrange is being introduced to Miss Simpson and her students, a new student arrives, one Mircalla Herritzen. LeStrange falls in love immediately. Later that evening, when LeStrange relates his adventure to the men at the village inn, one of the serving girls is found dead with two holes in her neck, and LeStrange is convinced that the Karnstein story is not mere superstition. When he chances to meet the recently-hired teacher of English literature on his way to Miss Simpson's school, he tricks him into going to Vienna and arranges to take his position at the school. Shortly thereafter, Mircalla's roommate Susan Pelley disappears. When the headmaster Giles Barton discovers the secret of Mircalla/Carmilla, he offers himself to her. Later that day, after Barton's body is found, LeStrange goes through his books and discovers what Barton had learned; that Mircalla Herritzen is Carmilla Karnstein. LeStrange confesses his love for her, and they make love whilst the song Strange Love plays. Miss Simpson, worried about the disappearance of a student and the death of her headmaster, decides not to call in the authorities or to notify Susan Pelley's father, particularly when Countess Herritzen's private physician agrees to certify Barton's death as a heart attack. However, dance teacher Jenny Playfair notifies both the police and Mr Pelley, all of whom arrive to investigate. The Karnsteins manage to kill the policeman who has just discovered Susan's body in the bottom of a well, but Mr Pelley arrives with a writ of exhumation and a pathologist to investigate his daughter's death. Susan's body is exhumed (it has just been conveniently buried by the Karnsteins), and talk gets around that she was the victim of a vampire. Together with the local priest, the villagers storm Castle Karnstein with the intent of burning it to the ground. LeStrange also makes his way to the castle, planning to save Mircalla. The villagers trap all three Karnsteins in the burning castle, where a timber falls from the ceiling and impales Mircalla/Carmilla. LeStrange is saved from the fire, with Count and Countess Karnstein remaining, safe in the knowledge that fire does not destroy them.

Cast

* Michael Johnson as Richard LeStrange *

as Mircalla Herritzen/Carmilla Karnstein * Ralph Bates as Giles Barton *

as Countess Herritzen * Suzanna Leigh as Janet Playfair * Helen Christie as Miss Simpson *

as Count Karnstein *

Harvey Hall Harvey L. Hall (January 5, 1941 – May 19, 2018) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 25th mayor of Bakersfield, California. Hall was first elected in 2000, and re-elected in 2004, 2008 and 2012. He was one of the longe ...

as Inspector Heinrich * Michael Brennan as landlord * Pippa Steel as Susan Pelley * Judy Matheson as Amanda * David Healy as Raymond Pelley *

Jonathan Cecil Jonathan Hugh Gascoyne-Cecil (22 February 1939 – 22 September 2011), known as Jonathan Cecil, was an English theatre, film, and television actor. Early life Cecil was born in London, England, the son of Lord David Cecil and the gr ...

as Biggs *

Erik Chitty Erik Chitty (8 July 1907 in Dover, Kent – 22 July 1977 Brent, Middlesex), was an English stage, film and television actor. Early life Chitty was the son of a flour miller, Frederick Walter Chitty and his wife Ethel Elsie Assistance née Fra ...

as Professor Herz *

Jack Melford John Kenneth George Melford Smith (5 September 1899 – 22 October 1972) was a British stage, film and television actor. Biography Melford was the younger brother of screenwriter and film director Austin Melford. On stage from the age of 12, ...

as bishop *

Christopher Neame Christopher Neame (born 12 September 1947, London) is an English actor now living in the United States. UK career Neame's UK film credits include appearances in two Hammer Horror films: '' Lust for a Vampire'' (1971) and ''Dracula AD 1972'' ...

as Hans *

Kirsten Lindholm __NOTOC__ Kirsten Lindholm, born Kirsten Lindholm Andreassen on 1 September 1943 in Odense, Denmark,Kirsten Lindholm

as peasant girl * Luan Peters as Trudi * Christopher Cunningham as coachman * Nick Brimble as 1st villager *

Sue Longhurst Sue Longhurst is an English actress who appeared in several X-rated sex comedies in the 1970s. Personal life Born on 27 January 1943, Sue trained at the Royal Academy of Music, and was initially a music teacher, but was soon posing for magaz ...

as schoolgirl

Production

Jimmy Sangster replaced

Terence Fisher Terence Fisher (23 February 1904 – 18 June 1980) was a British film director best known for his work for Hammer Films. He was the first to bring gothic horror alive in full colour, and the sexual overtones and explicit horror in his films, ...

as director at very short notice. Partially due to censorship restraints from the

British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of ...

, this film and the next one, ''Twins of Evil'', had increasingly less overt

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

elements in the story than did ''The Vampire Lovers''. Carmilla, for example, in this film falls in love with a man. Ingrid Pitt was offered the lead, but turned it down.

Peter Cushing Peter Wilton Cushing (26 May 1913 – 11 August 1994) was an English actor. His acting career spanned over six decades and included appearances in more than 100 films, as well as many television, stage, and radio roles. He achieved recognition ...

was supposed to have appeared in the film, but bowed out to care for his sick wife. Cushing was replaced by Ralph Bates, who described ''Lust for a Vampire'' as "one of the worst films ever made". Bates had earlier appeared in ''

Taste the Blood of Dracula ''Taste the Blood of Dracula'' is a 1970 British supernatural horror film produced by Hammer Film Productions. Directed by Peter Sasdy from a script by Anthony Hinds, it is the fifth installment in Hammer's ''Dracula'' series, and the fourth to ...

'' with Madeline Smith, who starred in the previous Karnstein film, ''

''. The song "Strange Love" was recorded for the film by Tracy, a teen singer from Wembley and produced as a 45" by Bob Barratt.

Critical reception

''The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films'' panned the film, calling it a "cynical and depressing exercise...", noting that "...one can only imagine what

Fisher Fisher is an archaic term for a fisherman, revived as gender-neutral. Fisher, Fishers or The Fisher may also refer to: Places Australia *Division of Fisher, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives, in Queensland *Elect ...

, Cushing and Bray's craftsmen might have made of Gates' reasonably literate draft." However, ''The Hammer Vampire: British Cult Cinema'' by Bruce G Hallenbeck, says that "there is much to recommend it. I think it was a very good script," Tudor Gates told me (Hallenbeck), "I think, in a way, it was the better of the first two", with Hallenbeck noting that Gothic atmosphere is "ably evoked".

References

Sources

External links

*
Online review of DVD

Promotional Photographs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lust For A Vampire 1971 horror films 1971 films British LGBT-related films Films shot at EMI-Elstree Studios British erotic films Films set in 1830 Films set in Austria Films based on horror novels Films based on works by Sheridan Le Fanu Hammer Film Productions horror films 1971 LGBT-related films British vampire films Gothic horror films LGBT-related horror films Films based on Irish novels Films set in castles Lesbian-related films 1970s historical horror films British historical horror films Films directed by Jimmy Sangster 1970s English-language films 1970s British films