Pale Blood

Last updated
Pale Blood
Pale Blood.jpeg
Directed by
  • V. V. Dachin Hsu
  • Michael W. Leighton
Written by
  • V. V. Dachin Hsu
  • Takashi Matsuoka
Produced by
  • Omar Kaczmarczyk
  • Michael W. Leighton
Starring
Cinematography Gerry Lively
Edited by
  • Michael Kewley
  • Stewart Schill
Music by Jan A. P. Kaczmarek
Production
company
Noble Entertainment Group
Distributed byNoble Entertainment Group
Release date
  • January 22, 1992 (1992-01-22)(U.S.)
Running time
93 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • Hong Kong [1]
LanguageEnglish

Pale Blood is a 1990 direct-to-video vampire film directed by V. V. Dachin Hsu and Michael W. Leighton, written by Hsu and Takashi Matsuoka, produced by Omar Kaczmarczyk and Leighton, and starring George Chakiris, Wings Hauser, and Pamela Ludwig. It features music and performance by the punk rock band Agent Orange.

Contents

Plot

Michael Fury (Chakiris) arrives in Los Angeles to investigate a series of mysterious high-profile murders where the victims have been completely drained of blood. Aiding him in his quest is Lori (Ludwig), a junior member at an investigative firm who is obsessed with the occult. Unbeknownst to her, Fury is himself a vampire. Yet, unbeknownst to Fury, Lori has been keeping a little surprise hidden too.

Cast

Production

Pale Blood was filmed in Hong Kong.

Release

It was released by Noble Entertainment Group in October 1990, and was also known as A Marca do Vampiro in Brazil. Pale Blood was released on VHS by IMV in Germany in 1990, and by RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video and SVS in the United States on January 22, 1992. [2] [3] During the week of February 9, 1992, the film was the third best-selling LaserDisc title in the United States. [4]

Vinegar Syndrome released Pale Blood in April 2020 on Blu-ray and DVD. As of March 2025, the Vinegar Syndrome release is out of print. [5]

Reception

The film received a B− score from Entertainment Weekly , with critic Michael Sauter praising the film for doing "something new with the vampire genre." [6] TV Guide said, "Pale Blood positively aches to do something original with the lore of the undead. But the film never overcomes a serious anemia of good ideas and ways to handle them. [7]

In his book Creature Features: The Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Movie Guide, John Stanley praised the film as an "offbeat , stylized vampire thriller with clever twists and a bravura performance by Wings Hauser." [8]

Brian Carnell of the Kalamazoo Gazette gave the film a middling review, critiquing Chakiris's performance as an "imitation" of Bela Lugosi's Dracula, and commented that the film would have functioned better as a short film. [9]

Accolades

The film received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Genre Video Release. [10]

References

  1. ↑ "Pale Blood (1990)". Mubi . Archived from the original on March 6, 2025.
  2. ↑ Hartl, John (January 17, 1992). "Stars skip by the screen scene". The Californian . p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "Coming attractions". The Boston Globe . December 13, 1991. p. 64 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Weekly Top 10 LaserDisc Sales". San Francisco Examiner . February 9, 1992. p. 66 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Pale Blood". Vinegar Syndrome . Archived from the original on March 6, 2025.
  6. ↑ Sauter, Michael (January 24, 1992). "Pale Blood". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on November 7, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Pale Blood". TV Guide .{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ↑ Stanley 2000, p. 391.
  9. ↑ Carnell, Brian (February 20, 1992). "Video Reviews: Pale Blood". Kalamazoo Gazette . p. B8 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Pale Blood". TV Guide . Archived from the original on March 6, 2025.

Sources

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