Review: John Carpenter's "VAMPIRES" is Still Fun (Happy B'day, John Carpenter)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 36 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

John Carpenter’s Vampires (1998)

Running time:  108 minutes (1 hour, 48 minutes)

MPAA – R for strong violence, and gore, language, and sexuality

DIRECTOR:  John Carpenter

WRITER:  Don Jakoby (based upon the novel by John Steakley)

PRODUCER:  Sandy King

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Gary B. Kibbe (D.o.P.)

EDITOR:  Edward A. Warschilka

COMPOSER:  John Carpenter

HORROR/FANTASY and ACTION/THRILLER

Starring:  James Woods, Daniel Baldwin, Sheryl Lee, Thomas Ian Griffith, Maximilian Schell, and Tim Guinee

Vampires (also known as John Carpenter's Vampires) is a 1998 American action, neo-Western, and vampire horror film from director John Carpenter.  It was adapted from the 1990 horror novel, Vampire$, by author John Steakley.  Vampires the movie focuses on an caustic vampire slayer who must track down the vampire master that ambushed and destroyed his team of slayers before the creature can find a relic that will allow it to walk in sunlight.

John Carpenter's Vampires introduces Jack Crow (James Woods), a vampire hunter for the Catholic Church.  He leads his "Team Crow," a band of roughnecks and mercenary types who hunt and kill vampires.  They destroy a nest of goons (vampires) in rural New Mexico, but Valek (Thomas Ian Griffith), a 600-year old master vampire, ambushes and massacres Team Crow during their victory celebration at a small motel.

Only Crow and his assistant, Montoya (Daniel Baldwin), survive, but Crow ignores the Vatican’s demands that he reform his team.  Crow, Montoya, and Father Adam Guiteau (Tim Guinee), a young priest, with tagalong Katrina (Sheryl Lee), a survivor of Valek’s attack, pursue the master vampire through the high deserts that ends in a confrontation to stop Valek from becoming unbeatable.

John Carpenter’s Vampires is a fun action horror flick that rises above being straight-to-video material in large measure because of James Woods hilarious and over-the-top performance as Jack Crow.  Crow curses like a pack of sailors, and won’t even spare holy men his vulgar tirades.  He beats priests and asks them inappropriate questions about their anatomies and lusts.  Woods’ performance is the one thing that entertains even detractors of Vampires.

The film is gory and action-packed, but a little light on genuine scares.  It has the charming qualities that make Carpenter’s film fun and unique – pulp storytelling, weird science, and the strange blend of real myth, lore, and culture spun from his fertile imagination.  While the characters here, other than Crow, don’t match up to some of Carpenter’s memorable creations from his earlier films, they’re adequate.  Vampires is a fun spin on the American pop culture version of vampires, and worth a viewing.

7 of 10

B+

★★★½ out of 4 stars

March 19, 2005

EDITED:  Sunday, January 5, 2025

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