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The Unexplained set includes four episodes:
The Unexplained: Vampire Myth
Like other programs in A&E's The Unexplained series, Vampire Myth doesn't provide any final answer to the question, "Are these creatures for real?" It does, however, introduce viewers to a woman who sleeps in a coffin and a man who lives with his "blood donor" and frequents a vampire fetish club in, of all places, Beverly Hills. The hour-long video also offers literary and historical perspectives for our fascination with these denizens of the dark, examining Bram Stoker's Dracula and revealing the grisly details of the 15th-century reign of Vlad the Impaler, who liked to dine among his screaming victims. Although the narration warns of disturbing imagery, the clips of modern-day vampires sucking blood from the shoulders or arms of their donors (necks, apparently, are now passé) are actually fairly tame. For all of its fangs and fanfare, ultimately Vampire Myth lacks bite. --Larisa Lomacky Moore The Unexplained: Poltergeist
Creaking floors and bizarre apparitions turn up in old buildings. People in an old New England inn hear a young girl dancing upstairs, while patrons at a country & western bar in Kentucky are assaulted by characters who seem to emerge from a dark and violent past. The Unexplained: Poltergeist, from A&E, seeks to explain what could be causing these strange phenomena. Interviews with people who have encountered apparitions or have heard the strange sounds in empty rooms appear totally credible, yet psychologists suggest that the witnesses may be imagining more than they actually have seen or heard. The video takes a balanced and open-minded approach, letting the witnesses, ghost-hunters, and skeptics speak for themselves. As one would expect from A&E, the production values are excellent, and the material is presented in a highly professional manner. Still, there's no denying that some of the subject matter is extremely creepy. Are murder victims haunting old buildings and harassing today's inhabitants? If you don't mind the hair on the back of your neck standing up, you can watch and be the judge. --Robert J. McNamara The Unexplained: Extreme Sacrifice
Why would someone risk her or his life to save that of a complete stranger? Few things in human behavior are more puzzling than this. The reasons why some people are inclined to such inexplicably brave behavior is the focus of Extreme Sacrifice, part of The Unexplained series on A&E. Case studies of particular sudden heroes are examined, complete with interviews with the principals and witnesses to their actions. Examined in detail are the examples of a young woman who dove into the fast-moving Niagara River to save a stranger, a Secret Service agent who willingly threw himself into the line of fire during the 1981 assassination attempt on President Reagan, and a young Marine in the Korean War who survived throwing himself atop a live grenade to save other soldiers. Interviews with the heroes give some insight into why they would behave the way they did, but what's perhaps more fascinating are interviews with medical researchers who are investigating whether there is a genetic predisposition for risky behavior and heroic actions. Some research indicates that a person's brain structure may destine an individual toward heroic and risky acts. This is a thought-provoking examination of a topic that has long fascinated humanity. --Robert J. McNamara The Unexplained: Spontaneous Human Combustion
The term spontaneous human combustion was coined in the 19th century when it was considered a common affliction to befall drunkards. Yet many skeptics challenged the belief that human bodies could erupt in flames and burn from the inside out. Today the debate over this phenomenon has changed little, as can be seen in the hour-long A&E program The Unexplained: Spontaneous Human Combustion. Those who believe in spontaneous human combustion say the typical victim is an older woman who is overweight and an alcoholic (and often a smoker as well). But whether the deaths of these victims were caused by an internal inferno or fueled by another source remains hotly disputed. This video includes interviews with victims' family members, police and fire department officials, noted skeptics, and the author of Ablaze! The Mysterious Fires of Spontaneous Human Combustion, Larry Arnold. The end result is a well-balanced and fascinating exploration of four cases of alleged spontaneous combustion. Warning: This video is not for the squeamish, as it includes graphic photographs of what remained of the victims once the flames had gone out. --Larisa Lomacky Moore
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