Rating: 
Summary: The twilight of John Carpenter...
Review: After hearing good things about this movie from friends for years, I finally decided to pick it up when I saw it on sale at a Wal-mart. I sat down with a lot of expectations. Sadly, the movie did not reach the level that I had expected.I have followed Carpenter's movies from the heyday of his horror flicks (Halloween, The Fog), through his middle horror period (The Thing, Prince of Darkness), to his current work (this movie, Ghosts of Mars). I am puzzled how his current efforts can be so sub-par... Vampires is Carpenter's interpretation of "modern" vampires, as opposed to more "gothic" representations, and is therefore built around violence and gore. The protagonist, played over-the-top by James Woods, is the typical total bad-*ss jerk, who is presumably so tough that he doesn't need the body armor his team does to fight vampires. In scenes reminiscent of movies like the Stallone film Cobra, we are shown how "bad", how "macho", and how "tough" he is, the overall effect of which was to make me hope that he gets killed off by the end of the movie... (Sadly, that didn't happen). The antagonist, played by Karate Kid villain Thomas Ian Griffith, seems more human and likable than Wood's character. The story is the usual "we must kill the Head Vampire" plot, and the action scenes are violent and gruesome. While it is refreshing to see more "modern" vampires in this film, there is little to recommend this over other films such as From Dusk til Dawn or the Blade series. I was extremely disappointed to see most of the film's horror sequences to be action fight sequences, instead of Carpenter's more classic terror in isolation scenes. It seems he wants to move away from his horror roots into more action movies, but is not finding the right mix in this effort (or in his last film Ghosts of Mars), and the end result is a spotty mix of action and horror sequences. Cheesy acting by the other stars (including a Baldwin brother), and no sense of real horror is another takeaway in this movie. Overall, a decent movie for an evening's diversion, but not high in replay value. 3 out of 5.
Rating: 
Summary: Not deep, but fast moving and fun
Review: This is a very enjoyable movie with one of the better horror/action movie intros I've seen. The movie keeps up a tense and very violent pace throughout and while you're never pondering any deeper issues through this movie it's a good bet this flick is at least keeping you on your toes. The ending was set up to be pretty good but I couldn't help but feel a little cheated by how easily the Vampire Lord was disposed of, especially after his rather gross introduction at the beginning of the film. It may not be for everyone but it's at least worth a look.
Rating:
Summary: Better than folks say
Review: Personally, I believe that this movie got a really bad rap when it came out in the theaters. Even Gene Siskel said it was great - he said that James Woods should have been nominated for an Academy Award (and even though he had a brain tumor at the time I don't think that his opinion is any less valid). And it is a really good movie - certainly one of the best Vampire yarns of the 90s (and much better than Francis Ford Coppola's Bram Stoker's Dracula). Okay, so it does have Daniel Baldwin. But he really isn't that bad. And so what if the ending isn't completely satisfying - that's part of John Carpenter's charm - his movies end without much resolution - it leaves the audience wanting. Plus, you get a great scene of vampires killing a room full of hookers and guys toting guns - slicing one guy in half - and you can't get better than that. May not be one of Carpenter's best - but it is far from one of his worst.
Rating:
Summary: Vampire killing as a blue-collar job
Review: What I liked best about the film is matter-of-fact way that the human vampire slayers go about their task. They have their hardward: bows, arrows, and guns to slow them down, hooks to get them, well, hooked, and cable connected to a tow truck outside to drag them out into the light, which causes them, at least in this movie, to burst into flames. They have a methodology of doing things, and strategic planning goes on, just like before a big game. It is almost so routine, all that's missing is punching a clock. It is all so routine (to them) that there are even post-kill celebration parties featuring all the booze and girls the local vice-procurer can procure. Which of course all comes to a crashing halt when a super-vampire crashes one of these parties and shreds (literally) most of James Woods' crew. All of a sudden there is an awakening, and the real plot begins. Woods' group works as sort of independent contractors, hired on by the Catholic church. Every vampire tale has it's ground rules, and in this one, the Catholic Church takes at least some responsibility for the creation of vampires, and thus find it necessary to hire these rough and tumble killers. When Woods finds this super-vampire, he suspects, correctly, that the church is not telling him everything they should. What he finds out and how to stop it all makes up the rest of the film. Even though most of his crew gets wiped out early, we still get a good performance by one of the survivors in Daniel Baldwin. He, in turn, gets involved with one of the party girls (Sheryl Lee), who gets "contaminated" by the super vampire. While they use her as a tracking device, they also have to be careful to keep out of her clutches as her vampire urges grow. Their preventative efforts are only partially successful, and that's all I'll reveal. This is a rough and tough, pull no punches vampire story. There is lots of blood, lots of swearing, lots of violence, and a bit of nudity and sexuality. In other words, it has everything, and I find the secret behind the new threats completely plausible. While it opens no new ground, it tells it's story very, very well.
Rating:
Summary: Yet Another "Slayer" Story
Review: Director John Carpenter's "Vampires" does not offer anything incredibly original as far as the story line goes but it is a good flick all the same. The film stars James Woods and Daniel Baldwin and is about a team of vampire slayers that seek and destroy "nests" of the undead. There's a whole secondary story to this . . . the church actually funds these folks and isn't telling them everything they know. A fun romp through the somewhat overused "slayer" theme.
Rating:
Summary: Daywalkers are 'Vampires'
Review: James Woods gives the best performance of his career in this John Carpenter classic. Jack Crow is a vampire slayer and he works for the church. His crew uses spears, guns, and a truck to pull vampires out into the sunlight. How genius. But wait, there's an ultimate vampire named Valek who is seeking the black cross to keep him an immortal. He should know that he's not a genius, so he'll never be immortal... There are many decapitations and a man is actually split in half by Valek's hand, medusa ugly! Woods is very funny when he curses at a fake priest and Baldwin is hilarious when he curses at random people, especially when he steals a guy's car. Friendship values are important in this movie and Crow spits on a guy for betraying him. Yes. This is a good John Carpenter movie.
Rating: 
Summary: The Crow meets Blade...
Review: This gasy, raunch-bucket of a film should have been canned before it hit the box office. The acting is so-so, and the storyline needs a lot of work. Even if you are into shoot'em up action films, vampire films, or both, you are more likely to enjoy having your head shaved with a weed-whacker than sit infont of your television to view this film. Actor James Woods plays the leader of a gang of vampire hunters with big guns and a bunch fancy whaling equipment which they use to drag their undead prey into the sunlight. Unfortuantly for our heros (but fortuantly for the audience), the head vampire shows up in his Brandon Lee costume and kicks their butts. If you care enough to actually watch this film, you will find out for yourself what happens in the end.
Rating: 
Summary: A great action movie with vampires
Review: The concept of professional vampire hunters is so cool that I couldn't resist seeing this movie. It starts off with a swaggering group of macho guys killing a nest of vampires and looking pretty tough doing it. It doesn't take long for things to go wrong though as most of them get wiped out by a single vampire later when they're caught unawares. I don't want to give away too much, but most of the movie involves the few survivors attempting to stop the vampire that attacked them. James Woods is not only the star of this film; he provides its heart and soul. If you don't like him or his sense of humor, you won't like this movie. He's very intense and Woods fans will surely love this performance. One other thing one should realize about this film is that it really doesn't fit the mold of the gothic vampire film that we traditionally see. At its heart, it's really a buddy movie with lots of action and humor. The vampires just happen to be the bad guy that stirs up the trouble instead of a robot, rogue general, or some other movie cliché. I've also read the book and Carpenter did make changes. At the same time, you can't take any book and get it all into one movie, it would have to be 8 hours long. Those who rip the movie solely for not being the book should get a clue on this. I highly recommend this move provided you like James Woods and action movies. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Under-rated, entertaining and the best Carpenter for years.
Review: Whilst not as good as the book it's based on this film is good on it's own merits. Excellent Woods' performance and decent pacing make it a great Saturday night rental / purchase. Excellent Carpenter commentary track too. Great action scenes and decent change from all the smug Scream teen horror films of the last few years. Any more of that style and the horror film genre is finished. To sum up, decent, fun film that deosn't outstay it's welcome. Buy it.
Rating:
Summary: Would have made an excellent series
Review: This movie would have been an excellent pilot for an ongoing television series. The concept of an organized group of Vampire hunters, the hard and direct way they do their job and the no-nonsense attitude of James Woods as Jack the head killer would have translated very well to the small screen. The movie itself suffers only from the quick elimination of most of the team. It would seem very unlikely that these "professinals" would be so easily taken. All of the characters are acted well. I've never had much use for the Baldwin brothers, but Daniel does a good job here. The biggest kudos have to go to James Woods who as always gives a performance that is so believeable that you can't think of the role with any other actor. John Carpenter's Vampires is a gritty no nonsense movie that is worth your money and a great variation to a genre that could use it.
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