The Vampire Lovers (1970)

More sensual than disturbing, Hammer Studio’s “The Vampire Lovers” is a decent contemporary take on La Fanu’s short story “Carmilla”, a vampire tale with lesbian undertones I surely missed when I read it back in sixth grade. At this time in the game, Hammer was starting to inject some fairly healthy does of sex and violence into their films as they made the transitional turn into the 1970’s. While hardly horrific as much as it is sensual, “The Vampire Lovers” is a decent vampire flick that offers tons of gothic visuals and, of course, actress Ingrid Pitt (Carmilla) and her beautiful boobs. Pitt plays a last descendent from a family of vampires who latches onto young women before draining them of blood and assuming their identity. Eventually some locals, including the great Peter Cushing, get hip to Carmilla’s antics and set out to destroy her. Watch it for the bare boobs and overall arty vibe; cus’ you won’t find any real scares here. Lack of scares aside, it’s good fun nonetheless and a must for Hammer aficionados.