Vampyr

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Vampyr

1932

1h 6m

Horror

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

98%

Tomatometer

46 Reviews

82%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

After Allan Gray rents a room near Courtempierre in France, strange events unfold: An elderly man leaves a packet on Gray's table, and shadows that are seemingly alive lead him toward a castle. At a nearby manor, he witnesses the same man being murdered and gradually learns about the curse of the Vampyr. As Gray faces the horrors of the castle, he attempts to save the victim's daughters -- one of whom, Léone, has fallen ill after mysteriously being bitten.

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Critics Consensus

Full of disorienting visual effects, Carl Theodor Dreyer's Vampyr is as theoretically unsettling as it is conceptually disturbing.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

05/20/2022

4/5

The actual vampire, an elderly woman (Henriette Gérard), is the least interesting part of the film. Which is very European.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

05/17/2022

5/5

Vampyr asks: what is it like to be dead? And answers: indistinguishable from being alive. This film is a unique experience.

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

10/30/2020

"Vampyr" is perhaps the most effective and most radical Surrealist movie ever made.

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Daniel Barnes

Dare Daniel

Oct 30

3.5/5

Dreyer never tried to articulate anyone's vision but his own, and his moody horror movie confounded the expectations of audiences that had recently made Dracula (1931) a monster hit.

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Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

11/21/2024

3/4

... turns on a fear of mortality — or worse, being stuck in some in-between place.

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Ygraine Hackett-Cantabrana

The Geek Show (UK)

07/09/2024

Vampyr is an experimental film, being less of a straightforward story and more of a display of Dreyer’s filmmaking prowess.

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Alexander G

@agregory Jul 3

I’m a sucker for soft focus and general visual obscurity, so despite the slow-moving, desert-of-action nature of the film I really like it. The original score by Zeller is beautiful and fitting.

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Melissa L

@Agent99 Jun 25

I recommend it...especially for those who are students of early film. Make sure to watch it on a medium that supports subtitles.

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Garry A

@heavyg May 25

I was a little confused about who was alive and who was dead. But, for a film with very little dialogue, I thought it was pretty good. I really enjoy the use of shadows an skeletons to create an eriee environment.

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Brant F.

@destroyfascism Apr 8

You are inside an environment you cannot map, governed by forces you cannot access. If Kafka had made a horror film instead of writing novels, it might have looked a lot like this, just with a few more forms to fill out before the dread kicks in. Beautifully done, an art piece for the ages. You could pull almost any frame at random and it would make a perfect power electronics LP cover.

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Madde G.

@MaddeG88 Nov 1

It was much better the second time I watched it, but still confusing.

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Kyle M

@RT77296778 Nov 1

A foggily unique, transitional vampiric tale of elliptical focus and borderline surrealism amid appreciative craft by holistic ambition, structurally separated from the domestic basis to pass as a simultaneous, suggestive pioneer. (B)

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Carl Theodor Dreyer

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Allan Gray

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Synopsis

After Allan Gray rents a room near Courtempierre in France, strange events unfold: An elderly man leaves a packet on Gray's table, and shadows that are seemingly alive lead him toward a castle. At a nearby manor, he witnesses the same man being murdered and gradually learns about the curse of the Vampyr. As Gray faces the horrors of the castle, he attempts to save the victim's daughters -- one of whom, Léone, has fallen ill after mysteriously being bitten.

Director: Carl Theodor Dreyer
Producer: Carl Theodor Dreyer, Julian West
Screenwriter: Sheridan Le Fanu, Christen Jul, Carl Theodor Dreyer
Distributor: General Foreign Sales Corp., Kino Video, Video Yesteryear, Sinister Cinema, Something Weird Video, Image Entertainment Inc.
Production Co: Tobis Filmkunst
Genre: Horror
Original Language: German
Release Date (Theaters): May 6, 1932, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 20, 2017
Runtime: 1h 6m
Sound Mix: Mono