Once Bitten

Jim Carrey plays frustrated teenage virgin Mark Kendall, who is unable to talk his long-time girlfriend Robin (the lovely Karen Kopins) into going all the way. Mark is convinced by two friends—even bigger losers in the love department—to pay a visit to West Hollywood where they believe they might be able to score with a woman. In a dating bar, Mark meets the sexy Countess (Lauren Hutton) who invites him back to her place, unaware that his new acquaintance is a vampire who needs to feed three times from a virgin before Halloween to retain her youthfulness.

Everybody has to start somewhere. For Jim Carrey, an illustrious career as a leading comedy star started with Once Bitten, a not-particularly-funny vampire comedy that displays little evidence of the performer's trademark madcap style. Fortunately, despite very few genuine laughs, the film's amiable approach and 80s trappings still make it a reasonably fun viewing—harmless nonsense for when there's nothing better to watch. Helping to pass the time less painfully: a fun dance sequence at the High School Halloween Hop, and a scene in the school shower that is actually pretty amusing just so long as you're not bothered by un-PC humour.