User reviews

This obscure 1957 horror movie has been overlooked as far as I am concerned. It has an interesting twist to the "man turns into bloodsucking monster" premise. John Beal plays a kindly small town doctor who turns into a vampire after accidentally ingesting pills that a deceased scientist had invented and had been experimenting on with vampire bats (the winged variety!) before he died. 1950's horror stalwart Kenneth Tobey portrays the granite-jawed town detective who is investigating a sudden rash of mysterious deaths in the town. Colleen Gray is the requisite pretty love interest/possible victim. Although the vampire make up is pretty hilarious and not at all scary, there are some scary moments in the movie and all in all shouldn't be missed, especially if you are a lover of the old "drive-in" horror movies of the 1950's.

Typical little 50's horror film that I found a little talky and the premise a little far fetched. John Beal is fine as the doctor who turns into a vampire. The main complaint I have towards this film is that is it really a vampire? He's more like a beast or a neanderthal. But I guess thats the films unique interpretation of what a vampire would be like. The cast is great! Kenneth Tobey from "The Thing" and Coleen Gray from "The Wasp Woman". And of course Dabbs Greer who has been in countless roles. What a consummate character actor he is. The most gruesome scene in the film is when the vampire stuffs Greer in the furnace and his legs dangling out. Tobey as a cop really is not the smartest police officer portrayed on film but Gray is pretty sexy. This certainly is not a classic horror film but its adequately made with a terrific cast and does have some genuine moments in it.

JOHN BEAL is the central character as a Dr. Beecher whose daughter inadvertently gives him pills extracted from a control serum for bats. COLEEN GRAY is his pretty nurse and KENNETH TOBEY a Sheriff who begins to suspect there's something wrong about a couple of deaths ruled as heart attacks.

The suspense builds slowly from the very beginning as the credits unfold over the scene of a newspaper boy discovering an ill doctor in an old mansion. As the story progresses, it's easy to see that the script is way above average in the horror department with dialog that's sensible, concise and always on track.

Beal's haggard appearance helps him to be more convincing than usual in the role of the tormented doctor victimized by the wrong pills. Although it's a variation on the vampire theme, there's a trace of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde in the way the screenplay develops.

Summing up A rational vampire thriller that passes the time quickly and is fun to watch.

Dr. Campbell is a sick man. Just before he dies, he gives a bottle of tablets to Dr. Paul Beecher (Paul Beal). Quite by accident, Paul takes one of the pills thinking it's his migraine medication. The pills were part of Dr. Campbell's work on mind regression to a more primitive state and were made from the blood of the vampire bat. Paul immediately becomes addicted to the pills and begins taking one each night. Coinciding with Paul addiction, people in town begin dying mystery deaths. Each has strange bite marks on their necks. Paul begins to suspect himself, but surely Paul's suspicions can't be true. Are the pills turning him into some kind of vampire?

While I don't think it's quite as good as his later film The Return of Dracula, Paul Landres' The Vampire is still a solid little horror film that takes much of the existing vampire mythology and stands it on its head. For example, the creature in The Vampire isn't the suave, cape-wearing, seducer that we've all become familiar with over the years. Here, the creature is a primitive being that seeks blood for survival. It is more bat-like in appearance and action. I'm not saying that one interpretation is better than the other, I just appreciate the difference.

There's a lot to like about The Vampire. I love the way the film introduces an element of horror into an otherwise safe and comfortable Leave It to Beaver type setting. The contrast is interesting. And I for one appreciate the make-up effects. I realize they were done "on the cheap", but I found them very eerie. Landres direction is solid. He keeps things interesting without a lapse during the movies runtime. But the area I find the most enjoyable in The Vampire is the acting. Everyone involved gives a performance far better than you would expect from a film of this type. As others have noted, Paul Beal gives real outstanding first-rate performance.

Overall, The Vampire is a very satisfying film. I look forward to revisiting it for years to come.

This is a movie that I hunted down for quite some time. A small-town doctor accidentally takes some pills developed by one of his patients that turns him into a vampire. He begins picking off the local town folk. While the editing is clumsy, the premise is a novel change from the usual vampire fare. The cast includes veteran actors John Beal, Coleen Gray (The Leech Woman), Dabbs Greer, Herb Vigran (Adventures of Superman), Paul Brinegar (How To Make A Monster) and an uncredited cameo by Louise Lewis (I Was A Teenage Werewolf; Blood Of Dracula). For those of you who don't think 50s films scare you, get ready for the scene following Carol and Paul's date at the restaurant. Believe me, it packs a punch!

The film begins with a nice town doctor being called to the lab or a strange chemist who is dying. It seems that the chemist has developed something that he considers important but when the nice doctor arrives, the dying chemist mentions some pills he created and then dies. What these pills are for, the doctor has no idea but he sticks them in his pocket. Later, when the doc has a headache, he accidentally takes one of these pills and it makes him into a blood-sucking monster with really lousy makeup.

While it's obvious that United Artists did not break the bank to make this film, despite its low price tag, it was reasonably interesting and is worth a peek to horror fans. Sophisticated patrons will most likely find the whole thing rather silly, but what sort of sophisticated or snobby viewer would watch a film like this in the first place?

A small town doctor (John Beal) mistakenly ingests an experimental drug made from the blood of vampire bats which transforms the kindly medic into a bloodthirsty monster.

I really enjoyed this movie a lot. Great plot, great acting and a very interesting looking monster. There is some odd sexism present (the doctor apparently cannot do his own laundry or cook so he has his 10-year old daughter do it for him). But, hey, it is the 1950s.

Not much to say beyond that. I was a bit confused on whether the pills brought on the monster or kept it in check. It seems like pills or no pills the monster was going to kill someone, but maybe I was just confused.

Dr. Paul Beecher, a respected small-town physician and all-around nice guy, ingests some mysterious pills given to him by his annoying daughter. It seems the li'l brat has foolishly mistaken them for his migraine medication! After Beecher develops a chemical dependency for the drug, he slowly realizes that he was responsible for a series of bizarre murders committed while he was under the influence of these pills. Apparently, these harmless-looking tablets have the power to make their user mutate into a hairy, bloodthirsty vampire at nightfall, leaving him with no recollection of what he has done after the effects have worn off. How could these pills be so powerful? Easy! Because they contain a chemical extracted from a vampire bat!!

This fun, fast-paced horror flick was made in that classic monster-movie style that we have all come to love, yet at the same time it has some very unique and clever twists. The vampire, who is played excellently by John Beal, really looks nothing like you'd expect. Rather than having the bloodsucker portrayed as the standard well-dressed, intelligent, and graceful DRACULA lookalike, THE VAMPIRE depicts him as a hairy, ugly, clumsy beast who ambles aimlessly after his targets. In my opinion, the interpretation of a vampire as being angry, primitive, and relentlessly brutal is much more frightening than the notion of a slick, attractive, intellectual vamp.

The characters in this film are eccentric, likeable, and very well-acted; and the special effects, although simple and outdated, are surprisingly effective. Despite the fact that THE VAMPIRE's story may contain a few glaring inconsistencies, it still succeeds as a suspenseful yet down-to-earth creature feature.

Small-town doctor Paul Beecher (John Beal) is called to the home of ailing scientist Matt Campbell (Wood Romoff), who has been conducting experiments on vampire bats in a bid to induce man's primitive instincts with the aim of reversing them and thereby advancing human intellect (standard horror movie scientific claptrap). A rambling Campbell gives Beecher the results of his work, some tablets, and promptly carks it.

Later that day, Beecher experiences a headache and asks his young daughter Betsy (Lydia Reed) to fetch his migraine tablets. No prizes for guessing what she actually gives him.

As a result of taking Campbell's highly addictive drug, Beecher turns into a hairy, drooling, blood sucking creature (who looks more like Mr. Hyde than a vampire) at 11.00pm every night. Will the good doctor find a way to reverse the process before too many innocent people die? And will cop Buck Donnelly (Kenneth Tobey) crack the case before Beecher gets his claws on his gorgeous nurse Carol (Coleen Gray)?

Mark of the Vampire (AKA The Vampire) is forgettable B-movie hokum, a rather talky affair with little to offer in the way of suspense and scares, and a distinct lack of decent monster action (although given how laughable the creature is, maybe that's a good thing). The tag-line 'It Feeds on the Blood of Beautiful Women!' is misleading, the 'vampire' killing as many men as women, with one of the female victims an old lady. At just 75 minutes, the whole thing is fairly undemanding nonsense, with the lovely Ms. Gray making the going a lot easier, but it's not one I would go out of my way to watch.

A mediocre 5/10.

Paul Landres directed this horror tale that stars John Beal as small town Doctor Paul Beecher, who is called to the home of a dying scientist who had been experimenting with the blood of vampire bats to make a new serum for his research, that he distilled in pill form. Paul takes a bottle of the pills from his pocket, and after he makes his report, forgets about them. Later, when he has a headache, he asks his young daughter to retrieve his aspirin from his pocket, but sadly takes the bat pills instead, which have the unfortunate effect of turning him into a vampire who must kill. Paul tries desperately to understand what happened, as the police close in... Good performance by Beal, some originality, and a most tragic portrayal of a reluctant vampire, though marred by a much-too abrupt ending that is most unsatisfying.

John Beal seems genuinely agonized in the title role. He is a well liked small-town doctor, who has got hold accidentally of pills that -- don't ask! -- turn him into a vampire.

This is crisply filmed and Beal shows the pain of a decent man who knows something is wrong and suspects something is very wrong with himself.

I wonder if this was strictly a drive-in movie or if anyone at the time recognized its merits.

Straightforward, no-nonsense vampire film that is played with skill by a cast of good actors. John Beal (who many viewers probably have never heard of) was a highly respected, experienced actor who plays this strong lead role just fine. He even gives his character some sympathetic edges.

Colleen Gray is excellent eye candy, and the immortal sci-fi actor Kenneth Tobey is on hand (as he should be) in a believable performance as the Sheriff.

This is a wide-screen presentation and there is a good DVD available with first-rate picture quality.

Limited production budget does not detract here. This is a well-paced tightly done monster film that features genuine, sudden menace as the monster prowls the night. This is not just cheap 1950's monster schlock. It is a legit effort- it's the real deal.

I continued my winter horror film viewings today with 'The Vampire'. A more descriptive name for it might have been 'Dr. Jeykll and The Vampire' or 'The Vampire Virus'. I'm kidding of course, yet it does borrow heavily from the Jeykll and Hyde story. Here a kindly small town Dr. accidentally takes an experimental drug. He becomes addicted to it. Each night at about 11PM it causes him to change into a hideous creature with a taste for blood. I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It's right down my alley. The kind of movie that must have been shown on double features at 50s drive-ins. I can imagine it playing with 'Frankenstein's Daughter' on the marquee. Teenage boys probably loved it cause their girl would want to be hugged tight during the show. These horror films have a special place with me, they bring back childhood memories. I was too young to have seen it at theaters during its first run. It was the sort of movie I'd watch on the late night horror shows in the 60s and early 70s. Yet, I some how missed ever catching this gem. It's the type of late night movie my mom would complain "You're going to have nightmares if you watch that !". Of course I would watch it anyway if I could. The feature monster had silly yet scary makeup that looks like the boogeyman kids imagine in the bedroom closet. Kenneth Tobey gets a chance to once again hunt down the monster like he did in 'The Thing'. He makes a good no nonsense type tough-guy any self respecting monster should hide from on site. My only regret was we didn't wait till after dark to watch it. That would have been more fun than an afternoon viewing. If you are a fan of 50s drive-in horror films, and I sure am, you should love this. I give it a 6 out of 10 rating.

Not to be confused with MGM's 1935 "Mark of the Vampire" (the one with Bela Lugosi), nor a second film from the same year boasting the same title: "El Vampiro," the picture that kicked off Mexico's love affair with Universal Gothic. "The Vampire" was a rare instance of a supernatural monster reconfigured for the 50s science fiction craze, only a few months after Columbia pulled off "The Werewolf," a creature born from a laboratory that could change from man into beast any time of day or night. Acting honors go to John Beal as small town doctor Paul Beecher, who genuinely cares for preteen daughter Betsy (Lydia Reed) and every one of his patients, making frequent house calls when not treating them right out of his own home. One destination is the laboratory of a dying research scientist who had been conducting experiments in regression, his 'control serum' successfully creating a huge supply of pills derived from vampire bats that prove to be habit forming. Beecher absent mindedly puts a bottle of the deadly pills in his suit pocket, and later when his daughter mistakes them for her father's migraine medication a fatal error takes place. Of course, the horrid side effect is that the victim yields to the addiction every evening before midnight, attacking his victims for their blood and introducing a virus that causes 'capillary disintegration' (one desiccated corpse is dug up for terrific shock effect). Coleen Gray ("The Leech Woman," "The Phantom Planet") is the pretty nurse, Kenneth Tobey the concerned local sheriff, Dabbs Greer the one doctor who tries to curb the helpless Beecher's homicidal proclivities, fully aware of what he's become but incapable of resistance (a veiled reference to drug addiction couched in acceptable horror film tropes). One may quibble that the script is lacking in detail but the actors go a long way in bringing their characters to life, a fine beginning to a quartet of Jules V. Levy and Arthur Gardner shockers that deserve to be better known than they are, all scripted by Pat Fielder - "The Monster That Challenged the World," "The Flame Barrier," and "The Return of Dracula."

Yes,boils and ghouls,this 50's B-movie gem,and a gem it is,can be had on vhs.Contact Cinema Classics in New York City (Manhattan). They have it for about twenty bucks. Although the print is not perfect,it's as good as any you remember seeing in the old "Creature Feature" days. If you enjoy this film as much as I,you also may want to check out Mr. Landres other 50's gem,"Return of Dracula"(aka "Curse of Dracula").Francis Lederer plays the count and this one's as much fun as "Mark of the Vampire".Happy Hunting!

Bob

A kindly doctor (John Beal) unwittingly turns into a vampire by taking some unknown pills. Dull, slow but not worthless. Two things lift this up: John Beals' acting (he's just great) and this is probably the first film in which vampirism happens because of a drug, not a curse. Otherwise, this just isn't good enough. Laughable vampire makeup too.

This movie essentially begins with a man named "Dr. Matt Campbell" (Wood Romoff) being discovered in his laboratory by a delivery boy and in need of serious medical attention. Upon being notified "Dr. Paul Beecher" (John Beal) immediately rushes to the house but Matt dies only a couple of minutes later. However, before he dies Matt mumbles something totally incoherent and gives Paul a small bottle of pills in the process. Not long afterward, Dr. Beecher develops a migraine and accidentally takes the pills Matt gave him by mistake. The next day Dr. Beecher gets a call that a woman named "Marion Wilkins" (Ann Staunton) is extremely sick and this prompts him to go to her house right away. However, upon attempting to examine her she becomes extremely agitated by his presence before suddenly dying of an apparent heart attack. It's at this time that Paul discovers two bite marks on her neck--and it isn't long before more people begin to die of the same thing. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a different type of vampire film which bore a definite affinity to the "Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde" scenario. That being said, it didn't quite have the same character one might expect of a traditional vampire film but even so it was still entertaining to a degree and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Average.

The Vampire is an entertaining thriller with a strong cast. It stars John Beal as Dr. Beecher and Kenneth Tobey as Sheriff Donnelly,who investigate a series of mysterious deaths involving their acquaintances beginning with a scientist who was researching "primitive instincts".A much better movie than I thought it would be.

Here's one of the most underrated of the fifties' sci-fi/horror films. This is also an example of not being able to please the public, no matter what you do. The film actually takes time to develop its characters, yet reviews complain that it's slow. The relationship between the father and his daughter is genuinely moving. There's a tragic grandeur over the whole film. And it's also very scary. The scene in which Coleen Gray flees down the streets (shot in Culver City) are genuinely horrifying. Dabbs Greer, that venerable character actor, acquits the role of Dr. Will Beaumont, the lead's friend, with style and good humor. There's so much to this movie that has never been properly recognized. Recently screened at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, with Coleen Gray in attendance, it drew enthusiastic responses from those who saw it. A gem long and perhaps forever unrecognized.