Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter

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Something else that I really like is that Hammer was willing to break the mold of things that they've already made. They had a slew of Dracula films where they killed off the vampire in a multitude of ways to try to keep it fresh. This movie expands on that explaining there are different species of vampires and I love this idea. This monster is more of life stealing creature as it is taking the vitality of its victims to make it stay young. Going along with the different kinds, I like that each vampire is unique in the way that it can be destroyed. We get to see Kronos and Grost testing different methods before heading off to face whatever is behind this.

Intensity jumps a few notches by treating The Crazies like 28 Days Later or other “Rage Virus” films. Eisner produces an infinitely scarier version of The Crazies on a purely visual level. Ogden Marsh’s “crazy” residents almost look zombified as they skewer, roast, and commit heinous acts of violence against their neighbors, fitting the 2000s need one-up what’s shown during weekday news segments. Eisner is going for the full-on horror experience, from righteous jump scares in sudsy car washes to gnarly killing blows in mechanic bays, if only to emphasize what Romero established years prior. He’s able to retain the anger in Romero’s themes while adding post-millennium angst and pulse-pounding tension, staying true to the original’s conspiratorial themes with a deeper bite.Forging Scene: The Professor transforms an iron crucifix into a cruciform sword, with which Kronos can kill the vampire.

In a better world, there would be way more than just one movie with Captain Kronos (Horst Janson, dubbed by Julian Holloway) in it. Along with his partner Professor Hieronymus Grost (John Cater), he's come to town to investigate a series of vampire-style murders, but while he's there, why not romance Carla (Caroline Munro), a gypsy girl in jail for dancing on the Sabbath? I am agog at the news: Roger Moore – her co-star in The Spy Who Loved Me – also started off as a knitwear model. “Oh that’s right! I knew there was something about him I liked. His knitwear was very classic, really.” Filmed under the time allotted and within the confines of its strict budget, the smooth production was a testament to Clemens’ vision, careful planning and immaculate execution. A kinetic, earthy picture, Kronos succeeds in presenting a film that feels altogether new when compared to Hammer’s other blood-thirsty entries while simultaneously employing and subverting many of the tropes which comprise those narratives. What I want to lead off here stating is that I was disappointed to see that this is the movie that is credited as the start of the downfall of Hammer Horror during this run they had. It does seem that this movie has gained quite the following after that era, but that it didn't do the greatest in its time which is a shame. Not to play my hand too early, but I dug what this movie was doing.Another wrinkle in the mystery of the dark goings on in the small village is the wealthy Durward family, consisting of bedridden Lady Durward and her two androgynous adult children Paul and Sara, played by Shane Briant and Lois Diane respectively. Oddly close and constantly professing their insecurities regarding aging and ending up like their decrepit matriarch in the upstairs suite, Paul and Sara frequent the film as something of a disconcerting shadow hanging over the town. Probably the most in-line with Hammer’s typical output, the family represents the wealthy aristocracy, perched, as it always is, precariously above its subjugated class. On the other hand, John Cater is delightful in the direct supporting role of Grost, giving Kronos' assistant great amiable charm. Caroline Munroe, similarly, is obviously having fun in her role as Carla, and it's a pity that she's not given still more to do with it. Carla seeks refuge at Durward Manor to distract the household while Kronos sneaks inside. The "bedridden" Lady Durward reveals herself as the newly-youthful vampire, and she hypnotises Carla and the Durward siblings. Lady Durward has raised her husband Hagen from the grave. She offers the mesmerised Carla to her husband, but Kronos erupts from hiding. Kronos uses the new sword's mirrored blade to turn Lady Durward's hypnotic gaze against her. He kills Lord Durward in a duel, and then destroys Lady Durward. Freudian Excuse: When Carla wonders why Kronos is so rough in bed (at the time, he's left her with a bleeding lip, although she doesn't seem very upset). He gives a excuse about his family becoming vampires, and kissing therefore having ugly implications for him. I've only seen a couple of Hammer horror films, but I'm impressed. They seem to be subtly effective if you're looking for a few thrills and chills, not overdoing the gore, being mild on the language but yet having a definite edge to them.

Actionized Sequel: Kronos, Grost and Carla fight more Vampires in the first issue than in the entire first movie combined. You have to love a movie that posits that different vampires need to be killed in different ways, then has a scene where the heroes try every method to kill one of the undead until it stays dead. Stealth Sequel: To the Karnstein Trilogy. Lady Durward turns out be a Karnstein by birth, leading to all sorts of Epileptic Trees. Ingrid Pitt was even offered the role as a Casting Gag but turned it down. Forbidden Zone: The Slake and his Vampires live in ghost region separated from the rest of Serechurch by wooden walls where none dare enter...except Kronos, of course.

The most notable creative difference sees no character in the ballpark of Richard France’s scientist, Dr. Watts, who spends the majority of Romero’s film testing an antidote that could save humanity. Eisner doesn’t care about what’s happening in laboratories or makeshift command centers because what’s truly horrific isn’t found in beakers or under microscope magnification. Where Romero’s film is more about commanding bodies failing on a spectacular scale, Eisner emphasizes the avoidable consequences we the people endure. Romero wants you to see the parties responsible, whereas Eisner wants your skin to crawl when watching innocents morph into bloodthirsty lunatics. If anything, Romero gets lost in Dr. Watts’ mission and cleanup objectives while Eisner successfully hinges his film on rabid, frothing-at-the-mouth aspects the original glosses over. Running Gag: Someone cursing and Kronos/Grost/Carla deadpanning "Language." (often in the middle of a battle) is a running joke throughout, occurring at least once per issue.