{"id":764,"date":"2020-08-02T12:59:07","date_gmt":"2020-08-02T12:59:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/?p=764"},"modified":"2020-08-02T12:59:07","modified_gmt":"2020-08-02T12:59:07","slug":"7-not-so-scary-vampire-movies-to-stream-instead-of-morbius","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/7-not-so-scary-vampire-movies-to-stream-instead-of-morbius\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Not-So-Scary Vampire Movies To Stream Instead Of \u2018Morbius\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Had things gone according to plan, I\u2019d be spending this morning dissecting the opening day grosses for\u00a0<em>Morbius<\/em>. The next chapter of the, uh, Sony Pictures Universe\u00a0of Marvel Characters\u201d was to star Jared Leto as \u201cthe living vampire,\u201d with hopes that it would earn even 1\/3 of what Tom Hardy\u2019s\u00a0<em>Venom\u00a0<\/em>grossed ($214 million domestic and $854 million worldwide) in late 2018. But Sony pushed the film back to March 19, 2021, meaning if you want a not-so-scary vampire flick, you\u2019ll have to look elsewhere. To mark the occasion, I\u2019ve rounded up several non-horror vampire movies. That\u2019s not to say they don\u2019t feature their share of blood and\/or violence, but they aren\u2019t necessarily conventional \u201chorror movies.\u201d Some are superhero flicks; some are romances and some are weird little comedies. I tried to avoid conventional horror, but yes, I\u2019d also recommend\u00a0<em>Byzantium<\/em><strong><em>,\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><em>Only Lovers Left Alive\u00a0<\/em>and (obviously)<em>\u00a0Interview with the Vampire.\u00a0<\/em>And now, without further ado\u2026<\/p><div class=\"gcuvd649bde7661653\" ><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n     style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\"\n     data-ad-layout=\"in-article\"\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8209967072221559\"\n     data-ad-slot=\"2673331731\"><\/ins>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 1201px) {\r\n.gcuvd649bde7661653 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 993px) and (max-width: 1200px) {\r\n.gcuvd649bde7661653 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 769px) and (max-width: 992px) {\r\n.gcuvd649bde7661653 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 768px) {\r\n.gcuvd649bde7661653 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (max-width: 767px) {\r\n.gcuvd649bde7661653 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n<\/style>\r\n\n<p><strong><em>Blade\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(1998)<\/p>\n<p>$131 million worldwide on a $48 million budget<\/p>\n<p>Available to rent for $3-$4 on all major VOD platforms<\/p>\n<p>Yes, yes, we all know that\u00a0<em>Spawn\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0<em>Blade<\/em>, not\u00a0<em>X-Men<\/em>, are the movies that kicked off the second phase of modern (and present-tense) comic book superhero movies.\u00a0<em>Blade\u00a0<\/em>set the bar in another important way, crafting a Marvel comics adaptation that wasn\u2019t just \u201cHey, here\u2019s that comic book you like!\u201d but was also \u201cHey, he\u2019s an action-packed, R-rated martial-arts movie where Wesley Snipes plays a superpowered vampire who kills other vampires.\u201d In other words, it was a very early example of comic book cinema approximating a specific genre while also providing \u201cwanna see\u201d value even for those indifferent to or unaware of the source material. Stylish, violent and frankly exciting as hell,\u00a0<em>Blade\u00a0<\/em>was a comic book superhero movie that was also a top-notch vampire thriller and a star-driven action movie. Guillermo del Toro\u2019s\u00a0<em>Blade II\u00a0<\/em>is even better, but it\u2019s also more of a horror movie, so I\u2019m counting the first one.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recirc-unit recirc-unit-open\" data-gtm-vis-recent-on-screen-655684_1281=\"75566\" data-gtm-vis-first-on-screen-655684_1281=\"75566\" data-gtm-vis-total-visible-time-655684_1281=\"100\" data-gtm-vis-has-fired-655684_1281=\"1\">\n<div class=\"recirc-title\">Recommended For You<\/div>\n<ul class=\"recirc-story-list fuse-data-stories\">\n<li class=\"recirc-story\">\n<h3 class=\"recirc-headline\" data-ga-track=\"Personalized SEO Recirc Unit: 4\">Black Is King Trending Worldwide Shows The Power Of Beyonc\u00e9 Supremacy And Fanaticism.<\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"recirc-story\">\n<h3 class=\"recirc-headline\" data-ga-track=\"Personalized SEO Recirc Unit: 5\">Big Island Coffee Roasters Enriches Coffee Culture By Turning Turmoil Into Teaching Opportunities<\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"recirc-story\">\n<h3 class=\"recirc-headline\" data-ga-track=\"Personalized SEO Recirc Unit: 6\">Keep Nespresso\u2019s Vision Alive<\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong><em>Daybreakers\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(2010)<\/p>\n<p>$51 million worldwide on a $20 million budget<\/p>\n<p>Available to rent for $1-$4 on all VOD platforms<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m bending the line in terms of \u201chorror,\u201d but this isn\u2019t a film where unsuspecting humans are attacked by bloodthirsty creatures of the night. Written and directed by the Spierig Brothers, this early-2010 sci-fi flick takes place in a world where most of the population has already turned into vampires, to the point where the bloodsuckers are running out of their primary food source. Ethan Hawke stars as a vampire scientist while Willem Dafoe is a former vampire returned to human status who boasts of a cure that could revert the population back to humanity. Most vampire movies use the condition as a metaphor for one ailment or another, and\u00a0<em>Daybreakers\u00a0<\/em>is a terrific genre flick that\u2019s also a metaphor for the overuse of non-replenishable natural resources. Call it sci-fi, call it horror, I call it the best genre studio release ever offered in that now-standard \u201cfirst weekend of January\u201d slot.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Hotel Transylvania 2<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong>(2015)<\/p>\n<p>$474 million worldwide on an $80 million budget<\/p>\n<p>Available to rent for $3-$4 on all major VOD platforms<\/p>\n<p>Another example of a bawdy or R-rated filmmaker benefited from restrictions due to making a film aimed at kids, Robert Smigel and Genndy Tartakovsky\u2019s second animated comedy is even better than the first surprisingly good Adam Sandler-and-friends fantasy. The hotel is now open for humans and monsters, and Drac is now a grandpa. But potential trouble looks as Drac\u2019s human-hating dad Vlad (Mel Brooks!) shows up even as the kid has yet to show any monstrous abilities. This joyously animated franchise, like the\u00a0<em>Madagascar\u00a0<\/em>films, cares more about internal conflict and psychological hang ups than with foiling plots or saving the day. All of the usual Sander castmates (Spade, Buscemi, James, etc.) show up and the franchise plays as a knowing inversion on the standard Sandler comedy. Instead of everyone going on a carefree overseas vacation, the movie takes place in a hotel where everyone else is on holiday. This may be Sandler\u2019s best mainstream comedy.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>The Monster Squad<\/em><\/strong><em>\u00a0<\/em>(1987)<\/p>\n<p>$3.8 million worldwide on a $12 million budget<\/p>\n<p>Watch it for free\u00a0at Pluto TV<\/p>\n<p>Fred Dekker and Shane Black\u2019s PG-13 boys\u2019 adventure story is just scary and violent enough to make the seven-to-ten-year-olds think they got away with something. The flick concerns several boys (and a kid sister) who have to put their monster movie knowledge to the test when their hometown seemingly gets invaded by the genuine article. The kids are fine, but the adults are what makes this movie pop. Duncan Regehr is ahead-of-his-time as \u201chot Dracula,\u201d while Tom Noonan plays against type as an appropriately sympathetic Frankenstein\u2019s monster. Leonardo Cimino adds gravitas and pathos as a holocaust survivor who aids the kids in battle more mythical monsters, and the whole \u201cend of the world showdown\u201d takes place in the shadow of our hero\u2019s (Andre Gower) parents on the verge of divorcing. The film looked too kid-friendly for cool teens and too but the (better than\u00a0<em>Goonies<\/em>) flick has justly earned a cult following.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Twilight\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(2008)<\/p>\n<p>$391 million worldwide on a $50 million budget<\/p>\n<p>Watch it for free\u00a0on Amazon Prime<\/p>\n<p>Putting aside the endless online pontificating, whether its core romance is terribly healthy and\/or its value as a film that showed that fantasy franchises aimed at girls and women could bring it top-tier box office, Catherine Hardwicke\u2019s adaptation of Stephen Meyers\u2019 YA romance is still a goofy hoot. The relationship between Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson) may not be the second coming of Rose and Jack, but the supporting cast (including a grounded Billy Burke, a flighty Anna Kendrick and a droll Gil Birmingham) is in on the joke, as is Hardwicke and screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg in terms of making self-deprecating changes to the source material and adding pulpy humor whenever possible. It\u2019s not quite as gonzo-bananas as\u00a0<em>Breaking Dawn part II<\/em>, but the first\u00a0<em>Twilight\u00a0<\/em>stands out as a genuinely enjoyable vampire fantasy with Hardwicke\u2019s arthouse \u201cmind of a teen girl\u201d sensibility that none of the sequels could touch. Also, vampire baseball is awesome.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Vamps\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(2012)<\/p>\n<p>$3.3 million worldwide<\/p>\n<p>Watch it for free\u00a0on YouTube<\/p>\n<p>With all the Amy Heckerling\/Alicia Silverstone talk due to the 25th anniversary of\u00a0<em>Clueless<\/em>, I\u2019d heartily recommend checking out this underseen (and arguably underrated) vampire comedy. Heckerling\u2019s original rom-com\/women supporting women fantasy is an aggressively bubbly and upbeat comedy about two vampires (Silverstone and Krysten Ritter) who have stayed alive and eternally young sans human blood. Complications ensure when Ritter falls for a college student (Dan Stevens in his English-language feature debut) who happens to be the son of Dr. Helsing (Wallace Shawn). Meanwhile, Silverstone runs into an old flame (Richard Lewis) as the vampires realize that the government may be using post-9\/11 security measures to track the undead. The movie is light as a feather, but it works as a warm character comedy with terrific performances (Lewis is surprisingly sweet as a former 60\u2019s radical whose wife is dying of cancer) with a surprising emotional oomph when required. This is a lovely little movie.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>What We Do in the Shadows\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(2014)<\/p>\n<p>$7 million worldwide on a $1.6 million budget<\/p>\n<p>Available to rent for $3-$4 on all major VOD platforms<\/p>\n<p>I can\u2019t say to what extent the popularity of FX\u2019s terrific episodic has inspired additional interest in the 2014 same-named feature. This mockumentary is what put Taika Waititi on the map, at least in terms of mainstream Hollywood attention. This gut-busting (and blood-spilling) comedy follows four vampires who live together in Wellington. Beyond that, it pretty much speaks for itself and I have no desire to give away the best jokes. We can debate whether the TV show is better, but A) they are both excellent and B)\u00a0<em>What We Do In the Shadows\u00a0<\/em>is that rare movie that has inspired a TV show that has taken on a life of its own within the pop culture zeitgeist. Think, offhand,\u00a0<em>M.A.S.H.<\/em>,\u00a0<em>Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Fargo\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0<em>Parenthood<\/em>. If you\u2019ve only seen the show, you owe it to yourself to check out the genuine article. Ditto if you only know Waititi from\u00a0<em>Thor: Ragnarok\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0<em>Jojo Rabbit<\/em>.<\/p><div class=\"bxsin649bde7661690\" ><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n     style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\"\n     data-ad-layout=\"in-article\"\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8209967072221559\"\n     data-ad-slot=\"2673331731\"><\/ins>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 1201px) {\r\n.bxsin649bde7661690 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 993px) and (max-width: 1200px) {\r\n.bxsin649bde7661690 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 769px) and (max-width: 992px) {\r\n.bxsin649bde7661690 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 768px) {\r\n.bxsin649bde7661690 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n@media screen and (max-width: 767px) {\r\n.bxsin649bde7661690 {\r\ndisplay: block;\r\n}\r\n}\r\n<\/style>\r\n\n<p>Source:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/scottmendelson\/2020\/08\/01\/7-vampire-movies-to-stream-instead-of-morbius-including-twilight-blade-vamps\/#5cb54eb25ab1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">forbes.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Had things gone according to plan, I\u2019d be spending this morning dissecting the opening day grosses for\u00a0Morbius. The next chapter&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":765,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[124],"tags":[3217,3208,3210,3215,3196,3195,3225,3222,3220,3194,3198,3216,3189,3236,3237,3200,3223,3219,3203,3232,3209,3206,3207,3238,3193,3228,3231,3224,3229,3221,3212,3213,3218,3204,3202,3197,3201,3199,3190,3191,3205,3214,3234,3211,3235,3230,3226,3192,3227,3233],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=764"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":766,"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/764\/revisions\/766"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/765"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stremon.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}