Bled Dry is the new book from Adrian Roe that covers the vampire subgenre throughout the ages. From the silent movies of the 20th Century to present day, Bled Dry will explore this most ancient of creatures, and a horror villain that refuses to die.
A fun, insightful, informative and addictive read. As a fan of both the classic and ‘modern’ vampire I appreciated the effort and love put into this tome. Adrian has crafted an awesome ‘book of the dead’. It not only tackles the Universal and Hammer runs of vampire movies but also delves into films that were inspired by the very nature of the monster. This isn’t just an essay about Lugosi and Lee and their imitators, this is a deep dive into the misfit sons and bastard children of the vampire genre. I discovered new movies, and gained information about movies I thought I was pretty well-versed in. Like his ‘Scream’ series, Adrian writes as both a fan and a scholar. It’s not a ‘dry’ book by any means. It is colorful. Blood red, in fact. Awesome interviews with masters of the genre like Tom Holland and Mick Garris illuminate the dark corners of the vampire’s castle. A sit-down with Dedee Pfeiffer offers a first hand account of one of my favorite, underrated vampire movies ‘Vamp’. I was pleased to see that the ‘vampire video age’ wasn’t left out either. The Subspecies series is a particular guilty (not guilty) pleasure of mine. Also provided is some of the technical stats of the films…like budget and box office gross. For a filmmaker like myself, I find those little details fascinating. From Varney to Dracula to the Karnsteins to Jerry Dandridge to the California bloodsuckers in The Lost Boys to Deacon Frost & Blade…you’ll find your pet vampire here. It’s like as if Captain Kronos wrote a book. Buy it. Invite it in. Highly recommended.
Words: John Sullivan (writer/producer)
