31 Days of Asian Horror: The Bloodthirsty Trilogy (1971-1974)

Happy Halloween!

Today’s Asian horror pick is a trio of movies produced by Toho Studios: The Vampire Doll, Lake of Dracula, and Evil of Dracula. While there is no plot connection between the three, they are all directed by Michio Yamamoto and written by Ei Ogawa. The movies aren’t like other Japanese horror films, and fall more closely into the style of British gothic horror of the 50’s. I really enjoyed all three films, and they are the perfect fall afternoon binge but can be watched out of order without any worry about ruining the experience. What makes the trio even more interesting is that while they are pretty close to their original source, there is still a sense of what we would see in some later Japanese horror movies and the inherent difference in culture makes the movies unique in their own right. Sometimes you just need a classic spooky tale that doesn’t rely on gore or jump scares, and who centered the spookiness in original scares, haunting organ melodies, and things that go bump in the night.

The Vampire Doll (1970)

After returning home from an overseas trip Kazuhiko (Atsuo Nakamura) goes to visit his girlfriend at her country home. After not hearing from him for a week, Kazuhiko's sister Keiko (Kayo Matsuo) goes to figure out where her brother went with the aid of her fiance, Hiroshi (Akira Nakao).

Lake of Dracula (1971)

After a nightmare about a vampire when she was young, Akiko’s (Midori Fujita) dream is revealed true when an empty coffin shows up. Akiko's boyfriend, a doctor on the island, realizes that something is amiss when a series of deaths occur and go to investigate what is happening, which sets off a series of horrific events with Akiko being targeted by a vampire.

Evil of Dracula (1974)

Shiraki ((Shin Kishida) accepts a position at an all-girls boarding school where he finds out the headmaster is not who he says he is and that the students, and him, are in trouble against the vampire.

All of the movies can be found on Tubi and AsianCrush as well as on Blu-Ray/DVD.

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31 Days of Asian Horror: Blood (2015)

Switching gears a bit from a full review of a movie (and technically not horror but let’s just let that one slide), today I’m focusing on my first impression of the first two episodes of the 2015 kdrama, Blood. Written by Park Jae Bum (God’s Quiz) and directed by Lee Jae Hoon (Run On, Ghost Detective) and Ki Min Soo (Good Doctor), the series follows top Ji Sang (Ahn Jae Hyun), a doctor that specializes in a specific surgery who is also a vampire, and his colleagues at a top cancer treatment center.

Blood has always been on my radar, but I never quite pulled the trigger to put it on my watch list, mostly because it was always sort of pitched like a romcom to me. With my aversion to most romcoms, I steered clear of the drama for a while. I wish I had looked into it sooner, not realizing who was behind the project. Director Ki Min Soo’s recent works include some of my favorites of recent date. Park Jae Bum wrote most recently for Vincenzo, and is the writer for one of my favorite kdrama series, God’s Quiz. While the drama is not fully a romcom, it does have some of those elements and is a closer follow to the structure of older kdramas, having heightened exaggerations of situations and heavily leaning on the clash between Min Soo and the female lead, played by Ku Hye Sun. I’m not a fan of those tropes and is a turn-off for a good bit of the scenes concerning the two. The drama does have enough of a rotating cast, and because it’s a medical drama more excitement or intrigue than if the drama had to follow just their relationship.

For me, the biggest draw of the series is the integration of his vampirism within the drama. It’s a unique take on the trope, and from early on we see the struggle he has with being a vampire. It plays into some interesting storylines, and also helps introduce him as a doctor. It’s doesn’t seem as corny or off the wall. Having the scenes when he’s younger feel compassion towards others while fighting his demons worked with the drama and with the death of the parents the drama set up some mystery for a larger issue that I’m interested to see. I also liked that we didn’t have to wait around for a tangible reason why he can be out in public or out in sunlight. The drama sets up a lot of the questions regarding him being able to do what he does fairly early on, allowing the viewer to not have to dwell on it. I respected how tight everything was in that regard, and it didn’t needlessly bog down the episode with these types of unanswered questions on the logistics of him operating as a vampire.

That being said, I know I will have trouble with the main pairing. This time period of kdramas have some pretty insufferable female leads, and it makes it hard to really get into the drama because of that. I also find that Hye Sun’s acting, in general, tends to be overexaggerated a bit too much despite the project she is working on, and it interrupts my care for her the characters she performs. It also presents a specific problem within a medical drama where her character has literal lives in her hands, and feel that she is jeopardizing those patients to show off and not being held accountable. I have a hard time believing in characters being truly good and empathetic when they show that they’d rather place a patient in harm’s way than to be upstaged by someone, a long-time hated trope that is very much present in this drama.

Will I continue the series? Honestly, it’s a possibility. I was intrigued by the first two episodes enough to want to continue the series but it is a longer drama, coming in at 20 episodes. Add elements that I know will be a struggle (that will take a longer time to settle and resolve in the story), and I’m not in any rush to continue watching. I do have some hope for the rest of the series, though, even if I end up completing it and it’s not a top drama for me. The team is pretty stacked in favor of this being a generally good series for me. Another factor that is preventing me from picking it up fully is that I do have a lineup of dramas that I’m currently watching, as well as a November packed with new dramas premiering that picking up the drama now just doesn’t seem as feasible. At the very least I intend to keep it on my list so that I can watch an episode or two here and there, but not commit to watching it in one sitting or in any time frame.

Blood can be found on Viki and Kocowa.

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31 Days of Asian Horror: Ten Vampire Dramas/Movies

I needed a bit of a mental health day today and so I figured instead of a full review I’d list some fun vampire dramas and movies options since it’s a Thirsty Thursday. I focused this list more on dramas and movies that are currently available, and don’t actually reflect my personal favorites nor are they even all considered horror. Most of the offerings on this list I haven’t seen personally, but this list does have a good variety in horror levels and hopefully you can find something that will work for you.

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Tokyo Vampire Hotel (2017)

One of my favorite offerings on Amazon Prime, if you haven’t watched this Sion Sono directed drama about vampires trying to create their own utopia - and their own food supply - under the guise of a matchmaking party you are missing out. It’s a campy, blood-filled ride and I love it.

Where to find it: Amazon Prime

The Sweet Blood (2021)

This small web series aired early this year, the kdrama follows Yeon Soo, a vampire who wants to live a normal human life and tries to blend in by going to high school. When her classmate, Song Meo Roo attracts that unwanted attention from other vampires and werewolves because of his sweet blood Yeon Seo decides to protect him.

Where to find it: Viki

Vampire Princess Miyu OVA (1988)

The Vampire Princess Miyu series has been one of my all-time favorite animes for literally almost two decades, and while up until now I’ve had to do rewatches on my old DVDs, the OVA is now appearing on streaming sites. It is only currently the dubbed version, but this anime is worth a watch and follows a vampire, Miyu, and her protector Larva as she captures evil demons. The artwork is beautiful, and it has great character growth as well as an episodic monster of the week type vibe.

Where to find it: Tubi, RetroCrush, AsianCrush

Beautiful Vampire (2018)

A less horror more fantasy option is the 2018 movie, Beautiful Vampire about a vampire (Jung Yeon Joo) who runs a small makeup shop when the new building owner (Park Joon Myun) wants to kick her out. It’s a romcom with all the normal kdrama tropes that you can check off your list.

Where to find it: Viki, AsianCrush

I Cannot Hug You (2017)

Another light offering is the romantic/comedy cdrama, I Cannot Hug You starring Xing Zhao Lin and Rayil Zhang. A modern-day vampire story about an apathetic vampire who falls in love with her next door neighbor. I haven’t watched this personally, but it was pretty popular when it was airing and has two seasons.

Where to find it: Viki

You Are My Vampire (2014)

Struggling and down on her luck, Gyu Jung decides to write a novel about a vampire and encounters a strange man who rents a room at her dad's lodge.

Where to find it: AsianCrush

Orange Marmalade (2015)

Set in a world where humans and vampires coexist, vampires are discriminated against so most hide their true identity. Ma Ri (Kim Seol Hyun)hides her identity from her friends and neighbors, but things change when she falls in love with new student Jae Min (Yeo Jin Goo).

Where to find it: Viki, Kocowa

The Scholar Who Walks the Night (2015)

A Joseon scholar with a secret past recruits a cross-dressing bookseller to help him in his fight to protect the throne from a vampire. The kdrama stars Lee Joon Gi and Lee Yo Bi, with the screenwriter from Coffee Prince, Jang Hyun Joo, as well as a slew of other well-known actors. If you are looking for a more classic sageuk that incorporates vampires, this will be a great pick.

Where to find it: Viki, Kocowa

Blood (2015)

The kdrama Blood follows a renowned doctor who is best known for his cancer research, who is also a vampire. Blood is more of a medical based drama, with conflicts dealing in power struggles and humanity.

Where to find it: Viki, Kocowa

Vampire Knight (2008)

This 2008 anime is about Yuki Cross and vampire hunter Zero Kiryu, who attend a school as guardians to protect the humans from the vampires.

Where to find it: Netflix

Honorable Mentions

All of these are currently not streaming anywhere or easily accessible, but have in the past so they might pop up somewhere in the future.

• Vampire Prosecutor (2011) - kdrama

• Vampire Detective (2016) - kdrama

• RH Plus (2008) - jdrama

• Vampire Heaven (2013) - jdrama

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31 Days of Asian Horror: Thirst (2009)

Today’s Thirsty Thursday offering is the 2009 South Korean vampire horror film directed by Park Chan Wook (Oldboy, Snow Piercer), Thirst. Starring Song Kang Ho as a Catholic priest who turns into a vampire after a failed medical experiment, Thirst is about lust, desire, and the consequences of your actions when one is torn between what they want and their faith. The film is loosely based on the 1867 novel Therese Raquin by Emile Zola.

Thirst is a different take on a vampire film and focuses on a different direction in the genre. It takes you on an unsuspecting ride that focuses much more on Sang Hyun’s (Song) inner struggle with his change and the actions he has to do to satiate who he is as a monster than gore or fantasy. Kim Ok Bin plays the literal manifestation of the devil on his shoulder and does a fantastic job. I do think the movie takes a bit too long to get there, but in the end I thought it was a solid movie and definitely suggest picking it up.

Thirst is currently available for rent/purchase on most major platforms.

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