Radu: One mean bloodsucker.
This horror gem focuses on three beautiful women (including two American college students) who get caught in a power struggle between two vampire brothers, the evil Radu and the good-hearted Stefan, during a trip to Transylvania. The acting and dialogue are decent (Angus Scrimm gets co-billing but really just has a cameo), but what really makes this film stand out are the beautiful Transylvanian / Romanian locations, excellent cinematography, the scenery-chewing performance of Anders Hove as Radu and the absolutely fantastic score by the Aman Folk Orchestra, whose blend of East European folk music, gothic orchestrations and eerie vocals and ambient sounds is haunting and hypnotic. I own this unique soundtrack, but it has been out-of-print for many, many years and is worth hunting down. Check out the main theme here.
I’m not sure how the stop motion animation effects will hold up on Blu-ray (for the tiny creatures at Radu’s command), but I imagine some of the other shots will look exquisite, and hopefully the music will sound killer. If you have yet to see Subspecies, grab it when it comes out again.
I hope they actually do this Subspecies Blu-ray justice and it’s not another Full Moon cash grab like the previous DVD sets. Those transfers were atrocious. My old VHS tapes looked better. I have the soundtrack too, having been a big Full Moon fan back in the 90s, and it is excellent.