Embrace Of The Vampire - DVD

The 1995 film "Embrace of the Vampire" finds college freshman Charlotte Wells (Alyssa Milano) being stalked by a vampire (Martin Kemp) with three days to avoid eternal rest.Embrace (whose title screen officially calls it The Nosferatu Diaries: Embrace of the Vampire) casts Milano as a good girl - she's a terrific Bad Girl in Fear(96?), the underrated thriller with Marky Mark and Reese Witherspoon. College freshman Charlotte Wells was raised by nuns and only allowed to visit her mother one weekend a month. That Catholic boarding school upbringing is reflected in the crucifix on her dorm wall, the cross she wears around her neck, and her reluctance to have sex with Chris (the late Harold Pruett), her mildly impatient boyfriend of fourteen months.Before meeting Charlotte, we are introduced to an unnamed British-accented vampire (Martin Kemp, of Spandau Ballet, and the star of the underrated The Krays - superior to the Tom Hardy version) who explains via absurd narration that he is lonely, having lost the love of his life (to silicone-enhanced nymphs). Somehow, he's found her soul inside Charlotte and he has just three days to make her desire him or else he will fall into eternal sleep. Charlotte is turning 18 in three days, though the two events are not explicitly linked.Not much of anything is made very clear in the screenplay attributed to three novice writers. Of them, only Rick Bitzelberger continued his career beyond a couple of movies. His résumé, which begins with producing credits on early '90s Penthouse videos and proceeds to include episodes of the Cinemax series "Erotic Confessions", gives you a good idea of what to expect from this film. It's softcore, late-night cable fodder with only the slightest semblance of a plot.1990s college girls, Alyssa Milano, Rachel True (The Craft), and Jordan Ladd watch and comment upon the mating habits of their dormmate. Jennifer Tilly (Bound) appears briefly as Martika, a vampiress who tempts and delays Charlotte's boyfriend Chris (Harold Pruett).Milano is game for the ride, which finds her posing topless for a promiscuous English hobby photographer in her dorm (the long-retired Charlotte Lewis, The Golden Child) and then being drugged with "X" by a catty rival (Jordan Ladd, later of Cabin Fever and Death Proof), prompting a vision of a random vampiric orgy. Such sequences are decidedly lacking titillation in the hands of first-time feature director Anne Goursaud, a longtime editor for Francis Ford Coppola who soon returned to that profession, but not for Coppola.Still, they seem of greater importance to the film than whatever is going on with the creepy, dramatic vampire/stalker who snatches one of Charlotte's crosses, burns it into oblivion in his hand and replaces it with an ankh that sometimes glows. He also makes her look crazy during an art history lecture.With modest production value and limited genre appeal, Embrace lends itself to "Mystery Science Theater 3000" treatment, only its content prevents it from translating to basic cable standards and practices.VIDEO and AUDIOThe picture quality on Embrace of the Vampire's Blu-ray is better than expected for a low-budget, straight-to-video '90s movie. The 1.85:1 presentation does not compare to those of modern films, lacking the sharpness and definition. But the element stays clean and consistently fine. Likewise, the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack is fairly solid. You can tell it's a little limited and, for some reason, much of the dialogue seems to have been looped in post-production. Nonetheless, the dialogue is mostly intelligible, crisp, and complemented by competently distributed score (which mostly sounds like the generic accompaniment to cheesy syndicated action fantasy television). English SDH and Spanish subtitles are kindly included.BONUS FEATURES, PACKAGING, DESIGN:The disc opens with trailers for the 2010 I Spit on Your Grave remake and Lovelace. That's right, counterintuitively, the platter avoids any mention of the remake concurrently released to DVD and Blu-ray combo pack.And that's it in the way of bonus features. Not that Embrace '95 loses anything of note from New Line's DVD (which was still enough of a novelty to tout "Interactive Menus!" as a selling point), just the abbreviated R-rated cut and cast & crew biographies and filmographies.Speaking of interactive menus, Embrace surprisingly gets a creative animated one on Blu-ray, which plays clips in a pool that shimmers with moonlight. I'm not sure what it has to do with the movie, but it took effort. Per Anchor Bay's standard authoring, though the disc supports bookmarks (a useful feature for those wanting to skip straight to the nude scenes), it sadly does not resume unfinished playback.The eco-friendly keepcase is not joined by any slipcover or insert, but the disc at least features a label adapted from the recycled cover art.I'm getting nostalgic for the 1990s and admiring of its cinema that I figured the original Embrace of the Vampire would hold some appeal simply as a product of its time. But, although this strikes me as one of the few feature films to center on '90s college life, it's pedestrian as a piece of storytelling. While not camp enough to enjoy ridiculing, it's near satisfaction to appreciate in whatever way intended. That the movie has endured at all, enough to hit Blu-ray before many a classic (including the hilarious The Vampire's Kiss) and with an impressive Amazon sales rank far better than the remake, seems purely a testament to its oft-cited nudity. It's that content that seems to inspire the rear cover's two amusing endorsements, from MrSkin (which dubs it "the #1 sexiest horror film of all time!") and the more respectable Entertainment Weekly (which claims it "packs a substantial erotic punch!" in a C- review).I know this doesn't read like a four star review - it is thoroughly enjoyable on its own terms.Now, if they'd just release Little Witches (ASIN# 6305090599) bluray - now there's a movie! Alas, it'll run you $475 for the DVD. Sexy and cheesy stuff.

Shallow plot, but I feel like this movie captures a moment in time that may have never existed, but by God was still cool. That moment being cool, sexy orgy parties in college. If you like fun and insipid movies with a little sexploitation sprinkled in, this is for you. It’s a little incoherent at times, but at least Alyssa Milano is topless. I consider that a win. 5 Stars.

Right off the (vampire) bat, I have to say that if you want to see lots of dudes wearing leather pants, with earrings and bare chests, smoking clove cigarettes, and loaded with plenty of styling mousse in their hair, then this is the film for you! In other words, this movie is DEFINITELY a product of its time, namely 1994. Although I did enjoy this film, it must be said that it suffers from being badly dated. Millenials would undoubtedly find this movie to be a joke.... laughably old fashioned, and even quaint. For example, the so-called "racy and steamy orgy" is lame and tepid by today's standards. Just a bunch of people, with most of their clothes still on (!), lying on sofas and rubbing up against each other. If this scene were to be shot in exactly the same way today, it would only receive a PG-13 rating! In other words, this film suffers from being a quarter of a century old, and therefore timid and old fashioned. In fact, this movie reminds me a lot of the old "erotic thrillers" that Showtime and Cinemax used to show late at night, in the very late 80's and early 90's. Nostalgia mixed with a few sexy sparkles.... Nonetheless, I will say that i liked this movie, and found it to be good natured and entertaining. Maybe because I am an older viewer, I can still appreciate the style, manner, and flavor of the 90's. This film is a kind of artifact that brings back some feelings of nostalgia and youthful sparks. And even though it is clearly a low budget effort, it does have plenty of style and directorial flair. And Alyssa Milano is undoubtedly lovely to look at; she is strikingly sexy and alluring. Be aware, though, that even though this is an "Unrated" version, there is still no full frontal nudity. None whatsoever. But we do get to see and appreciate the star's upper torso, which is arguably better than nothing. To sum up, if you expect this to be a scorchingly hot film just because it is unrated, you will be sorely disappointed. There is heavy kissing and fondling, and that's all. As well as the aforementioned bare breasts. As for the plot, it suffers from numerous gaps and weaknesses. For example, what is this British vampire (Martin Kemp) doing at an American college? And why the hell does he have to "sleep forever" in just three days?? And why, exactly, will the seduction of Alyssa Milano's character prevent this "permanent" sleep? And what's up with the three steamy "nymphs" in the prologue of the movie? Are they simply three sexy vampires who just happen to be strolling through the woods? What the hell? Oh well, despite it's plentiful flaws, this is a fun film. It's engaging, stylish, and quirkily enjoyable. But it is also pretty cheesy, especially in the way over-the-top performance of Martin Kemp. But if you want to kick back, drink some Bartles and James' wine coolers, smoke a clove cigarette, and watch some low-key erotic posturing, complete with plenty of hair mousse, then this definitely is the film for you.

dommage qu'il ne soit pas en français aussi non les seins d'alissa milano sont magnifique les scène de sexe entre fille aussi magnifique mais manque un peu surprise

PRODUKT ANGEKOMMEN (ANMERKUNG AN AMAZON bitte um Lieferanteninformierung das alles bestens ist). WARE einwandfrei konnte nur beim Erstcheck keinen Unterschied feststellen wo Inhalt sich unterscheidet (dachte es gäbe mehr Spass mit meiner Alyssa aber sah beim ersten Mal nicht anders aus, ist aber natürlich eine Sache des Produkts nicht des Lieferanten weil für den Inhalt kann der ja nix.Ich liebe Alyssa Milano schon ewig und auch wenn einige ihre Ambitionen politisch hinterfragen finde ich ist Sie weiterhin eine tolle Frau und für mich meine Göttin feuchter Träume :=) Hammer auf Netflix Insatiable mit Debby Ryan grrrgrrrrr.Ein Traum wäre wenn Sie aktuell wieder so einen erotischen Leckerbissen mal wieder zaubern würde (solange sie nicht wieder schwanger werden würde und ausser Form ;=). Toller Film für echte Kerle, schönes Gastspiel von JENNIFER TILLY in Jugendjahren (wobei immer noch lecker) STORY naja ned unbedingt der Knaller hätte durchaus noch mehr EROTIK vertragen längere Szenen ned so abrupt cutten.Mit etwas mehr Erotik und pepp und ausführlicheren Story hätte das der MEGAFILM erfolgreich werden können finde es immer noch schade das Alyssa in keinem Blockbuster eine Rolle bekam COMMANDO mit ARNIE ist KULT aber eben kein wirklicher BLOCKBUSTER denke nicht das Sie so eine schlechte Schauspielerin ist wie einige frech mutmassen.ALSO TOTALE EMPFEHLUNG FÜR ALYSSA MILANO WORSHIPER und FANS schöner EROTIK Vampirfans werden zwar wohl mehr SPASS mit DRACULA und WINONA RYDER haben war ja auch ein geiler grusseliger Film mit TOP Besetzung und erstmalig MONICA BELLUCCI als Dracis Dirne :=) ;=)

Despite being packed with one dimensional characters and a weak story, this film was very watchable and aesthetically pleasing. The setting was gothic and atmospheric and the actors are beautiful. The film does rush for an ending, which is unfortunate as nothing feels properly concluded. There are also a few scenes which are a bit cringeworthy, but Martin Kemps appearance, and convincing portrayal of a tortured vampire in this film makes up for all of its faults (at least for me).

good movie!! milano topless!! rest gets murky ?

Only wish she makes more films. Gratuitous nudity aside, if I found out she made a film sitting and reading the phone book, I would happily watch it. This movie is a little juvenile and overwrought, but for the most part has a good ensemble, the shots are well boarded and framed, the lighting is a treat to view, and did I mention, it does vehicle ALYSSA MILANO!!!I love this film.