Subscribe to watch - 14-day free trial, then £4.99 a month
Vampir Cuadecuc
Pere Portabella’s extraordinary experimental documentary reworks footage filmed on the set of Jess Franco’s 1970 shocker Count Dracula starring Christopher Lee.
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1970 66 mins Not rated
Director: Pere Portabella
Overview
Made in Spain during General Franco’s rule, Pere Portabella’s extraordinary Vampir Cuadecuc was filmed on the set of Jess Franco’s shocker El Conde Dracula (Count Dracula, 1970) starring Christopher Lee, Herbert Lom and the exquisite Soledad Miranda. Filmed in stark, heavily grained black and white, this atmospheric and experimental ‘making of’ documentary transforms the myth of the vampire into a powerful metaphor for bloodthirsty fascism epitomised by Franco and tyrants like him, a witty allegory with Dracula as the dictator who feeds on his people, yet whose demise is certain.
Dispensing almost entirely with dialogue, Portabella relies on an abstract, fabulously idiosyncratic soundscape created by renowned Catalan artist and musician Carles Santos for its unearthly effect. Banned after completion, Vampir Cuadecuc remains a provocative, subversive and surreal experience.
Related
Animation & Artists Moving Image
Fata Morgana Fata Morgana
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1971 76 mins Director: Werner Herzog
Herzog’s intense, dreamlike mediation on desert life as if seen by an alien.
Bronco's House Bronco's House
Drama 2015 44 mins Director: Mark Jenkin
A young man strives to provide a home for his pregnant girlfriend and their unborn child, in Mark Jenkin's mid-length precursor to Bait.
The Last of England The Last of England
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1987 91 mins Director: Derek Jarman
Derek Jarman's passionate and poetic lament on the rise of Thatcherism and corporate dealings.
Sebastiane Sebastiane
Historical drama 1976 85 mins Director: Derek Jarman
A distinctly bold and sensual reclaiming of gay history, Jarman here tells the sexually intense story of the 4th-century martyr.
The Fabulous Baron Munchausen The Fabulous Baron Munchausen
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1961 85 mins Director: Karel Zeman
Karel Zeman’s wildly inventive and comic take on the surreal adventures of the bragging Baron explodes on to the screen in a riot of colour, visual wit and poetic verve.
Last and First Men Last and First Men
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2020 70 mins Director: Jóhann Jóhannsson
Two billion years ahead of us, a future race of humans finds itself on the verge of extinction. Tilda Swinton narrates this visually stunning lament for humanity by acclaimed composer Jóhann Jóhannsson (Sicario, Arrival).
Filmmaking in Focus
Le Mépris Le Mépris
Drama 1963 103 mins Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard conducts an autopsy of love and the creative process, as a boorish film producer dismantles a seemingly strong marriage.
Room 237 Room 237
Documentary 2012 103 mins Director: Rodney Ascher
Rodney Ascher's enigmatic essay film weaves together the contrasting theories of five different narrators who believe Stanley Kubrick deliberately buried hidden messages in his 1980 adaptation of Stephen King’s novel.
8½ 8½
Drama 1963 138 mins Director: Federico Fellini
Fellini triumphantly conjured himself out of writer's block with this magnum opus about a film director experiencing his own creative crisis.
Speaking of Buñuel Speaking of Buñuel
Documentary 2000 99 mins Director: José Luis López Linares
José Luis López-Linares and Javier Rioyo’s incisive documentary about Luis Buñuel.
Irma Vep Irma Vep
Drama 1996 99 mins Director: Olivier Assayas
Olivier Assayas' sexy and stylish ode to the madness of filmmaking, with Maggie Cheung as the Hong Kong movie star playing a Catwoman-style anti-heroine.
Celluloid Man Celluloid Man
Documentary 2012 156 mins Director: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur
A tribute to film archivist and obsessive cinephile P.K. Nair, and his long, hard fight to preserve India's precious film heritage.
New
Drive Drive
Crime 2011 97 mins Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Ryan Gosling plays the stunt double leading another life as a getaway driver in Nicolas Winding Refn's timeless cult thriller.
Diary for My Father and Mother Diary for My Father and Mother
Drama 1990 116 mins Director: Márta Mészáros
A climate of fear and mistrust pervades Budapest after the 1956 Uprising, the setting for the last part of Márta Mészáros’ outstanding Diary trilogy.
Diary for My Children Diary for My Children
Drama 1984 103 mins Director: Márta Mészáros
The first part of Márta Mészáros' award-winning autobiographical Diary trilogy, set in Hungary from 1947 to 1953.
Riddance Riddance
Drama 1973 81 mins Director: Márta Mészáros
A thoughtful, observational drama about a young woman’s fight to retain her integrity despite falling in love.
Diary for My Loves Diary for My Loves
Drama 1987 126 mins Director: Márta Mészáros
The second part of Márta Mészáros’ triumphant Diary trilogy focuses on Juli starting to realise her dream of becoming a director.
I'm British But... I'm British But...
1989 29 mins Director: Gurinder Chadha
Britain beats to the sound of Bhangra and Bangla in Gurinder Chadha's debut film.