Product Details

• Actors: Alexandra Pic, Isabelle Teboul, Bernard Charnacé, Nathalie Perrey, Anne Duguël
• Directors: Jean Rollin
• Writers: Jean Rollin
• Format: Color, Dubbed, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: French
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Shriek Show
• DVD Release Date: July 30, 2002
• Run Time: 103 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000633TB
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #95,982 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Two Orphan Vampires" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Gothic vamp film with a flair for the visual, April 30, 2004

By	Matthew King (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This movie is quite different from the usual Jean Rollin film. There is practically no nudity or blood or softcore eroticism. It is tamer however it is visually more impressive than most of his other works. So those who prefer to watch Rollin films for purpose of atmosphere, elaborate sets and artistic value might find this to be one of his better efforts.

Two blind young women enter "Les Glycines", a religious orphanage in rural France. Apparently, the two lost their sight at a very early age and for no apparent reason. Assigned to the case is Dr. Dennary, an expert eye specialist who seeks to unravel some of the reasons for their condition. Little do the doctor and the nuns in the orphanage know that at night, the two girls can see just fine. At night is when the two girls turn into vampires and sneak out of their bedroom window to scour the orphanage's external surroundings for human blood. After a while, Dr. Dennary and the two orphans will relocate to Paris in an apartment, which suits the two orphans just fine since in the city the streets at night are a haven for fresh blood...

"Two Orphan Vampires" captures a good 70's eurohorror vibe but with a modern look and minus the grainy picture. There is precious little gore effects in this one, besides a sickening scene involving the throat-ripping of a dog in a cemetery. Mostly it's just a few blood capsules dripping down the orphans' necks when they kill a victim. There is only one scene of nudity, where the two orphans (who barely look older than eighteen I might add) bare all at dusk during one of their night crawling expeditions. Despite the absence of nudity and blood (or action, for that matter) what kept my eyes glued to the screen was the amazing sense of atmosphere Rollin created. The scenic shots of rural France and Paris are stunning, filled with ancient architectural pieces, statues, cathedrals, churches, cemeteries, etc. There was a very surrealist feel to this movie, Rollin's sets akin to a painter's art.

The other major reason to watch this film of course is the two leads, first-time actresses Alexandra Pic and Isabelle Teboul. They are the centrepiece of the entire movie, as there are very few other characters in the film. While in no way is their acting great, or even good, these two very attractive young women still managed to ooze presence and sensuality. However the omni-presence of these two young leads cannot hide many of the film's faults, the least of which are the lack of action and slow pacing throughout. There were also many things that simply made no sense; Why does night sometimes look so bright? Why are passer-by's the least bit scared of these two young women before even knowing they're vampires? Why do the streets of Paris look semi-deserted, even during the day? Personally, I chose not to let these things bother me too much and instead focused on Rollin's artistic wizardry and flair for the visual.

So no, "Two Orphan Vampires" doesn't exactly qualify as a masterpiece but to my eyes it was still very entertaining throughout. That was probably in no small part due to the two female leads being developed so well. We spend the entire film with them, and grow a strange attachment to them that makes us want to see everything that happens to them. This kept me entertained despite the slow pace. Though the movie was solid, I got my biggest kick from watching the extras on this disc. The interview portions are the most fascinating. Both the two main actresses are interviewed and then of course there's director Jean Rollin who came across as one of the most energetic and radiating film directors I've ever seen interviewed. A discussion with Rollin is the exact opposite of pulling teeth; ask him a question and he'll talk non-stop for the next 10 minutes or so. His explanations as to why he has decided to tackle vampirism for nearly his entire career were fascinating for a long-time horror fan like me.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Still at it, October 8, 2002

By	"schaf24" (New York, New York USA) - See all my reviews

It's nice to see that time has not diminished Jean Rollin's obsessions or eye for the macabre. In this relatively recent film, shot in NY & Paris, Rollin continues his fascination with vampires, in this tale of two girls who are blind and normal by day, but sighted blood-drinkers by night. This film is perhaps not quite as hallucinatory as earlier efforts, notably Shiver of the Vampires, but it still has the dream-like acting and hypnotic atmosphere that is typical of his mise-en-scene.

And the girls are quite adorable, whether tapping their way in a cemetery or ripping out some guy's throat on the Brooklyn Bridge.

The film is also a nice companion to Le Fiancee du Dracula, another recent effort, which mixes Rollin's ideas with a bit of Clive Barker, and features the splendid Brigitte Lahaie.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Still scratching my head, March 17, 2005

By	Roger C. Martin (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I had never seen a Jean Rollin film before until I saw this one. I don't quite know what to make of it (that's why I gave it 3 stars). Part of me wants to watch it again and again and another part of me wants to use the damn DVD as a beer coaster. This film appears to be more of an "artsy" type of flick than a vampire movie. The imagery in the movie is pretty good, even though most of it has nothing to do with the "plot" (a plot that is paper thin). To me, the best things about this movie are the main characters (two gorgeous young French girls) and the dialogue. Not that what they are saying is very interesting, but it's the WAY they say it, and the fact that they are speaking French in a pretty sexy way. (That being said, make sure you watch the movie with French audio, not English. The DVD offers English subtitles in case you don't speak French.) Speaking of sexy, there is one pretty good nude scene in which both girls (who are very hot) get naked in front of one another. They also occasionally lick blood from each others necks. All in all, not a great movie, but worth checking out.