Category: Thoughts
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Thoughts on Defining the Science Fiction Vampire
While I wait for research material to be accumulated, I thought it would be a good opportunity to explore some of the more philosophical aspects of this project as it will allow me to hone in on what my overall goal with this project is. And that leads to a general meditation on what the…
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Labels: Is Everything a Vampire?
I have not really spent much time discussing non-European vampires on this blog and I think it’s time to bring them up. There is so much to be gleaned from looking at other forms of vampires, which the European vampire simply lacks. But with that comes a need to have sensitivity and try to not…
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Quick Update: New Visual Timeline Project
It has been a long while since I have given an update on my research, and to be honest it is because there was a moment of burn out after that spree in March and into early April. But I am back to introduce a new material I will be hyperfixating on instead of 1890s…
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Issues with I Am Legend Adaptations in Film
I have read plenty of vampire books in my research, but none were more interesting than Richard Matheson’s 1954 I Am Legend. It is a literary landmark in vampire fiction as it takes the science fiction craze of the Post-war era and combines it with older, literary vampires to create something entirely new. As it…
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On Eras and Periodisation of Vampire Fiction
On of the things we do in history is group certain events or people into eras or periods. This is called periodisation, and it is to help the part of our brain that needs pattern recognition to better process the information we are receiving. Overall, periodisation is good for those getting into a topic in…
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Quick Thought: What About Porn?
Much like my post about anthologies, the question to include certain mediums of film in my research is always a constant debate. For instance, porn. I know that it is considered lowbrow entertainment, and that most would not dare prop up pornography to the heights of something like arthouse films. Skin flicks are a world…
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Thoughts on Bathory and Her Representation in Film
Every time I look into these older interpretations of vampires, I am incredibly amazed by the sheer volume of history that lies in Eastern Europe and the Carpathians. When looking at historical figures like Vlad Tepes, it is important to discern the myth from the person. And no one does this apply to more than…
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On Anthologies: A Tricky Business
In my journey to catalogue all vampire films, I have come upon a serious problem in my investigations. Almost all of the lists I have seen include anthologies, that is, a collection of shorter films with little to no connection to one another. But the problem does not lie with the format of anthologies, but…
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Quick Thought: SINNERS and the Oscars
Everyone has already been talking about this recently, but I felt it would be an injustice for a blog called “The Western Vampire Scholar” to not at least mention the seminal Oscar wins for Ryan Coogler’s SINNERS (2025). It wasn’t till the 1990s that vampire films were even nominated for Oscar awards, let alone winning…
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Thoughts on the 1930s-1950s and Vampire Film
I am writing this down less as a formal post but more as a way to put some of my ideas out there and hopefully get some recommendations based off of my findings. I have seen a majority of the films that I have found from this era, what some consider the Golden Age of…