Set on the island of Madeira, Female Vampire is the story of Countess Irina Karlstein (Lina Romay), the descendant of a family of Vampires. The film opens with the classic scene of lovely Lina wandering through the woods clad only in a black cape and belt. Irina is a Vampire who feeds not on blood, but on her victims sexual fluids and with her insatiable appetite sets about seducing anyone who crosses her path. A young female reporter comes to interview the mute countess, but soon falls under her spell. forensic scientist Dr Roberts (Jess Franco) becomes suspicious and his colleague, Dr Orlof, ratifies that vampiric activity is to blame for the mysterious deaths on the island. They decide that Irina is responsible and needs to be destroyed.

Female Vampire is an often criticized piece of 70's sexploitation.  Just because the acting's crap and the story disjointed, doesn't make it a bad film. Whilst there are other characters in the film, including Dr.Roberts, played by Franco himself, and Irina's seriously weird Manservant (Luis Barboo), and there is a story, sort of...  Lina Romay is the beginning and end of this movie. She was in her teens when she made this and went on to star in many more of Franco's films. To say the film is shallow is selling it short, on first viewing it seems little more than another euro soft porn flick (unless you see Erotikill, the hardcore version of Female Vampire), but I’ve returned to this film, it’s grown on me and I've become very fond of it. I personally feel there is some real substance to the character of the countess. Vampire fans may feel let down, as there is no blood sucking, in fact no blood, and Irina is certainly not afraid of the sunlight, but in it's portrayal of immortality, loneliness and an eternal hunger, it is a classic Vampire story. The world would be a far duller place without Jess Franco's films.   S.J.T.

Female Vampire. 1973

Directed by Jess Franco

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