Rockula / Beverly Hills Vamp: A Fangs-On Double Feature

In the grand tradition of cinematic pairings, some double features are a match made in heaven. Consider the classic horror night or the action-packed thriller marathon. But for those with a taste for the peculiar, the absurd, and the downright silly, the combination of 1990's musical comedy Rockula and 1989’s fish-out-of-water farce Beverly Hills Vamp is a hilarious, though uneven, delight.This double feature is a crash course in late 80s and early 90s vampire humor, a subgenre that thrives on the premise that being undead is less about eternal suffering and more about eternal awkwardness. While both films sink their teeth into the concept, they each take a wildly different approach, making for a fascinating comparative study in B-movie absurdity.The evening kicks off with Rockula, a film that gleefully asks: what if a vampire was also a perpetually lovesick, eternally virgin rock musician? This is the plight of Ralph, a 400-year-old vampire whose life is an endless loop of unrequited love and reincarnation. Every 400 years, he falls for the same girl, only for her to die at the hands of a pirate with a rhinestone-studded peg leg. When he meets the latest reincarnation, Mona, he tries to win her over not with a cape and a coffin, but with a terrible band called the "Rockulas." The film is a goofy romp, filled with ridiculous musical numbers (the “rock” in Rockula is more synth-pop than anything else) and charmingly low-budget effects. It's a sweet, if slightly bizarre, romance that succeeds on the sheer, earnest charisma of its star, Dean Cameron, and the infectious energy of its supporting cast, including Toni Basil and a scenery-chewing Thomas Dolby.Following this, Beverly Hills Vamp takes a decidedly more slapstick route. Three bumbling, wannabe filmmakers from Ohio head to Beverly Hills in search of their big break, only to stumble into a den of vampires led by the alluring but deadly Countess. It’s a classic comedic setup: three average guys versus supernatural predators in a completely inappropriate setting. While it lacks the narrative coherence of Rockula, its strength lies in its over-the-top gags and the delightful chemistry between the leads. It's a film that leans heavily on broad physical comedy and groan-worthy puns, but it does so with such a lack of self-awareness that it's impossible not to find it endearing. The vampires are less menacing than they are glamorous and eccentric, and the heroes are more clueless than they are heroic.Together, Rockula and Beverly Hills Vamp form a perfect cinematic microcosm of the late 80s/early 90s. Both are products of an era when genre-blending was king, and a good hook was all you needed to get a movie greenlit. Rockula charms with its sweet story and surprisingly catchy soundtrack, while Beverly Hills Vamp delivers the pure, unadulterated pleasure of unpretentious silliness. While neither film will win any awards, they represent a moment in time when a double feature could be as simple and enjoyable as a couple of cheesy jokes and a good, old-fashioned vampire slaying.