a_chinn I'm quite surprised at myself for having not watching this Charles Band Full Moon Features production before and have quickly become a fan of the Subspecies series of films. I think what I like most about the series is that the vampires here are neither the Bela Lugosi elegant gentlemen type, nor are they the emo Anne Rice/Sookie Stackhouse type of vampires. The vampire Radu is a nasty scary looking monster. In many ways, he reminds me of the Steve Niles vampires in "30 Days of Night." In this third installment, Radu is still controlling one of the sisters from the previous film and her other sister is trying to free her from Radu's thrall. As with the previous films, this was competently directed by Ted Nicolaou, who makes the most of the European locations and the real-life castle that was owed by Band's production company at the time (and which appeared in just about every Full Moon film of this era, even one misguided Trancers film). Anders Hove continues to be creepy as Count Radu, the practical special effects are solid (and bloody), and the production values are better than most Full Moon productions. Overall, this one is a must see for fans of Charles Band films, but honestly this film is probably not one for non-fan of Full Moon Features.

GL84 After escaping from the vampire lair, a woman continues the search for the deadly vampire and his bride in her sister with the help of her friend only to have the local authorities disbelieving in their story which complicates matters until they finally are forced together to stop them.This was an enjoyable if somewhat flawed entry. Once again, this one manages to get plenty of mileage out of its Gothic trappings, which are kept to a high majority of the time throughout here. The opening resurrection ceremony, featuring the demonic hag performing the ritual on the girl by slicing her arm and using the blood to reanimate the other vampire or the discovery of the bloodied and mangled bodies from the previous encounter gives this a great start, and the use of them flying away out from under the investigators eyes is a solid and engaging ploy. Keeping the vampire and his mummified mother on-screen for a large portion of this section as he attempts to teach her the ways of the vampire like she wanted gives this a kind of enjoyable entrance into the whole affair. Those training sessions offer some rather fine moments being held in the candlelit room which adds to the atmosphere of him training her before eventually forcing her to drink from the city girl he captured for her. That also leads nicely into the final half where it really manages to let loose with some fine action in the assault on the impenetrable lair high inside the castle walls with their initial scaling of the walls and the resultant firefight with the mummy before having the tables turned and leading into the fun of the vampires being awakened which gives way to them being captured and tortured by the two. Even without the frantic actions and confrontations throughout here, the violence and gore manages to hold off enough to really work quite a lot to really like here. It does have a few rather noticeable flaws throughout here though. The main issue holding this one down is the fact that there's not a whole lot of real vampire action in here unlike the others in the series. The middle portion of the film descends into an endless series of either investigation scenes with the two trying to look into the history of the vampires in the area while avoiding the authorities or scenes of him trying to teach her how to be a vampire. While there's some fun to be had with the idea of her out stalking those around the city and upsetting the community which in turn leads into their distrust of the investigation, that this is what the movie descends into leaves it not all that exciting for a large portion of the running time which is somewhat frustrating. As well, the film manages to spend a great deal of time worrying over the grave seriousness of finale but it just drags it all out to endless degrees which severely reduces their impact as it features a ton of elements that pad this one out quite heartily, from their turning on each other to the escape attempt and finally leading into the actual way out of the castle which is far longer than necessary. Otherwise, there's not much to dislike here.Rated R: Graphic Violence, Nudity and Language.

barnthebarn Conclusion to the planned trilogy directed by Ted Nicolaou this third film ends rather openly suggesting that Full Moon Productions were already sizing up future instalments. This time Radu kidnaps Michelle and takes her to the castle that he shares with his mother, a Sorceress. He teaches her to master her vampire powers, willing to sacrifice everything to empower his true love when Michelle's sister Rebecca attacks his stronghold.The trilogy is weakening here with little original storyline and little excitement. However the series still - at this point - remains highly unique and still fantastically riveting. Once again the acting is of a high standard, the Romanian locations breathtaking and the script, score and direction, even in this 'weaker hour' surpass many larger budget films. Stable stuff.

Gafke Poor Radu. He's been stabbed and staked by his fledgling Michelle and her sister Becky and left for dead in the bottom of a dusty crypt in a Bucharest cemetery. But Radu's mummy comes to the rescue, recapturing Michelle almost instantly and healing her much abused son before the next moon rises. Upon awakening, Michelle is horrified to realize that Radu is not dead, nor has he released his hold on her. The bizarre threesome flee the cemetery and head back to Castle Vladislas. Michelle, disgusted by her vampiric urges, nevertheless demands that Radu show her the ropes. Radu, pathetically in love with the beautiful Michelle, alternatively tries to win her affections and force her into submission. Mummy resents the new fledgling and urges her son to destroy her. And Becky has not yet given up on the idea of a rescue, and she's brought plenty of back up this time.This third entry in the Subspecies series is every bit as fun as the first two, allowing its cast of characters to grow and evolve. Anders Hove as Radu becomes an object of pity here, revealing Radu not as evil incarnate, but as a lonely, miserable wretch who has never been loved...not even by his mummy. Michelle's continued rejection of her hideous Master is heartbreaking to watch. Time and again she professes her hatred for Radu, and Radu accepts it in silence and takes her back without a word against her, protecting her no matter what the cost. His love for her is genuinely pathetic and one can't help but feel some pity for him at last. Denise Duff as Michelle is very good once again, expressing sorrow and pain but also satisfaction and enthusiasm in her new found powers. Highlights include an emotional scene between Radu and Michelle atop the battlements of Castle Vladislas, and a brief but very funny sequence involving Becky, Radu and a gun loaded with silver bullets. Fans of the first two should not miss this third installment. Followed by a fourth film (Bloodstorm: Subspecies 4) which, sadly, is nowhere near as good as the first three Subspecies films.