Temptation

There are no two ways about it -- vampires are popular. Whether it's the Twilight saga of books and films or the HBO series True Blood (the third season having recently finished the US), there is something about the undead that is -- and has always been -- erotic and this British film plays on that by featuring a group of female vampires who have taken temporary residence in London.

When Isabel, a middle-class Londoner in her mid-20s, finishes a night on the town by taking a taxi home only to find that the driver is extremely sexually aggressive and, having pulled over in a very quiet area, proceeds to beat and rape Isabel, leaving her for dead. Suddenly, out of nowhere, another woman appears, cuts her hand and drips some of the blood into Isabelle's mouth. Unbeknownst to her, this woman is a French vampire called Aurelie who is the head of a group/clan/horde (dammit, what is the collective term for vampires?) of young and beautiful female vampires.

Although covered in her own blood, Isabel feels much better the next day but has some strange symptoms including stomach cramps, an aversion to bright light and heightened senses. She doesn't know it yet, but the process of becoming a vampire has just begun and, not only that, but she is one of the prime suspects for the murder of the taxi driver whose body was found shortly after he raped her.

With her boyfriend, Simon, unable to comprehend why she suddenly has become so distant towards him, not confiding or wanting to spend time around him, Isabel seeks the company of the other vampires to try and decide whether to allow herself to be completely turned or to turn her back on those who saved her life. When their behaviour becomes increasingly sexual and even draws Simon into their world -- as food rather than company and the screw turns with evidence mounting against her for the murder of the rapist cabbie, Isabel really doesn't know which way to go. Furthermore, her sister Kylie and mother aren't really being much help either, no matter how hard they try.

The obvious way out of this situation would be to tell the truth, but who would police as taxi driver was killed by a female French vampire who also saved Isabel's life, beginning the process to turn her into a vampire?


Unusually for a horror film (and any film in general), Temptation is almost entirely a female project, directed by Catherine Taylor, written by Julianne White and with cinematography by Carolina Costa. Furthermore, the cast is at least 90% female and, with previous female vampire films (Lust for a Vampire, Twins of Evil and Daughters of Darkness to name but three) having lesbian overtones, the trend continues here with some Sapphic relationships although nothing so overt as in Jess Franco's Vampyros Lesbos.

As a debut film, Temptation isn't too bad and Catherine Taylor has certainly done particularly well with what is clearly a moderate budget but this will hardly be considered a great vampire film in years to come and won't be studied alongside the Karnstein trilogy or regarded as a landmark in British horror. It is by no means a terrible film and Taylor has done very well with the resources at her disposal, including a fairly inexperienced cast, led by Caroline Haines who plays Isabel and really hasn't done much to speak of in her career as yet.

There is certainly a great deal of blood, women in erotic clothing (basques and other such revealing attire) and lesbian undertones that would come in the film where the male characters are peripheral but the film just didn't feel particularly satisfactory. It is competently made and acted but some of the dialogue is a little leaden and poorly delivered and it didn't really help that Rachel Waters' French accent wasn't particularly convincing. Temptation passes the time well enough but it isn't a great vampire movie (although I did prefer it to the second Twilight film).


The Disc

Extra Features
The interviews with the cast and crew lasts a healthy 30 minutes and they are all happy enough to talk in detail about the film, how they became involved and what the shoot was like.

The disc also contains The Drowners, the short film Catherine Taylor made prior to this which is a 12 minute drama about synchronised swimmers featuring some great underwater photography.

There is a Limited Edition version which contains the CD soundtrack although the music wasn't really to my tastes so I'm not really in a position to give any sort of recommendation as to whether it's worth the extra money or not.

Under the 'Also Available' heading are trailers for S.N.U.B! and Bad Day.


The Picture
For a film dominated by scenes at night or in a dimly lit room, the clarity is surprisingly high and this is even more impressive when you consider that it was shot on high-definition digital, something that has previously had problems with scenes where the light sources are poor.

Furthermore, the daylight sequences seem to be as clear as the night-time ones with very good contrast, colours and skin tones. The SFX make-up is fairly impressive for a film with this budget and level of experience amongst the crew and cast all seem to be willing to have all manner of appliances fitted including, in the case of one of them, being impaled by a thick wooden pole.

The Sound
The dialogue is presented clearly, even in scenes where there is loud music playing, and although some of the delivery is a little stilted and unconvincing, it is still clear and easy to make out, which is really the primary responsibility of a soundtrack mix.

All six speakers get a good workout with plenty of LFEs from the very loud, heavy metal soundtrack which plays in the titular club and there are sequences when Aurelie displays every trick that she has picked up in her considerable time as a vampire when the side and rear surrounds really help to complement the on-screen action.


Final Thoughts
Temptation isn't a great vampire film but it is perfectly watchable and, whilst hardcore genre fans will probably be left disappointed, it is perfectly adequate fare that you could watch when you don't feel like watching one of the vampire films in your collection. I imagine a rental is probably the way to go just to see whether you rate it or hate it.