The Story:
Mina (Misty Mundae) has issues. She's a married woman, desperate to have a child. She can't conceive, and doesn't realize that this is because her husband Jon (Julian Wells) is actually a woman. See, Mina is under the spell of a cult (or coven?) of lesbian vampires. Maybe it's the drugs her "husband" makes her take regularly, or perhaps it's occult magic. But she sees certain women as if they are men, including her husband. However, we the audience never see out of Mina's eyes, so we are quite aware that it is a bunch of female vampires getting it on with each other throughout the entire film. Poor Mina is so traumatized by her repeated sex having no conceptual effect that she carries around this rag doll and treats it like it's her baby, cradle and all. And since she already lives in a world of delusion, it doesn't seem too odd to her when Dracula (also a female, played by Darian Caine) starts hanging around her house. But Dracula has an enemy in Dr. Abigail Van Helsing (Shelly Jones), who is Mina's sister—a woman intent on destroying the monster.

Lesbian vampires have become popular with lesbians, this movie is even being carried by TLA, known for its lesbian and gay film selection, and this is also actually a pretty good plot for this genre, but make no mistake; this film is made by a man for men. I'm not quite sure how it will sit with lesbians, and can't really speak for them because I'm not one of them. But don't say I didn't warn you. I can't stress enough that, even if the director wasn't setting out to make a softcore porn, that's what this is—it's not R rated, it's not unrated, it's no NC-17. Example one: opening scene, young vampiress licks blood off her own body for a while, then when she goes to remove her tight little panties, we get a close up of her derriere, and when she bends down and removes the panties, we see her vagina, we see how it is pierced, and we also see he butt hole. Example two: a pair of vampiresses sit on chairs side-by-side in a dark room, dressed in schoolgirl uniforms, and solo masturbate in sync, and we witness extreme close ups of the finger action. I could go on, but I assume you get the picture. Most of the girls in this film are pierced in assorted places—one looks like she did have a pierced nipple and removed the ring, so now there's a big hole in her nipple (ouch and blech all at once), another girl's nipples don't look much like nipples anymore. This film really walks a fine line between sexy and skanky. I'm not too sure how straight guys are going to react to this film from an erotic angle. Guess it depends on what you're into. Personally, I love porn, I love horror, but I prefer that sex and blood never meet. But if this genre of goth erotica adult entertainment is your thing, it should probably quench your thirst.

Taking the film from its non-sexual perspective, I have to say, this film could have had potential as a straightforward horror film had it not relied so much on being a porn. As I said before, the plot is very unique. The lighting and camera work is quite cinematic, and even the creepy musical score is impressive. I would truly like to see director Anthony Marsiglia make a horror movie that isn't constantly interrupted by explicit sex, so I can focus more on the story, or perhaps an all out porn that's not interrupted by unnecessary storyline. He could be a master at either of them.

The DVD

Video:
With an aspect ratio of 1:85:1 widescreen, enhanced for 16X9 televisions, this film is surprisingly well made. The print is virtually flawless. It shows signs of grain, but the image is sharp and clear, with even levels of color saturation balanced by deep, rich blacks and darks. One thing of note—there is no time counter registry on the disc, so you have no idea how far into the movie you are at any point.

Sound:
The 2.0 Mono audio track is extremely clear and loud and sounds fine when played through a surround receiver. No complaints here.

Extras:
This DVD release does not skimp on extras. Here's the breakdown:

LUST FOR DRACULA BEHIND THE SCENES—this is home video footage of the actresses hanging out on the set and talking directly to the camera. Some seemed either stoned or drunk when slurring at the screen. Be warned, if you find the film sexy, this sort of shatters the illusion, because a strong sense of trailer trash comes from several of these gap toothed, chain-smoking stars. Also, two of the girls are sisters in real life, and both get into how awkward it felt doing a really "in your face" (hint hint) scene together. Some of you will be grossed out, and others will have to rewatch the movie in excitement due to this new knowledge.

INTERVIEW WITH MISTY MUNDAE—Misty plays the lead, Mina. In this interview, she really helped clarify the plot, and brought a real sense of pride to making the film. She's much more levelheaded than the character she portrayed.

SHORT FILM "IN SEX"—this short film is presented in 1:85:1 letterbox, and excellent sounding Dolby 2.0 stereo! This is actually a rather creepy experimental film that plays out like a short story, and is worth watching. There's also a short "making of" which is just behind-the-scenes clips being shown to music.

TRAILER VAULT—Wow. This is 25 trailers for movies released and coming soon from Shock-o-rama, Seduction, and Retro Seduction.

COMMENTARY with director Anthony Marsiglia and producer Michael Raso—crazy thing about this commentary is that the two men spend the time speaking theoretically about the film making process, and never particularly comment on the sex acts taking place onscreen.

Final Thoughts:
Lust for Dracula is a softcore porn with a story, involving a lesbian vampire cult that messes with the mind of a young femme fatale. The combination of sex and blood makes it neither scary nor erotic to the casual viewer of either the horror or porn genres. If it had chosen one direction or another, it could have been a fairly decent horror movie or a sexy adult film in my opinion. But if you are into bloody lesbian sex with a side order of skank, you're probably going to get into this one. It is clearly intended for a specific audience, and I've no doubt that audience will be thorougly satisfied.