“Both are well written and open up what I recognise as a frustrating subject in a way that casts a light on the films and enables the student to expand their knowledge. The difference in definitions, the distinctive lenses the two use, means the books enhance each other rather than detract from them, enabling critical examination. Both authors bring new things to the table, and both should be commended.” (Andrew M. Boylan, Journal of Vampire Studies, Vol. 4, 2024)
This book is the first study of the vampires in silent cinema, presenting a detailed academic yet accessible discussion of the films themselves and their sources. For the very first time, The Fire Elemental from the Wharton brothers’ The Mysteries of Myra (1916) is identified as cinema’s original vampire, his appearance initiating a rich and variegated period of film production that is currently missing from studies of horror cinema. Exciting and ground-breaking, Vampires on the Silent Screen also discusses Drakula Hal á la / Dracula’s death (1920), the first ever filmic female vampire in Erich Kober’s Lilith and Ly (1919), and the Dracula lookalike, Count Merlin in Alexander Korda’s Magic (1917) as well as many other productions. A socio-cultural framework with critical highlighting of eco-horror theory is used throughout to draw these unique discoveries together. This project is a must read for any horror enthusiasts out there.
