You Voted: 20 Best Vampire Movies

What are the best vampire films? That is the question that we asked our community last week.  With 877 votes, and 87 vampire films nominated our readers have chosen the 20 best vampire films of all time.

As with anytime you poll a large and diverse group the results can be interesting. That said this list of Vampire films although it has a few omissions I would have included is pretty solid. So without further ado here are the 20 Best Vampire Films of All time.

#20: Shadow of the Vampire

Shadow of the Vampire is the story of a filmmaker who goes to shoot an authentic vampire film and has a hidden motive. The film stars Willem Dafoe and John Malkovich which is an instant reason to see it since both are incredible actors. The film which was released in 2000 is a clear fan favorite as it lands at #20 on our list of Fan Favorite Vampire movies.

#19 Three Way Tie:  My Best Friend is a Vampire, Life Force, Fearless Vampire Killers

The voting was very close once we got out of the top 10 and three films actually tied for the 19th spot.I think that Life Force is the best film of the three but it is not my list or my choice.

#18 George A. Romero’s Martin

George Romero is best known for his zombie films but he was not a one tricky pony making a foray into the vampire genre with Martin. Martin is the story of a young man who is convinced he is a vampire and tries to redeem himself from his bloody urges.

#17: John Carpenter’s Vampires

John Carpenter for me is one of the most important horror directors of my generation. I don’t care who you throw up against him he will still land in the Top 5 for me when it comes to directors who have contributed the most to the landscape of the horror genre. Vampires is about a group of vampire hunters who are directed by the catholic church that find themselves being hunted by something all together different. John Carpenters Vampires is a truly fantastic film with a stellar cast led by James Woods

#16 : Daybreakers

It is nice to see Daybreakers make the list since I think it’s a refreshing vampire film that offers a unique angle to a genre as old as time. It also happens to stars two of my favorite actors Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe. The concept of the film is a plague has turned everyone into vampires and the last of humanity is being hunted down and ‘farmed’ for blood. Unlike most apocalyptic films however government is maintained and has gone on as normal just with a vampiric and bloody twist.

#15: Underworld

The Underworld films are action packed adventure horror which feature our favorite mom Kate Beckinsale. Underworld is the story of Vampires and Lycans and their centuries old war and the humans that get caught in between. The entire series is pretty solid but the first one is definitely the best.

#14: Let Me In

Let Me in is a remake of the swedish film ‘Let The Right One In’ and is one of the few good remakes made. I know alot of people hear remake and throw a fit but I refuse to say that Let Me In is a bad movie and clearly I am not alone.

The film was directed by Matt Reeves who came to fame with Cloverfield and stars Chloe Moretz one of the most talented up and coming female actresses in Hollywood. Let Me In is the traditional story of teen love with a serious twist.

#13: BLADE

Blade for me is the movie that Wesley Snipes will always be remembered for. Blade is the story of a day walking half human half vampire who takes out his anger on the vampires who killed his mother. David Goyer wrote the screenplay and did a fantastic job. He has since gone on to write some of the biggest comic book movies including Man of Steel and the new Dark Knight Movies.

#12: Salem’s Lot

Stephen King wrote the novel Salem’s Lot in 1975 and in 1979 it was turned into a made for TV movie. I was quite surprised this one got voted onto the list but will admit it’s a not so secret favorite of mine. Two movies scared the crap out of me as a youngster, Salems Lot and Night of the Living Dead.

Salem’s Lot is the story of a novelist and a big time horror fan who must fight off vampires after they take over their sleepy town.

#11: Dracula 1931

I am pretty sure the true blue horror fans are extremely pleased to see that one of the original vampire films was not overlooked by our very diverse group of voters. The 1931 Dracula directed by Tod Browning ( who also directed Mark of the Vampire ) is a must see and starred Bela Lugosi.

#10: Horror of Dracula

One of my good friends who writes for the site with me was on me like white on rice about whether Horror Of Dracula made the list or not. The answer is clearly yes as it lands at #10 on the list. Horror of Dracula was released in 1958 and starred Peter Cushing as Doctor Van Helsing and Christopher Lee as Dracula.

#9: Bram Stoker’s Dracula

Francis Ford Coppola’s Dracula is a movie that will stay with me forever. The whole film was polished with a fantastic cast, a great script and an amazing sound track. The film starred Gary Oldman as Dracula, Winona Ryder as his lost love, Anthony Hopkins as Van Helsing and Keanu Reeves as the dim-witted hero. Just writing this article I now want to watch it again for the 40th time.

#8: 30 Days of Night

David Slade directed 30 Days of Night which is based on the graphic novel series of the same name.  This for me is without argument one of the greatest vampire films ever made. Obviously it was helped by a great source material but 30 Days of Night also offered a great cast, a stark visual look and absolutely insane tension and violence. The vampires in 30 Days of Night are terrifying! Side note the sequel which was released was equally fantastic although it seems I might be alone on that one.

#7: From Dusk Til Dawn

Before Robert Rodriguez was a huge commercial success teaming up with Blackberry and pumping out big budget movies he did From Dusk Til Dawn. From Dusk Til Dawn is the classic anti-hero tale as two brothers wanted for murder head to Mexico and find themselves going head to head with a band of vicious vampires.

The film stars George Clooney, Quentin Tarantino and Salma Hayek and is balls to the walls action adventure that packs a great punch. Did I mention it stars Salma Hayek? Tom Savini’s face in the photo below ( bottom left) says it’s all.

#6: Fright Night

The original 1985 Fright Night is a cult classic and is the story of a young teen who discovers his neighbor is a vampire and has one hell of a time convincing others of this fact before they meet a horrible fate. The film was remade in 2011 which also got a good reaction from most genre fans. 

#5: Let The Right One In

Let The Right One In is the film that Let Me In was based on. Let The Right One in is the exact same premise but is definitely the superior film. It is still a story of teen love this time directed by Tomas Alfredson but for me it was much more engaging and brutal and really draws the viewer deep into the characters. Let The Right One In is based of a 2004 novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist. 

#4: Nosferatu

You know how you can tell we have a diverse reader base with great taste in film? You all voted a film from 1922 as one of the best vampire movies ever made. In this one Max Shreck starred as the vampire nightmare alongside Greta Shroeder.

#3: Near Dark

I was really quite curious to see how the top 3 would shake out and Near Dark was definitely going to get one of those spots. Near Dark is a teen romance vampire film done right. Where Twilight was sparkly garbage Near Dark which was directed by Kathryn Bigelow is an incredible vampire movie about new love, the binds of family and the challenges of life as a vampire. Near Dark is without question a Top Vampire Film!

#2: Interview With a Vampire

I am not a fan of Tom Cruise but there is no denying that Interview With A Vampire based off of the book by Anne Rice is a truly fantastic experience. It stars Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt and a young Kirsten Dunst. Directed by Irish director Neil Jordan it is a powerhouse film about life, love and the craving that both humans and vampires share, revenge.

#1: Lost Boys

The Lost Boys needs no introduction. If you consider yourself a horror fan and have not experience the pleasure that is The Lost Boys then you have missed out. The Lost Boys directed by Joel Schumaker was released in 1987 but to this day remains relevant and one of the most polished vampire films ever made.

The Lost Boys is so popular that even on this list which features a ton of great films it still managed to get over 20% of the votes.

So there you have it the 20 Best Vampire Movies of all time based off the votes of our readers. What movies would you add to this list?  What vampire films on top of the ones here do you think are must see films for fans of the vampire genre? Sound off in the comments!