Review: Subspecies 5: Bloodrise (2023)
By William Pattison
This time I’m reviewing the latest Subspecies prequel that
tells the story of how Radu becomes a vampire…
Stolen by crusaders on the night of his birth, he has no
knowledge of his bloodline: his mother is a demon; his father is a vampire.
Trained and exploited by a brotherhood of mystic monks to slay all enemies of
the church, fate brings him back one night to the castle of his father, armed
with the monster-slaying Sword of Laertes, to destroy the vampire Vladislas and
reclaim a holy relic: The Bloodstone. The events of that night turn Radu from a
noble man into a vampire with no master, setting him on a centuries-long quest
for sustenance, and companionship, for the treacherous one who stole him from
the sun, and for the Bloodstone he hopes will bring him peace. Spanning 500
years in the life of the vampire Radu Vladislas, this long-anticipated prequel
to the Subspecies series chronicles Radu's descent from a noble warrior for the
Church to a depraved creature of the night.
Ted Nicolaou spent twenty-five years craft this film and it
shows. Cinematography, FX, and scripting shows how dedicated Nicolaou and crew
was dedicated to this film.
This film is blessed by the fact that for a film on a Full
Moon budget and shooting schedule that this film is actually stunningly visual.
Most of the shots come off with wonderful use of browns and yellows, which are
not usual for vampire films. Most horror films use a lot of blues, grays, reds,
and blacks. They also heavily use shadows. Thought this film still have dark scenes
Nicolaou doesn’t depend on them for atmosphere. In fact the last time Nicolaou
used this kind of pallet was in The Vampire Journals. But of course he would
because this film is not only a prequel to Subspecies, but also The Vampire
Journals as well, much like Subspecies 4 was a crossover with The Vampire
Journals.
This film not only gives us the backstory of Radu, but also
The Vampire Ash from Vampire Journals.
Now I’m not saying
this is a perfect film. There were a few things, mostly casting, that bugged me.
The most annoying was the casting ofevin Spirtas as King Vladaslas. The main
problem is the Kevin is no Angus Scrim. Also the makupthey slopped on Spirtas
was not in anyway the King Vladaslas we knew from the original Subspecies. It
looked like a bad Nosferatu cosplay from
a horror convention. Also, how many times does Radu have to kill his dad? In
this film he killed him twice. I guess third or fourth time is a charm..lol.
Another thing that bugged me was Radu himself. Through most
of the film he reminds me more of Angus Scrim than Radu. I was happy when in
the second half of the film Radu was a bit more like the blood slobbering Radu
the fans love. But still after twenty-five years Anders Hove has kind of lost
Radu. The voice and the manerisms are a bit off. Still he wasn’t as bad as he was in Subspecies four. I had to
keep telling myself this isn’t Radu
Vladislas, this is Jake Vladislas…lol.
Also, I wish they had been able to bring the original Ash in
this film, because the new guy doesn’t say Ash, or even young Ash to me.
I’m sorry there is only one Ash to me.
No other actor can be The Vampire Ash.
Ok, I gave you the bad, but now I bring you a sample of what
I really loved about this film. The new Bloodstone looked enough like the
original to be acceptable. The Bloodstone in Subspecies 4 was a cheap assed
piece of crap.
Now I have to praise Nicolaou for putting Denise Duff in the
role of Helena. All I can say is brilliant. It was wonderful to see Denice
after all these years (remember 25 years have passed). The way Ted connect
Helena, the Queen of the Bucarest
vampires to Michelle is nothing less than brilliant…And it explains why Radu
was so set on making her his immortal companion.
Ok, all in all this film is one of the best Full Moon films
to come out in over a decade. Also, it is Ted Nicolaou’s masterpiece and shows
he is a far better direct than most horror fans think. And to pull this
brilliance off on a Full Moon budget and film scedual just proved Ted’s
brilliance.
Can I recommend this film?, you ask. Fuck yes I can! When I
say this film is the best Full Moon has created I’m serious.
Check this film out yourself! It is currently on Tubi TV.
Now, let there be a bloodbath!!!
