Four years before The Blair Witch Project was a massive box office hit, another Found Footage horror flick with the word “Project” in the title was released. The good news is that the film only uses the Found Footage format sparingly as it alternates between what the cameras are capturing and what is happening to the characters in the “real” world as opposed to the “reel” world. While it’s not great or anything, The Vampire Project is certainly a lot more fun than the glut of Found Footage flicks that followed in the wake of Blair Witch.
A documentary film crew goes undercover with hidden cameras to do a story on illegal underground after hour nightclubs. They get more than they bargained for when they capture footage of a vampire in action. The director, Michelle (Kathleen Kelly), then decides to make like Anne Rice and sets out to interview herself a vampire.
The film has a dated ‘90s aesthetic that’s appealing to anyone who lived through the era. The fashions, hairstyles, camera techniques, and filters make the whole thing look like a music video from the period. I mean the vampire himself even resembles an alternative rocker. All this makes for a slim, but notable source of amusement. Too bad the vampire’s so wishy-washy that he never feels like a credible threat.
While the shaky-cam stuff wasn’t as prevalent as I initially feared, it’s not exactly effective either. I’m tempted to say it would’ve worked much better without the whole Found Footage angle. However, I will admit the sequence that plays like a tabloid TV news show a la America’s Most Wanted and/or A Current Affair is pretty spot-on.
It's only forty-eight minutes long, which is also a bit of a relief. Say what you will about The Vampire Project, but it knows when to quit, and that’s something that definitely can’t be said for most films working in the Found Footage milieu. In fact, the short running time coupled with the tame level of violence makes me suspect that this might’ve been a TV pilot that didn’t get picked up.
At any rate, this Project gets passing marks from me.
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