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{{short description|1975 film by Richard Blackburn}} |
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{{ Infobox_movie | |
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{{Infobox film |
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name = Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural | |
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image = Lemora dvd cover.jpg |
| name = Lemora |
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| image = Lemora dvd cover.jpg |
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| caption = U.S. theatrical poster |
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| director = Richard Blackburn |
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| producer = Robert Fern |
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| writer = Richard Blackburn |
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| starring = {{plainlist| |
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*[[Rainbeaux Smith|Cheryl Smith]] |
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producer = [[Robert Fern]] | |
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*[[Hy Pyke]] |
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cinematography = [[Robert Caramico]] | |
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*Lesley Gilb |
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distributor = [[Media Cinema Group]] | |
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*Richard Blackburn |
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released = May [[1975]] | |
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runtime = 80 minutes (original release)<br>113 minutes (uncut version) | |
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language = English | |
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music = [[Dan Neufeld]] | |
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amg_id = 1:28921 | |
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budget = |
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}} |
}} |
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| cinematography = Robert Caramico |
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'''''Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural''''' (also called '''''Lemora: The Lady Vampire''''' and '''The Legendary Curse of Lemora''') is a 1975 [[United States|American]] [[horror film]], written and directed by Richard Blackburn. Blackburn later gained fame as the co-writer of the [[Paul Bartel]] film ''[[Eating Raoul]]''. |
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| editing = Pieter Hubbard |
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| distributor = Media Cinema Group |
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== Cast == |
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| released = {{Film date|1973|04|30|[[Claremont, California|Claremont]], California|ref1=<ref name=smiley>{{cite news|title=Local horror film in Claremont|date=May 3, 1973|author=Smiley, Sarah|work=Progress Bulletin|location=Pomona, California|pages=D-6—{{URL|https://www.newspapers.com/clip/24049783/progress_bulletin/|D-7}}|via=Newspapers.com|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/24049723/progress_bulletin/}}</ref>|1974|12|18|U.S.|ref2=<ref name=az>{{cite news|work=[[The Arizona Republic]]|location=Phoenix, Arizona|title=Cinemafare for Valley of the Sun|page=D-13|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/24049941/arizona_republic/|via=Newspapers.com|date=December 18, 1974}}</ref>}} |
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| runtime = 80 minutes{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=75}} |
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| language = English |
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| music = Dan Neufeld |
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| budget = |
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}} |
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'''''Lemora''''' is a 1973 American [[horror film]] written and directed by Richard Blackburn, and starring [[Rainbeaux Smith|Cheryl Smith]], [[Hy Pyke]], and Lesley Gilb. It follows a young girl in [[Prohibition]]-era America who travels to a mysterious town to visit her father, and uncovers a coterie of vampires. It was also released under the alternate titles '''''Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural''''', '''''The Legendary Curse of Lemora''''', and '''''Lemora, Lady Dracula'''''. |
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Conceived by Blackburn, a former [[University of California, Los Angeles]] film student, ''Lemora'' was filmed on location in [[Pomona, California|Pomona]] and surrounding areas. It had its premiere at [[Scripps College]] in April 1973, after which it was sold for distribution to Media Cinema Group, who cut the film by nearly forty minutes and released it theatrically in late 1974. The film was heavily criticized by the [[National Legion of Decency|Catholic Legion of Decency]], which deemed it "anti-Catholic."{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=75}} |
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*Lila Lee — [[Rainbeaux Smith|Cheryl Smith]] |
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*Lemora — Lesley Gilb |
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*Solange — Maxine Ballantyne |
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*Alvin Lee — William Whitton |
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*The Bus Driver — [[Hy Pyke]] |
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*The Reverend — Richard Blackburn |
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==Plot== |
==Plot== |
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During the [[Prohibition era]] in the Southern United States, the devout 13-year-old Lila Lee is summoned by letter to visit her injured father, a [[mobster|gangster]], before he dies. She runs away from the Reverend who has raised her and in whose church she has become well known as a singer, though her extraordinary beauty is beginning to attract attention as well. Lila boards a bus to her father's purported location, the strange town of [[Astaroth]]. At the bus station, the ticket salesman informs Lila that the people there are strange, and that visitors rarely return from the town. That night, the bus Lila is riding, in which she is the only passenger, is attacked by a band of mindless [[vampire]]s as it approaches the woods surrounding Astaroth. The vampires kill the bus driver, and Lila crashes the bus while attempting to flee. She is attacked by the creatures, but rescued by a mysterious woman named Lemora. |
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When she regains consciousness, Lila finds herself locked in a cottage outside a farmhouse, where she is tended to by Solange, an elderly hag-like woman who feeds her. Lila attacks Solange and escapes the cottage, fleeing to the farmhouse where she hides in a crawlspace. She hears her father's voice from inside the home, but before she can find him, Lila is confronted by Lemora, who informs her she cannot see her father until she is immune to his "disease." Lila finds that Lemora boards numerous other children in her home, all of whom, like her, are pallid and sickly in appearance. |
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During the [[Prohibition]] era 13-year old Lila Lee ([[Rainbeaux Smith|Cheryl Smith]]), seeking to visit her injured father, a gangster, before he dies. She runs away from the Reverend, who has raised her and in whose church she has become well-known as a singer. She ends up taking a bus to the strange town of [[Astaroth]], where people have the "Astaroth Look." |
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It becomes evident that Lemora highly covets Lila, bathing her and attempting to soothe her. While alone, Lila is violently attacked by her father, who appears severely mutated. He attacks Solange, killing her, before Lemora chases him away with a torch. Lemora explains that some of the townspeople of Astaroth have become sick, and refers to an impending ceremony in which Lila will participate. After reading a diary of a child in Lemora's home, she soon realizes the truth: Lemora is a vampire who feeds upon children and is holding her father captive. She is also the unofficial queen of the Astaroth vampires, and plans to turn Lila into one of her own. |
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[[Image:Lemora cap.jpg|thumb|left|one of the denizens of Astaroth in the film ''Lemora'']] |
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Trying to escape, Lila embarks are a night-time journey through the town of Astaroth, learning in the process that there are two types of vampires here. One are like Lemora herself, relatively human in behavior in appearance. The other are mutated, perhaps de-volved, far more animalistic in behavior and monstrous in form. And the two groups are at war. |
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While trying to escape, Lila embarks on a nighttime journey through the town of Astaroth, witnessing the two types of vampires: one faction is like Lemora herself, relatively human in behavior and appearance, while the others are mutated or perhaps regressed, far more feral in behavior and monstrous in form; and the two groups are at war. Meanwhile, the Reverend, who is seeking Lila, manages to retrace her steps. |
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Meanwhile, the Reverend is seeking to find Lila, and manages to retrace her steps. |
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After a climactic battle |
After a climactic battle which leaves most of the vampires dead, Lila is forced to kill her own father, who has become one of the degenerates. As she weeps over his corpse, Lemora approaches her and offers her comfort by her vampire's kiss. When the Reverend shows up not long after, he finds Lila willing, even eager to kiss him. He resists at first, then he gives in. That is when she drives her fangs into his throat and drains his blood, watched over by a smiling Lemora. |
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In the last scene, Lila is seen singing before her church congregation.<!--Do not edit this with commentary on whether it is flashback or flashforward--there is no way to know, and noting the ambiguity in the plot section goes against the MoS for film articles--> |
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== |
==Cast== |
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{{Cast list| |
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Blackburn and producer Fern were students at [[UCLA]] when they developed the idea for this film. It was produced on a shoe-string, with much of the financing coming from Blackburn's parents. Most of the film was shot in 1973; star Smith was only 17 at the time. |
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* Richard Blackburn as The Reverend |
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* [[Rainbeaux Smith|Cheryl Smith]] as Lila Lee |
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* William Whitton as Alvin Lee |
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* Steve Johnson as the Ticket Man |
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* [[Hy Pyke]] as the Bus Driver{{sfn|Hardy|Milne|1996|p=279}} |
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* Lesley Taplin (billed as Lesley Gilb) as Lemora{{sfn|Hardy|Milne|1996|p=279}} |
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* Maxine Ballantyne as Solange |
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* Parker West as Young Man |
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}} |
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==Production== |
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The movie had limited distribution during its original release. Due to its [[pedophilia|pedophilic]] and [[lesbian]] overtones, it was banned by the [[Catholic League of Decency]]<ref>http://www.queerhorror.com/Qvamp/items/88.html</ref>. It quickly fell into obscurity except in France, where it became something of a cult film. It was first released on video in the United States (with a mini-documentary on the film) as late as the mid-90's. Today, Lemora still remains a relatively obscure film, but it has developed a strong following in the horror fandom over the years. A [[DVD]] was released in 2004, featuring additional footage and commentary by the director and producer. |
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===Concept=== |
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''Lemora'' was conceived by former [[University of California, Los Angeles]] film students Richard Blackburn and Robert Fern.{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=75}} Their main inspiration in making the film was Bob Kelljan's 1970 film ''[[Count Yorga, Vampire]]''.{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=75}} |
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===Casting=== |
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It is a dreamlike, atmospheric film very much unlike other American horror films of the time, being very erotic in mood. The aura of dreamy surrealism and is richly colorful make it reminiscent of the works of [[French cinema|French]] director [[Jean Rollin]] (whom Blackburn was apparently unfamiliar with) and with the Czech film ''[[Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (film)|Valerie and Her Week of Wonders]]'', with which it shares some common themes. It shows the strong influence of the writings of [[H. P. Lovecraft]] and possibly, to a lesser extent, "[[Carmilla]]" by [[Sheridan le Fanu]]. On his DVD commentary track to Lemora, Blackburn also cites [[Arthur Machen]]'s story "[[The White People]]" a tale of childhood innocence, which has horrific overtones annd [[Mervyn Peake]] as influences. Given its setting in the American South of the 30's, Lemora can also be described as a [[Southern Gothic]] fable. |
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Smith, seventeen years old at the time of filming, played thirteen-year-old Lila Lee, her first major role. Writer-director Blackburn appears in the film as The Reverend.<ref name="nyt">{{cite web |last1=Mitchell |first1=Elvis |title=FILM REVIEW; A Female Vampire Wins Another Stab at Immortality|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/29/movies/film-review-a-female-vampire-wins-another-stab-at-immortality.html |work=[[The New York Times]]|date=June 29, 2001 |access-date=August 11, 2018}} {{closed access}}</ref> |
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It has also generated some degree of interest among gothic rock subculture and vampire fetishists. Lemora has also inspired at least two rock bands, the British [[gothic rock]] combo [[The Ghost of Lemora]] and the American [[black metal]] band Lemora. |
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===Filming=== |
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[[Hy Pyke]] delivers his most unhinged performance, hamming it up all the way as a manic, bug-eyed bus driver who gives Lila Lee a ride to the town. |
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Filming took place in and around locations in [[Pomona, California|Pomona]], California, including the [[Phillips Mansion]],<ref name=smiley/> which was used for the exteriors of Lemora's house, and the Bradbury Chateau Estate, where the interiors were shot. Additional photography took place at the [[San Dimas Hotel]].<ref name=smiley/> The Reverend's house was at [[Culver Studios]], on what was once part of the exterior set for [[Mayberry]] on [[The Andy Griffith Show]]. Several of Blackburn's family and friends had roles in the production.<ref>Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973), DVD Commentary</ref> |
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== |
==Release== |
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''Lemora'' had its premiere in [[Claremont, California|Claremont]], California, on April 30, 1973, at the Garrison Theater on the [[Scripps College]] campus.<ref name=smiley/> The audience response at this screening was allegedly so poor that Fern and Blackburn quickly sought to sell the film and recoup part of the money spent to produce it.{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=75}} Media Cinema Group purchased the movie, cut it from 118 minutes to 80,{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=75}} and distributed it to drive-in theaters and local cinemas in the United States, opening in December 1974.<ref name=az/> |
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===Critical reception=== |
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''Lemora'' received mostly negative reviews upon its initial release, with some calling it "anti-Catholic".{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=75}}{{sfn|Hardy|1995|p=279}}<ref>{{cite journal|title=Lemora|journal=Demonique|volume=4|publisher=FantaCo Enterprises|location=Albany, New York|year=1983|page=3|author=Kaufman, Barry}}</ref> |
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Author and film critic [[Leonard Maltin]] awarded the film a BOMB, his lowest rating, calling it a "Perfectly awful low budgeter."{{sfn|Maltin|2013|p=777}} Elvis Mitchell from ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote, "''Lemora'' wants to surpass the expansions on vampire film mythology that propelled the fecund, tightly wound horror movies from Hammer Studios. The film falls far short of its goals, but it is a classic of sorts."<ref name=nyt/> |
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====Modern assessment==== |
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On the internet film review aggregator [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of 86% based on {{nowrap|7 reviews}}, with a [[weighted average]] rating of 7.1/10.<ref name="rottomatoes">{{cite web |title=Lemora - A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (2001) - Rotten Tomatoes |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lemora_a_childs_tale_of_the_supernatural/ |website=Rotten Tomatoes.com |publisher=Flixer |access-date=11 August 2018}}</ref> |
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On [[Metacritic]], which assigns a weighted average rating to reviews, the film has a score of 49 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".<ref name="metacriticfilm">{{cite web |title=Lemora - Reviews, Articles, People, Trailers and more at Metacritic - Metacritic |url=https://metacritic.com/movie/lemora-a-childs-tale-of-the-supernatural |website=Metacritic.com |publisher=Metacritic |access-date=11 August 2018}}</ref> |
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[[Barry Meyer]] from ''Film Monthly'' called ''Lemora'' "A real creeper", writing, "What makes this film work so well is that director-writer Richard Blackburn understands how to shock people with out exploiting the gimmickry of the genre, like so many other films of the era were so willing to do".<ref name="meyerrev">{{cite web |last1=Meyer |first1=Barry |title=Film Monthly.com – Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973) |url=http://www.filmmonthly.com/horror/lemora_a_childs_tale_of_the_supernatural.html |website=Film Monthly.com |publisher=Barry Meyer |access-date=11 August 2018}}</ref> In 1992, film writer John Flynn noted ''Lemora'' as "an artistic offbeat vampire movie which recalled the best of [[Mario Bava|Bava]] and [[Luis Buñuel|Bunuel]]."{{sfn|Flynn|1992|p=194}} |
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Maitland McDonagh from [[TV Guide]] awarded the film 3 out of 5 stars, writing, "An art-house vampire movie with lesbian undertones, Richard Blackburn's debut film puts an ambitious and surprisingly effective spin on traditional vampire movie cliches."<ref name="mcdonaghrev">{{cite web |last1=McDonagh |first1=Maitland |title=Lemora: A Child's Tale Of The Supernatural - Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/lemora-a-childs-tale-of-the-supernatural/review/103603/ |website=TV Guide.com |publisher=Maitland McDonagh |access-date=11 August 2018}}</ref> Dennis Schwartz from ''Ozus' World Movie Reviews'' gave the film a B+, calling it "A haunting and intelligently accomplished work".<ref name="schwartz10">{{cite web |last1=Schwartz |first1=Dennis |title=lemora |url=http://homepages.sover.net/~ozus/lemora.htm |website=Sover.net |publisher=Dennis Schwartz |access-date= August 11, 2018}}</ref> |
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===Home media=== |
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The film was released on [[DVD]] by Synapse Video on August 31, 2004. As of 2020, Synapse Films has declared that they have no plans to release the film on Blu-ray, despite showing a photograph of a 4K scan created five years earlier on social media.<ref name="allmoviedvd">{{cite web |title=Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973) - Richard Blackburn |url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/lemora-a-childs-tale-of-the-supernatural-v28921/releases |website=Allmovie.com |publisher=AllMovie |access-date=August 11, 2018}}</ref> |
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==See also== |
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* [[List of American films of 1975]] |
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* [[Vampire film]] |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
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==Sources== |
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*{{cite book|last=Flynn|first=John L.|year=1992|title=Cinematic Vampires: The Living Dead on Film and Television, from Devil's Castle (1896) to Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)|publisher=McFarland|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|isbn=978-0-899-50659-3}} |
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*{{cite book|editor1-last=Hardy|editor1-first=Phil|year=1995|title=The Overlook Film Encyclopedia|location=Woodstock, New York|publisher=Overlook Press|isbn=978-0-879-51624-6}} |
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*{{cite book|last=Maltin|first=Leonard|author-link=Leonard Maltin|year=2013|title=Leonard Maltin's 2014 Movie Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sfw2AgAAQBAJ|publisher=Penguin|location=New York|isbn=978-1-101-60955-2}} |
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*{{cite book|last1=Hardy|first1=Phil|last2=Milne|first2=Tom|year=1996|title=The Aurum Film Encyclopedia of Horror|publisher=Aurum Press|location=London|edition=Second|isbn=978-1-854-10384-0}} |
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*{{cite book|last=Smith|first=Gary A.|year=2017|title=Vampire Films of the 1970s: Dracula to Blacula and Every Fang Between|publisher=McFarland|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|isbn=978-1-476-62559-1}} |
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== External links == |
== External links == |
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* {{ |
* {{IMDb title|0070300|Lemora}} |
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* {{Metacritic film|title=Lemora}} |
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*[http://www.dvddrive-in.com/reviews/i-m/lemora73.htm Extensive review of the film] |
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* [http://www.horrortalk.com/reviews/Lemora/Lemora.htm Online review with screencaps] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:1973 horror films]] |
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[[Category:1973 LGBTQ-related films]] |
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[[Category:1973 films]] |
[[Category:1973 films]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:American LGBTQ-related films]] |
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[[Category:American supernatural horror films]] |
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[[Category:Lesbian-related films]] |
[[Category:Lesbian-related films]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Erotic fantasy films]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:LGBTQ-related horror films]] |
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[[Category:Films set in the 1920s]] |
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[[Category:Films set in the 1930s]] |
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[[es:Lemora, un cuento sobrenatural]] |
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[[Category:Films based on works by H. P. Lovecraft]] |
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[[Category:American religious horror films]] |
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[[Category:American vampire films]] |
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[[Category:Southern Gothic films]] |
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[[Category:1970s English-language films]] |
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[[Category:1970s American films]] |
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[[Category:Lesbian vampire media]] |
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[[Category:English-language horror films]] |
Latest revision as of 01:05, 22 December 2024
Lemora | |
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Directed by | Richard Blackburn |
Written by | Richard Blackburn |
Produced by | Robert Fern |
Starring |
|
Cinematography | Robert Caramico |
Edited by | Pieter Hubbard |
Music by | Dan Neufeld |
Distributed by | Media Cinema Group |
Release dates | |
Running time | 80 minutes[3] |
Language | English |
Lemora is a 1973 American horror film written and directed by Richard Blackburn, and starring Cheryl Smith, Hy Pyke, and Lesley Gilb. It follows a young girl in Prohibition-era America who travels to a mysterious town to visit her father, and uncovers a coterie of vampires. It was also released under the alternate titles Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural, The Legendary Curse of Lemora, and Lemora, Lady Dracula.
Conceived by Blackburn, a former University of California, Los Angeles film student, Lemora was filmed on location in Pomona and surrounding areas. It had its premiere at Scripps College in April 1973, after which it was sold for distribution to Media Cinema Group, who cut the film by nearly forty minutes and released it theatrically in late 1974. The film was heavily criticized by the Catholic Legion of Decency, which deemed it "anti-Catholic."[3]
Plot
[edit]During the Prohibition era in the Southern United States, the devout 13-year-old Lila Lee is summoned by letter to visit her injured father, a gangster, before he dies. She runs away from the Reverend who has raised her and in whose church she has become well known as a singer, though her extraordinary beauty is beginning to attract attention as well. Lila boards a bus to her father's purported location, the strange town of Astaroth. At the bus station, the ticket salesman informs Lila that the people there are strange, and that visitors rarely return from the town. That night, the bus Lila is riding, in which she is the only passenger, is attacked by a band of mindless vampires as it approaches the woods surrounding Astaroth. The vampires kill the bus driver, and Lila crashes the bus while attempting to flee. She is attacked by the creatures, but rescued by a mysterious woman named Lemora.
When she regains consciousness, Lila finds herself locked in a cottage outside a farmhouse, where she is tended to by Solange, an elderly hag-like woman who feeds her. Lila attacks Solange and escapes the cottage, fleeing to the farmhouse where she hides in a crawlspace. She hears her father's voice from inside the home, but before she can find him, Lila is confronted by Lemora, who informs her she cannot see her father until she is immune to his "disease." Lila finds that Lemora boards numerous other children in her home, all of whom, like her, are pallid and sickly in appearance.
It becomes evident that Lemora highly covets Lila, bathing her and attempting to soothe her. While alone, Lila is violently attacked by her father, who appears severely mutated. He attacks Solange, killing her, before Lemora chases him away with a torch. Lemora explains that some of the townspeople of Astaroth have become sick, and refers to an impending ceremony in which Lila will participate. After reading a diary of a child in Lemora's home, she soon realizes the truth: Lemora is a vampire who feeds upon children and is holding her father captive. She is also the unofficial queen of the Astaroth vampires, and plans to turn Lila into one of her own.
While trying to escape, Lila embarks on a nighttime journey through the town of Astaroth, witnessing the two types of vampires: one faction is like Lemora herself, relatively human in behavior and appearance, while the others are mutated or perhaps regressed, far more feral in behavior and monstrous in form; and the two groups are at war. Meanwhile, the Reverend, who is seeking Lila, manages to retrace her steps.
After a climactic battle which leaves most of the vampires dead, Lila is forced to kill her own father, who has become one of the degenerates. As she weeps over his corpse, Lemora approaches her and offers her comfort by her vampire's kiss. When the Reverend shows up not long after, he finds Lila willing, even eager to kiss him. He resists at first, then he gives in. That is when she drives her fangs into his throat and drains his blood, watched over by a smiling Lemora.
In the last scene, Lila is seen singing before her church congregation.
Cast
[edit]- Richard Blackburn as The Reverend
- Cheryl Smith as Lila Lee
- William Whitton as Alvin Lee
- Steve Johnson as the Ticket Man
- Hy Pyke as the Bus Driver[4]
- Lesley Taplin (billed as Lesley Gilb) as Lemora[4]
- Maxine Ballantyne as Solange
- Parker West as Young Man
Production
[edit]Concept
[edit]Lemora was conceived by former University of California, Los Angeles film students Richard Blackburn and Robert Fern.[3] Their main inspiration in making the film was Bob Kelljan's 1970 film Count Yorga, Vampire.[3]
Casting
[edit]Smith, seventeen years old at the time of filming, played thirteen-year-old Lila Lee, her first major role. Writer-director Blackburn appears in the film as The Reverend.[5]
Filming
[edit]Filming took place in and around locations in Pomona, California, including the Phillips Mansion,[1] which was used for the exteriors of Lemora's house, and the Bradbury Chateau Estate, where the interiors were shot. Additional photography took place at the San Dimas Hotel.[1] The Reverend's house was at Culver Studios, on what was once part of the exterior set for Mayberry on The Andy Griffith Show. Several of Blackburn's family and friends had roles in the production.[6]
Release
[edit]Lemora had its premiere in Claremont, California, on April 30, 1973, at the Garrison Theater on the Scripps College campus.[1] The audience response at this screening was allegedly so poor that Fern and Blackburn quickly sought to sell the film and recoup part of the money spent to produce it.[3] Media Cinema Group purchased the movie, cut it from 118 minutes to 80,[3] and distributed it to drive-in theaters and local cinemas in the United States, opening in December 1974.[2]
Critical reception
[edit]Lemora received mostly negative reviews upon its initial release, with some calling it "anti-Catholic".[3][7][8]
Author and film critic Leonard Maltin awarded the film a BOMB, his lowest rating, calling it a "Perfectly awful low budgeter."[9] Elvis Mitchell from The New York Times wrote, "Lemora wants to surpass the expansions on vampire film mythology that propelled the fecund, tightly wound horror movies from Hammer Studios. The film falls far short of its goals, but it is a classic of sorts."[5]
Modern assessment
[edit]On the internet film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 86% based on 7 reviews, with a weighted average rating of 7.1/10.[10] On Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating to reviews, the film has a score of 49 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[11]
Barry Meyer from Film Monthly called Lemora "A real creeper", writing, "What makes this film work so well is that director-writer Richard Blackburn understands how to shock people with out exploiting the gimmickry of the genre, like so many other films of the era were so willing to do".[12] In 1992, film writer John Flynn noted Lemora as "an artistic offbeat vampire movie which recalled the best of Bava and Bunuel."[13]
Maitland McDonagh from TV Guide awarded the film 3 out of 5 stars, writing, "An art-house vampire movie with lesbian undertones, Richard Blackburn's debut film puts an ambitious and surprisingly effective spin on traditional vampire movie cliches."[14] Dennis Schwartz from Ozus' World Movie Reviews gave the film a B+, calling it "A haunting and intelligently accomplished work".[15]
Home media
[edit]The film was released on DVD by Synapse Video on August 31, 2004. As of 2020, Synapse Films has declared that they have no plans to release the film on Blu-ray, despite showing a photograph of a 4K scan created five years earlier on social media.[16]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Smiley, Sarah (May 3, 1973). "Local horror film in Claremont". Progress Bulletin. Pomona, California. pp. D-6—D-7 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Cinemafare for Valley of the Sun". The Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Arizona. December 18, 1974. p. D-13 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g Smith 2017, p. 75.
- ^ a b Hardy & Milne 1996, p. 279.
- ^ a b Mitchell, Elvis (June 29, 2001). "FILM REVIEW; A Female Vampire Wins Another Stab at Immortality". The New York Times. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
- ^ Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973), DVD Commentary
- ^ Hardy 1995, p. 279.
- ^ Kaufman, Barry (1983). "Lemora". Demonique. 4. Albany, New York: FantaCo Enterprises: 3.
- ^ Maltin 2013, p. 777.
- ^ "Lemora - A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (2001) - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes.com. Flixer. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- ^ "Lemora - Reviews, Articles, People, Trailers and more at Metacritic - Metacritic". Metacritic.com. Metacritic. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- ^ Meyer, Barry. "Film Monthly.com – Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973)". Film Monthly.com. Barry Meyer. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- ^ Flynn 1992, p. 194.
- ^ McDonagh, Maitland. "Lemora: A Child's Tale Of The Supernatural - Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings". TV Guide.com. Maitland McDonagh. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- ^ Schwartz, Dennis. "lemora". Sover.net. Dennis Schwartz. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
- ^ "Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973) - Richard Blackburn". Allmovie.com. AllMovie. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
Sources
[edit]- Flynn, John L. (1992). Cinematic Vampires: The Living Dead on Film and Television, from Devil's Castle (1896) to Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-899-50659-3.
- Hardy, Phil, ed. (1995). The Overlook Film Encyclopedia. Woodstock, New York: Overlook Press. ISBN 978-0-879-51624-6.
- Maltin, Leonard (2013). Leonard Maltin's 2014 Movie Guide. New York: Penguin. ISBN 978-1-101-60955-2.
- Hardy, Phil; Milne, Tom (1996). The Aurum Film Encyclopedia of Horror (Second ed.). London: Aurum Press. ISBN 978-1-854-10384-0.
- Smith, Gary A. (2017). Vampire Films of the 1970s: Dracula to Blacula and Every Fang Between. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-1-476-62559-1.
External links
[edit]- Lemora at IMDb
- Lemora at Metacritic
- 1973 films
- 1973 horror films
- 1973 LGBTQ-related films
- American LGBTQ-related films
- American supernatural horror films
- Lesbian-related films
- Erotic fantasy films
- LGBTQ-related horror films
- Films set in the 1920s
- Films set in the 1930s
- Films based on works by H. P. Lovecraft
- American religious horror films
- American vampire films
- Southern Gothic films
- 1970s English-language films
- 1970s American films
- Lesbian vampire media
- English-language horror films