7. Vampire Amy - Fright Night (1985)
Another customer in the "freaked me right out as a kid" sweepstakes was the vampiric form of Charlie Brewster's girlfriend, Amy Peterson (Amanda Bearse) in Fright Night. Unlike the 2011 remake's version of Amy, who's a quintessential hot chick, Bearse was a mousy, nervous type; surely destined for a career as a librarian or maybe an Avon lady. Amy was cute in her way, but she's hardly a serious or forceful presence in the film....until vampire Jerry Dandridge gets his fangs in her. Once Amy is bitten, she's super-charged with allure and some kind of feral intensity, all of which happens after Jerry successfully seduces her. Fright Night is adept at a great many things, but one of the most impressive was the way it adhered to the folklore of vampires. In the finale, Amy isn't just a lusty fanged dame; she takes on the mostly ghoulish aspects of Dandridge's kind. In short, her mouth splits open from ear to ear and reveals a set of chompers that would make that Zuni Fetish Doll from Trilogy of Terror envious. Back in the 80's I never encountering a Halloween mask capturing that glorious visage you see above. Ultimately, that's a shame, as it's probably the perfect instance of "But'er Face". In recent years, I've glimpsed a few homemade versions of Vamp Amy online and perhaps one day she will join Blade Runner's Pris as a cult villainess who made a comeback in the costume department. Rest assured though, that if you choose to go wearing that mug this Halloween you aren't likely to encounter many copycats. In an era when our vampires are pale, boorish and spend more time biting their own lips than someone's neck, Amy the Vampire is a gruesome little shock to the system.