12. Le Frisson des Vampires (1971)
Isle and Antoine are newly weds en route to visiting Isle's cousins. On arrival, they discover that her cousins have died. They end up in a chateau full of vampires - one of which emerges from a grandfather clock and bites Isle in the neck. Whilst looking for Isle, Antoine runs into the vampires who are performing a human sacrifice. Isle is told that her cousins aren't dead - they are present in the dining room. That night, Isle is bitten (again) in the neck by the vampire. This was the very first Redemption VHS title that I bought, and as such, it was my first foray into the weird and wonderful world of Jean Rollin. "Oneiric" is probably the best word to describe the film - it is not a film strong on plot or sense, but is instead a beautiful, sexy, haunting vampire film. Extremely original in execution and true to Rollin's own obsessions the whole way through, there are highly quirky visuals. The beach scene is extremely surreal and the viewer feels they have entered another dimension. Rollin, for his output, was the enfant terrible of French cinema and his work was excoriated to the highest heavens. It is nice to see that his films have garnered a cult following.