FURY

The opening scene sets us up for an almost post-apocalyptic vista, we see a black shadow come out of the fug of battle, a German officer, riding on horseback with background music reminiscent of Carmina Burana, only to be jumped by Pitt’s character and killed.

I have to say that this is a good movie but not a great one. If I have to be honest I found it a little derivative and also a little lacking in budget.  If I had to describe it in terms of another movie, Memphis Belle (Michael Caton-Jones, 1990) springs to mind, in so far as it is about the crew on a tank (aircraft) trying to get to the end of the war, despite the challenges thrown at them. The cast is good, if slightly unbalanced. Pitt is a good lead, holding the team together, the star of the show however is Logan Lerman (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, 2012).  This is not a Spielberg movie, with wide camera shots and panoramic vistas, this is in your face close-up cinema. Directed by David Ayer (End of Watch,  2012). 

The story starts in April 1945, in the dying days of the war, despite the closing chapter , the resistance is still strong, with crews dealing with fanatical hold-outs in the advance on Berlin. At the start we see typist Norman Ellison (Lerman) find his way to the new crew, where he is promptly treated as all newbies,  Driver, Garcia (Michael Peña – who worked with Ayer on End of Watch in 2012) immediately goes through Norman’s kitbag looking for “smokes” these are the important things not the books young Norman brought with him. 

As the story develops we learn that the crew has been together for a number of years, indeed the opening scenes see us witnessing one of the crew being removed, headless. Norman is his replacement. As assistant driver, he is placed with Garcia, who quickly sets about making it clear what he needs to do and not do.  All of this is alongside the constant ribbing of Grady (Jon Bernthal, The Walking Dead, 2010-2012) the gunner’s mate. The large Hillbilly type character is constantly needling the young recruit and causes some tension along the way which Sgt. Collier has to contain. 

Sgt. Collier’s call sign is “Wardaddy” and we quickly see why. The opening scene tells us, his crew is the only survivor or a raid. Later on when he is teamed up with a tank squad under the command of a young lieutenant, he quickly puts the young officer in his place while at the same time ensuring that the other sergeants carry out the orders. When the officer is Killed, he takes over command of the squad, all of the other sergeant in the squad already know him and respect his leadership. All this works to define the character as the movie proceeds.

The crew is rounded off by gunner Boyd Swan (Shia LaBeouf, Lawless, 2012), who takes the shape of a Southern Preacher, often quoting Verse to apply to a situation and trying to offer a sort of moral compass to the crew. 

The crew is tasked to support the taking of a town, with a small squad of Shermans. The captain leading the attack (Jason Isaacs, After the Fall, 2014) in the nearby village gives Collier his instructions, where the Tough Collier simply – politely – asks to lead his tanks a certain route, The captain simply replies that he knows him and his reputation, and he should do as he needs to .  In this moment we see what could make this a much better film, attention to detail, little lines that give us character.

Before this attack the team is resting up in the town they just entered, as they approach the town they see the bodies of Germans, young and old, strung up for not fighting the Allies. When the town is taken the Burgermeister  is leading out people under a white flag, among those coming out is an SS officer, Collier shouts down to the Burgermeister (in fluent German) if the officer is responsible for the hangings, yes. On Collier’s orders the officer is taken aside and shot.

This is a motive which carries through the movie. In this town scene. Collier spies a nervous woman by a window and goes to see what or who  she might be hiding, It is her cousin. The women are treated well, by Collier and young Norman, the crew eventually arrive and share a meal cooked from supplies Collier gave the Germans. The crew through Grady is controlled through their childish actions to the German. What we see is a politically correct view that the ordinary German people were as much victims as others. Indeed the hatred is saved of the Nazis, such as SS soldiers.

Collier can be cruel, as with the rest of the crew, we see this when he forces young Norman to shoot a German prisoner, one caught wearing a US officer’s coat. This is done for his own good.  It comes after a blood battle to clear the way for trapped troupes which has caused the deaths of a number of the other crews.

Unfortunately it is the battle scenes which although done well and I have to say violently, let the movie down a little. They reminded me of the cheap made for TV movies which show a sweeping panoramic shot of a great scene (usually poor CGI) and then show all of the fighting close up and clearly limited. I felt a bit like that watching a scene clearly limited by budget.

If we compare it to Lebanon, (Samuel Maoz, 2009), we get the same sense of claustrophobic struggle with which the crews must carry on.

The movie works towards the great climax where the crew holds off an advancing SS battalion, by which stage Norman’s transformation to a fighting soldier is complete, so much so that he gains his new warname of “Machine”.

The movie is stylised, not least of all with the various hair-styles worn by the crew, I suspect crafted to suit the personalities of each of the crew members. 

This is a war movie but not an epic. The effects are close up without any big expensive sweeping shots that we have seen in movies like Saving Private Ryan (Spielberg, 1998) or even Bridge at Ramagen (John Guillermin 1969). If I had to liken this to a particular movie, it would be Ramagen, with Segal’s Lieutenant Hartman being an analogue  of Colliers’.  The danger with close action shots is that certain extras can pop-up more than necessary, there was one soldier who seemed to pop-up a few times here when they could have used another extra, scrappy.

A firm 3star movie, not bad but will not be a classic.

'71

‘71

This movie tells the story of a young British soldier  accidentally separated from his squad and forced to try and find his way back to barracks. First time director Yann Demange  manages to capture a certain moment in the earlier years of “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland and Belfast in particular.

A friend of mine asked what all the fuss was about with “Twelve Years a Slave” in America, I mentioned the historical nerves that it touched and mentioned how we tend to look at works about Northern Ireland in a similar fashion, with a very critical eye. This is true for “’71” also, would it be an overly simplified piece of almost offensive rubbish, or be able to stand on its own. It did, it worked. 

That said, could this movie have been made 10 or 15 years ago, possibly not. Wounds, if they can, need time to recover. This movie touches on a number of the historical elements which might be overlooked by some.  The  movie works by deliberately not looking at the bigger picture of the politics of Northern Ireland, instead it pieces together a montage of events all linked to the young squaddie trying to get out of a situation alive.

Fresh out of training private  Garry Hook, along with his squad, is posted to Belfast. We see O’Connell’s character finishing his training, say farewell to his son and ending up on a cot in a disused hall in an old school, somewhere in Belfast. We see from the time with his son that, he’s an ordinary father who loves his son and gives the impression he just wants to get on with life.  The “elephant in the room” here is O’Connell’s performance in “Starred Up” (2013) where he played the part of a young offender, who because of his violent nature was starred up to the adult prison, where he fights to fit in, overcome his own flaws and even meet up with and reconcile with his inmate father. O’Connell’s character showed a potentially decent person trying to come to terms with his way of life and the inherent violence it brings. While in ’71 we see what is basically an ordinary guy dealing with immeasurable violence as well as charity.

On the first full day in Belfast the  squad is tasked to provide security cover to the RUC while they raid a group of houses on a street. Prior to setting out, their equally inexperienced lieutenant (Sam Reid, Anonymous , 2011) orders Berets only, because they are trying to win the hearts and minds of the locals. The squad stand the line protecting the perimeter of the police operation, however the situation quickly descends, the platoon is overwhelmed by the crowd , a soldier is injured and in the confusion his weapon is stolen, private Hook and another are sent to retrieve the rifle but in doing so are set upon by the locals. One of the local women manages to get the gang off them, only to have a member of the provisional IRA shoot the other soldier and after a chase, fail to shoot Hook. 

In the chase that follows we come across Captain  sandy Browning (Sean Harris, Harry Brown, 2009) and his men.  Together they make-up an undercover team working behind the scenes with both loyalist and republican terrorists. O’Connell manages to escape the young republicans who despite orders from the “Old-guard” not to kill the soldier, continue on their search for him. Meanwhile he is found by a young loyalist boy (Cory McKinley), whose father was killed and whose uncle is  a serving senior loyalist volunteer. While in the pub where they are based events unfurl and set private Hook is once again on the run, this time he is rescued by republicans. Towards the end of the night we are faced with the regular and undercover army looking for Hook, and competing elements of the IRA also searching for him. 

The movie works best for those who have some background knowledge of The Troubles, the dust-bin protests, the double dealing, the undercover squads, the rules and struggles with in the paramilitary groups and how the ordinary person is impacted.  Two of the younger IRA volunteers Martin McCann (Killing Bono, 2011), and Barry Keoghan (Love/Hate, 2013) came to attention not least of all because of their  parts which showed how people are brought in to causes and essentially be the foot-soldiers of higher-ups who are intent on keeping a distance.

There are a number of twists along the way in this movie, seen from the view of history they walk. Overall this movie captures an event and all it entails without sending any particular political judgement. If there is a judgement it is on the situation in its entirety and how ordinary people from all lives are caught up in events. Just who can be trusted? People turn against their own people for various reasons, not least their own self-protection. Overall an excellent movie which flows well and produces exactly the performances needed by all the cast.  This is one of those films that will not hurt the career of anybody involved.

Rating 8/10 -

The Judge

On coming out of the movie theatre after seeing the movie “The Judge” you might be forgiven for asking what kind of movie you just saw.  Part court-room drama, part road movie, part family drama. Rather than being a schizophrenic mis-mash it actually comes together well. 

Robert Downey  Jnr, sets-off Robert Duvall’s character perfectly. There are essentially two main story lines, firstly the family dramas which unfold following the death of the mother of the clan (who we never meet) and then the court-case involving his father, the judge.

Downey’s character, Harry (Hank) Palmer is a  Chicago lawyer, who on the surface has everything, great house, family, career all. Upon news of his mother’s death he returns to the home from which he has been estranged for some years. Upon his return it soon becomes clear why. The head of the house, Judge Palmer, played by Robert Duval is a painfully honest man, who  sees things in his own way, of basic uncomplicated justice. He has been Judge in their town for over 40 years and his legacy hangs heavy on him. The character in some ways reminds me of the character he played in Secondhand Lions, ( 2003) again a tough old guy, straight as a die, who does not suffer fools. His wisdom of Solomon  type approach may have kept the townsfolk out of trouble most of the time, but it was a recipe for disaster at home. He had 3 sons, the oldest Glen, played by Vincent D’Onofrio,(Law and Order: Criminal Intent, 2001)  the middle son, Hank, (Downey) and  the youngest son (Jeremy  Strong).

It was directed by David Bodkin, who is better known for movies such as “Wedding Crashers” or “Change up”, while Nick Schenk (Gran Torino 2008) and Bill Dubuque took the lead with the script.

While home and dealing with his own pending divorce, Hank Palmer runs immediately in to the family tensions. We find out early on that the eldest son Glen was destined to be a baseball star until a car accident in his late teens damaged his arm and put an end to his career. We are allowed to presume who was responsible for the accident, it is only later that we are told what actually happened.  Glen has the resentment of the son who stayed at home while his brother became something, he had to remain in his father’s shadow, running his own garage at the edge of town  and also helping to look after his youngest brother Dale, played brilliantly by Strong has learning difficulties and uses a movie camera to record the life around him almost all of the time.  

Not long after Hank arrives home, all three are on the porch of the house, when the Judge announces he is going to bed and makes final arrangements for the funeral, going inside he turns to his youngest son and looking him in the face, calmly says to him that if the camera makes an appearance at the funeral it will go up his arse. 

While the family comes to terms with the loss, we see Glen’s resentment at life and we see the Judge being as stoic as ever. Hank, takes some time to watch his father in court and also meet some old neighbours (girlfriend). In to this mix comes news that their father has been in a traffic accident and a young man has been killed.  The difficulty is that Judge Palmer has no recollection of the accident and the person he killed was somebody he locked away 20 years ago for the murder of a young girl, who has just been released on parole. 

Such are the tensions that just as Hank is returning to Chicago he is told of the Judge’s arrest. Despite the tensions in their relationship Hank immediately begins to legally defend his father. When his father announces that he has hired one of the local lawyers for his defence, Hank sits in on the meetings. When the case comes to court it is quickly evident to all concerned that the local guy C.P., (played by Dax Shepard, Parenthood, 2010) is out of his depth when up against the sharp special prosecutor (Billy Bob Thornton, the Man who Wasn’t There, 2001)brought in to fight the case.

Downey quickly takes over his father’s defence and struggles to defend him. His father’s health and general attitude prove the biggest challenges. 

There are so many twists and turn that I do not want to say too much.  Outside of the courtroom we get a view of the family and in particular the three sons (neither of Glen’s two sons will ever play baseball professionally). What we see is three brothers who when allowed to be themselves get on perfectly, but in the presence of their father revert practically to kids, he controls the house. The Relationship with Hank and all the other is obviously stained, at one stage the Judge turns to him and said how he wished he liked his him more. With Downey being in  the movie there are a number of opportunities for some light humour, all of which Bodkin takes, mainly revolving around events between Hank and his ex-girlfriend  (Vera Farmiga, The Conjuring, 2013)of over 20 years ago, who he meets almost immediately upon return home. The issue in question is whether or not her daughter might actually be his also.

The movie is in many ways similar to “August: Osage County” from last year, this however is a better movie. We see essentially three movies in one, the homecoming/road movie, the family struggles and the court case.

As the movie develops, the Judge’s health declines, further adding to the developing story. This could have been a bad made-for-TV movies except for the quick wit created by the screenwriters and brilliantly delivered by the cast. The cinematography is simple, no great sweeping or dramatic shots to allow the director to tell the world how great he is, instead every scene counts, we get a feeling of closeness and despite being over 2 hours long, you do not feel the time go.   

I did start the film wondering how it was going to go, my first impressions of Downey were of a reprise of his Tony Stark (Iron Man 2008) type character; arrogant and quick witted, but quickly we saw the character of Hank Palmer.  The supporting cast was kept tight, but before I finish a word must go to Jeremy Strong(Robot and Frank, 2008), who played the youngest brother, a great performance, understated and calm but very effective.

Overall the movie works on many levels. If I was to say what the film was about I would have to say, “tension” tension between a father and son, a prodigal returned, a high-school jock now raising a family, the ex-girlfriend etc. what makes this film work is that the tension can be overcome. This is seen most through the developing relationship between Hank and his father, both in and out of the Court.

Rating 9/10

Some people thought it was not as strong as it could be, I however thought it worked even striking one or two raw nerves along the way, go watch it, the  direction is strong and the performances nicely delivered. Each aspect of the plot is developed and I’m carefully trying not to give too much away.

Irish Blood

Irish blood

We all know that  our dear friend Count Dracula may have been a Transylvanian, but it was an Irish man who introduced him to the world; Mr. Bram Stoker.  What often puzzles people for a while is how did a middle class civil servant/theatre manager from Dublin happen to create not only one of the most famous characters in literature but also a whole genre. On the face of it, this seems like a strange starting point for such a literary legend. However, you only have to peel away the surface layers of history to begin to understand why.

To have written such an undertaking you would need a certain amount of motivation and appreciation for the subject. Growing up in Dublin, Stoker had the benefit  of learning from the best, as it were. The Wilde family (surgeon father, nationalist mother and witty son etc.) were family friends and young Bram grew up listening to the famous story telling of Jane Wilde.  She would have filled the young Bram’s head with the myths and legends of Ireland.

We also have to remember that, although Stoker is often credited with giving us the modern Gothic vampire novel, he was not the first.  An earlier work by fellow Dublin-man Sheridan Le Fanu entitled Carmilla was published 25 years before hand. We’’ take a look at the work  further down, much of what we recognise from Dracula may have been inspired by this work the central European castle, the doctor, the lonely hero etc.   

Although there is much written regarding Irish ghost stories, they usually involve just that, ghosts, or a people such as faerie folk or other such, but there are a few vampire legends, the most famous being that of  An Dearg Due – The Red Bloodsucker, not as famous today as Count Vlad today, but certainly a much older legend, still lingering today.

An Dearg Due

An Dearg Due or “The Red bloodsucker” tells the story of a female daemon that seduces male victims and drains their blood in the process.  The story of this daemon is a familiar one. The story is set about the early 12^th century.  Alive she was a woman of famed beauty with red lips and pale blonde hair known the length and breadth of the country. Men travelled from all over the country to seek her hand in marriage. It was said that the beauty in her heart out-shined her legendary beauty  As was her wont she fell in love with a local peasant he was by all accounts a good match for her;  strong and generous according to those who knew him . The problem was he was of too low a station and did not meet with the approval of her father.  She was forced in to an arranged marriage with another an older far richer but much more cruel man, and with any good legend of its type, she was mistreated. In this case she sadly committed suicide. Legend has it that she was buried near Strongbow’s tree in Waterford. The tree is long gone, either way she would have been buried in un-consecrated ground. Not lying at rest, she would have her revenge and so she did, rising to revenge her suffering on her husband and father, sucking the blood from them. Legend now has it that she rises once per year to continue her vengeance. Even today rocks are still placed over graves in various parts of the country, to stop her rising.

As we mentioned despite her father’s intentions to marry her well, she fell for the peasant we mentioned above, by the accounts of the legend this man was a good and decent person with one major failing, no land or money, without these there would be no secure future and so any such match built on these grounds would not be permitted.

Her father did find her a husband though, and older wealthy man of land and means, the family would be financially safe. Married off, and now secure, her family did not concern themselves with her wellbeing, they were more concerned with their. This is said because of the daily hell and torture she  suffered at the hands of her husband

All of this to secure a name and a fortune for the family. While the Father relaxed in his newly acquired riches, he gave not a thought to his poor daughter. She daily suffered terrible mental and physical abuse at the hands of her new “husband.” His particular pleasure was found in drawing blood from her…watching as the deep crimson welled up on her soft skin. When she was not being abused, she was kept locked away in a tower cell, so that only her husband could see her…touch her…bleed her.  And she waited, in vain, for the day that her former love, the  peasant, would somehow rescue her. That hope kept her alive for many months.

Finally one day, she realized there was no hope. The months of abuse were too much. No one would come for her. So she saved herself, the only way she knew how. She committed suicide, some say she hung herself.. It was a slow, and no doubt painful, death. She is buried in a small churchyard, near “Strongbow’s Tree,” in the County of Waterford, Southeast Ireland. Her human spirit broken and suffering twisted her into the daemon she was to become after death, before finally dying she renounced God and vowed vengeance on those who made her suffer. She was a suicide, so for the faithful she, her soul could never rest.

Tradition, even before this event was to place a pile of stones on the graves of the dead to prevent them from rising, but the legend tells us,  for whatever reason, there were no stones placed on the grave that first night. Some say it was out of pity, they just wanted to let her rest in peace without restriction, she had suffered enough, was it guilt that stopped them, everybody knew the kind of man she was married to, everybody knew her suffering, all ignored it or just turned a blind-eye.

They say, the only person to mourn her death was her peasant lover, and that  he prayed at her graveside every day for a year, praying for her to return.  However her nature may have been when she was alive;  one year later one the first anniversary of her death,   she arose, her nature now far different from what it used to be. With the blood still in her veins wanting more, she arose as the Dearg Due, the Red-Blood Drinker.

Full of revenge in her cold heart, her first victims were those who made her suffer most, when they found him, her father had been drained of all blood, his face a vision of horror and terror, they say his heart stopped even before his blood had been drained, his daughter returned as evil and malevolent now  as she had been kind and loving in life. Before the night was out her husband, who had not wasted time in seeking the affections of another, was also dispatched to the afterlife.  The fresh blood woke a taste in her for more blood and as the years went on and her loneliness grows, she rises now and  steals blood from children, from the innocent, and especially from young men. Calling them with a haunting siren song that invades their sleep, she lures them out into the night with her…tempting them to follow her, to her grave.  Punishing them, as she was punished. Keeping them with her, as she herself was kept.  Those who go missing, those taken mysteriously ill, those children who die inexplicably, are all attributed to the cursed, wandering, and insatiable Dearg-Due.

Legend has it that she was buried under Stronbow’s tree in Waterford, no one knows where this tree stood, there are a couple of graveyards in the area which are likely to have been near any burial site and close to “Stongbow’s Tower” or Reginald’s Tower as it is correctly called. Saint Michael’s church was believed to be associated with the legend. Some say Strongbow was buried there and not in Saint Patrick’s cathedral where his tomb rests.

It is said that the Dearg-Due rises from  her grave to seduce her victims and lure them to their deaths, draining them. Like many of her kind, she lured her victims to her, much like a succubus, but visiting not in the dreams of her victims. Depending on the version of the legend you are introduced to, some say she rises every new moon to feed while others say it is a couple of times per year, or on special occaisions like her birthday and the day she died. It is said that the only way to kill her is to pile stones on her grave. Some say she can change for to a bat, other say to a rat.

Leacht Abhartach

Next to the Dreag-due, there is also the legend of Abhartach. In the hills of Derry in Glenullin,  the homeland of the O’Kane clan, members of the O’Neil sept Their Chieftain had the honour of inauguration of the Chief of the O’Neill clan (by tossing a shoe over the new Sept Chieftain’s head  in acceptance of his rule). The story revolves around Cathrain (The O'Kane) , the Chieftain at the time, and Leath Abhartach, Avile and evil creature who some said was an evil dwarf, while others described his as apowerful wizard and  by many others  as a vampire (an all-round nice-guy then!). all agreed he was a nasty piece of work.

There is a village called Slaghtaverty (previously called “laghtaverty” which would have translated as (The monument of the [abhartach] or dwarf). The dwarf in question was a magician. A person known for his nasty behaviour and cruelty to people. His evil continued until a neighbouring Chieftain finally killed him. He was buried standing in his grave. It was thought that was the end of him, but no. The next day after he was killed he appeared back again at his home places, now more cruel and evil than ever and demanding of those alive that they feed him with bowls of blood. The O’Kane chieftain once again killed him and buried him again as before. This was no different, once again he rose from his grave spreading fear throughout the country.

Looking to finally put an end to the scourge The O’Kane went to the hermitages of the area seeking out advise, he finally met with the most noted of the druids who was in Gortnamoyagh forest.  People say the Druid was actually one of the first Christian monks in the area. The area where he lived is still today known as “Churchtown”.There is still also evidence of old structures and living areas in the ruins of Gortnamoyagh.

 The Druid informed him that the monster was dearg-dililat, a drinker of human blood but more dangerously he was a neamh-mhairbh. One of the undead, who kept himself “alive” by drinking the blood of humans. To  defeat the dearg-dililat, you can only restrain or trap him but not kill him., The O’Kane would have to pierce his heart him with a sword made of yew  wood and then buried with his head downward and then covered in thorn bushes and ashes. A heavy stone must then be placed on top of the graver to cap it; if not the vampire dwarf would be free to walk the nights and feed at will.  

The O’Kane did as he was told and went to find the evil creature, whatever it was. In the struggle that followed the neamh-mhairbh was trapped and stabbed through the heart as needed. With that he was buried as told, and a great stone monument placed above it. The monument is gone now, but the cap stone is still in place. Alongside the stone is a tree which grew from those first thorns and ashes placed on the grave.

Today in the area around Glenullin in Derry, the grave still lies, itself growing in infamy and notoriety as the years go on. The local people consider the grave site to be “bad-ground” with it causing much unhappiness to owners and others over the years. In the late 1990’s there was an attempt to clear the land but according to local reports, this could not happen. When they attempted to cut down the tree standing guard it is said that a fully functioning chainsaw broke down multiple times and when they tried to lift the great cap-stone the chain snapped.

Local legend speaks of a fortune buried with the creature, but strangely enough nobody has been willing to dig for it.

An Du'n Dreach-Fhoula

The Irish word dreach-fhoula (pronounced dracula) means bad or tainted blood. The expression is believed to refer to blood feuds between people or families. However, there is an earlier legend associated with it. There is a site which is called Dún Dreach-Fhoula 

A former Registrar of the National Folklore Commission (Seán O’Sullaebhán) during a talk in 1961 mentioned Dún Dreach-fhoula (pronounced (Droc’ola), the Fort of the Bad Blood or The Fort of Blood Visage. The fort supposedly guarded the pass through the Magillycuddy Reeks  in Kerry which  was inhabited by blood-drinking fairies. It was said to guard a lonely pass but travellers in the region had to beware lest they become the prey of the dearg-diulai, the blood drinking faeries.

 Despite the provenance of the speaker, searches for the Dún in the recent years have shown-up no remains of a fort or other such clues. It is suggested that the legend of this castle may have been an inspiration for Dracula, coming from Dreach-fhoula, bad blood.

Carmilla

Gothic vampire novels were not new when Stoker wrote his, he is simply the best known. In 1819 John Polidori, an English man of Italian descent wrote the short story The Vampyre, inspired by his time with Lord Byron, he was Byron’s personal physician and travelled Europe with him on his grand tour. The culmination of this was the famous night in the house by Lake Geneva with Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, Percy Bysshe Shelley who would marry Mary,  and Claire Clairmont. Dismissed by Byron, he travelled some more and then on his return to England published his short story the Vampyre, which was mistakenly ascribed to Byron by many in the early years.

There were various other works continuing the gothic style of story, one which stood out and which is comparable to Dracula is Carmilla.  Written by Sheridan Le Fanu who lived from 1814 to 1873 who wrote gothic and mystery novels.  His works stand by themselves and not just in Stoker’s shadow. His best known are Uncle Silas, Carmilla and The House by the Churchyard. The Sheridan connection was to the famous theatrical Sheridan family (Richard Brinsely Sheridan was his uncle). His father was an Anglican clergyman and ensured Sheridan had a conservative almost home-schooled education. Married in 1844, the marriage ended in tragedy when his wife Susanna died in 1858.

His earliest selection of short stories are what became known as “The Purcell Papers” from 1838/1840 which are supposedly the written records of an 18^th century catholic priest. In the main they were set in Ireland and include a lot of the horror elements we insist on today; gothic horror, gloomy castles, apparitions and madness.

His most famous work however is Carmilla. It tells of the family of an English army officer who having been in military service in Austria bought a small schloss for himself and his daughter. The story is from the view of young Laura. The schloss is only reached through thick forest and after passing a deserted  village and ruined fortress. Speaking of her life, she recalls a strange dream she had when she was only six.

The family hears of the death of a friends daughter and a little while later meet Carmilla who arrives with them by coach following an accident. She stays with the family, her mother must continue away on a mission,  the details of which she did not share. Carmilla stays with them and while once talking Laura tells of the dream she had as a child. Surprisingly Carmilla also had a similar dream and can remember meeting Laura, she looked exactly as she does now. In the dream Carmilla bit Laura. Laura later writes  how she feels “drawn towards” Carmilla. However they talk and about what ever, the topic of Carmilla’s background is never discussed, she is strident in asserting her origins and intentions must remain a mystery. As they get to know each other a caller to the castle selling trinkets as protection from evil which  is reportedly killing  young girls in the nearby villages. About this time also, Laura mentions she had another dream, one where again Carmilla bites Laura.

 The dreams continue in different forms including one where she is told to “beware of the assassin” and Carmilla appears covered in blood. Each morning after these dreams where her ghostly lover appears also, she awakes tired and drained each morning.  Laura speaks of the 2intoxicating, hypnotic charms played and sung to her. Out of the dream a deep relationship develops between both young women. As time goes on Laura’s health deteriorates while Carmilla seems to have taken to the castle as her health improves with each day.

The doctor prescribes a cure, but one which must not be told to Laura. As part of this cure Laura and her father set out for Karnstein castle a ruin. While travelling there they meet The General, a friend of Laura’s father. The General is the man who recently lost his daughter. He recalls how both he and her daughter were persuaded to take in a stranger, her name was Millarca. As the friendship between the General’s niece and Millarca developed, Millarca bloomed as his niece faded. The General agrees to accompany them on their journey.

On reaching the ruins they meet a woodcutter who tells them that the village once thrived but became infested with vampires and was destroyed.  He was able to direct the visitors to the Karnstein family plot in the neglected graveyard, here the visitors found generations of Karnsteins, but could not find the grave of Millarca Countess Karnstein. The wood cutter leaves and the General finishes his story of how his daughter died. He discovered Millarca  drawing the last blood from his niece, he tried to kill Millarca but she escaped, he is now hunting her. Just as he finishes his story The Countess appears in the graveyatrd in the form of Carmilla. The general immediately tries to destroy her, but she easily deals with him.  Just as this battle is lost to her, a new figure joins the fight; Baron Vordenburg, the noted enemy of vampires.  

Together they manage to keep Laura safe during the night and the next morning following the previous appearance of Carmilla, they find her tomb. When they open her coffin there were no signs of decay from the 150 years she had been in the coffin. Another sight greeted them, within the lead-lined coffin the body of the countess lies immersed in seven inches of blood. They drive a stake through her heart, behead her, burn her body and throw the ashes on flowing water.

Comparisons and conclusions

It does not take long to draw the comparisons between both great vampire novels, based in central Europe, involving people out of their home place, mysterious attacks on our heroes, the doctor (Hesselius and Van Helsing) and even names being used; Carfax for Karnstein, Renfield for Reinfeldt. The stories evolve the corruption of power to the individual want and desire. Although we may not be as familiar with Carmilla as with Dracula, she still has her place in popular culture; 

Hammer Horror’s The Vampire Lovers (1970) is one end of the spectrum while the very dodgy comedy Lesbian Vampire Killers (2009) is firmly at the other end.  There is also a new movie in the works, Styria,  to be released  in 2014.

She also appears on TV, you might remember Hotel Carmilla (the one in season 2, when they visit Dallas) in True Blood. 

Through-out Europe, especially around the Balkans vampire legends have been long established and in some places in modern Romania, they still persist. Over the years graves have been unearthed showing the deceased with large stones in their mouths or their head decapitated from the body and turned round 180 degrees to prevent reanimation. Vampire folklore became popular in Europe around the sixteenth century. There have also been occasional findings of such in Ireland, but not to the same extent as in Europe. Recently an archaeological dig near Kilteasheen on the banks of Lock Key carried out a study of graves containing 137 skeletons believed to be from the period between 700 and 1400 AD. Among these were two deviant burials, both from the 700’s but both separate from the other. One of the men was likely between 40 and 60 while the other was around 20-30. Both were laid side by side and both had a stone about the size of a tennis ball in their mouths. It is likely that the stones in their mouths was to stop them from coming back from their graves. The stones in the mouth are believed to stop them eating through their shrouds and spreading their infection.

These Walking tended to have been outsiders from society when they were alive.  Both men would have been seen as a potential danger in death as in life. The surviving people would fear any grudges or issues which would attract the dead back. If a soul was to reanimate a body, it was felt it would enter the body through the mouth, so blocking the mouth would prevent the soul re-entering.

As the researchers point out, these burials predate similar burials in Eastern Europe by about 500 years. Another aspect worth recording is that, although both bodies were buried at different time, they were both buried in the same area and in the same manner, suggesting a specific forethought in both cases.

Other examples of these burials have been found through-out the country and wider Europe but usually are much later in time.