Vampires
Columbia Pictures | Release Date: October 30, 1998 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
42
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 19 Critic Reviews
Positive:
4
Mixed:
11
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
Crude, rude, nasty fun. Read full review
70
VarietyLisa Nesselson
The pleasures are modest but consistent in John Carpenter's Vampires, a part-Western, part-horror flick that doesn't aim too high but nails the range it occupies. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
With a distinctively middle-aged zest, Carpenter retools even the hopeless cliche requiring action heroes to spout bad puns while dispatching bad guys; his eminently stylish movie proves that new blood can flow from an old vein. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
The essential problem with the movie isn't that it's loud, violent, and gory, but that, before Carpenter ratchets up the tension in the final 35 minutes, it's not especially interesting. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleBob Graham
The lead actors on both sides of the vampire divide are all strong personalities. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The movie has a certain mordant humor, and some macho dialogue that's funny. Woods manfully keeps a straight face through goofy situations where many another actor would have signaled us with a wink. But the movie is not scary, and the plot is just one gory showdown after another. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
James Woods adds another hateful, embittered creep to his gallery of losers, neurotics and junkyard dogs with vampire slayer Jack Crow. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
It's interesting, though, to think of double-billing Woods' Crow with Pacino's Prince of Darkness from Devil's Advocate: Scenery-chewing never looked so good. Read full review
50
Dallas ObserverM. V. Moorhead
Scary or not, there's energy in the way Carpenter frames and cuts his movies, and there's energy to spare in Woods' performance. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
There's a surprising amount to relish about this gleefully self-conscious, disposable romp through horror's sexiest subgenre, mainly the film's grasp of its own terms. Read full review
42
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
The goons themselves, though, look rather chic, flying through the air in Galliano-goes-to-hell garments straight out of Vampire Vogue. Read full review
40
The A.V. ClubJoshua Klein
Profoundly disappointing--though Carpenter's score is, as usual, good fun. Read full review
40
Village VoiceAmy Taubin
A gorefest of epic proportions. Read full review
40
EmpireSimon Braund
For all the exploding gore, graphic eviscerations and combustible corpses, it’s not shocking, not sexy and not scary. Read full review
40
Film ThreatTom Meek
Carpenter oscillates between high horror and lowbrow camp, which is more unsettling than the scenes of decapitation and dismemberment, and drives a steak through the heart of Woods' fine performance in the process. Read full review
30
SalonLaura Miller
The sort of thing you can't believe anyone would want their name attached to. Read full review
30
The New York TimesLawrence Van Gelder
Ridiculous without being awful enough to be hilarious. Read full review
25
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
It's just as well that John Carpenter makes horror movies, because here's a horrifying thought picture James Woods as an action hero. [30 October 1998, p. 44]
25
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
Anemic. [30 October 1998, p.8E]
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