Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter is celebrating a milestone. After twenty-five years of being very, very quiet, Lee Demarbre’s cult classic is being honoured with a fresh revival. Library and Archives Canada provided a new 2K scan of the original 16mm negative for restoration, and a new DCP has been created to bring out the colours. It’s ready to sing! During the first week of June, the film had a party with Demarbre and superstar Phil Caracas attending special screenings. And this movie will keep preaching cross-country in the coming weeks, if not months, so the herald can be heard. This is the type of midnight madness cinema even Rocky Horror fans should attend!
This very beloved work was made on a shoestring budget, and it has enough romp to make a B-movie director blush. Its hilarity often feels right at home with a Troma production. But there’s more! There’s music, grindhouse attitude, and kaiju involved. Okay, not kaiju, but had it included some, I’d be beside myself. I was more impressed with the sentai influence. It’s not full-on Power Rangers style, but that flavour is clearly there. We even get some 70s-style Bruce Lee foolery when it matters.
With a lot of mad science going on, JC (Caracas) is the only one able to turn the undead and maybe make the crazy plastic surgeon (Josh Grace) see the light. Mind you, there’s some plausibility in the doctor’s idea to help vampires see the sun every once in a while. Apparently, vampirism is an infection. While it can’t be surgically removed, this doctor thinks it’s possible to change body parts. Had this film decided to push that Frankenstein theory into a sequel, it could still happen. But when considering the age of the original film, the chance of a follow-up feels slim, much like how Bubba Ho-Tep hinted at a sequel that never did get made.
But why target women from the LGBTQ community? The answer is in the film, and I won’t spoil it. As for the saviour, he’ll do anything to save love. What he won’t do, well, I’m sure Meat Loaf had a thing or two to say about that. Although he’s in heaven now, talking shop with the angels, I’m sure that had he heard about this work being made, he would have asked for a role to make the musical numbers even more memorable. He’s made a few cameos in a variety of works, and JCVH should not be an exception.
What makes this work a must-see for vampire enthusiasts are the easter eggs. Not everyone will recognize that the big bad evil vampiress, Maxine Shreck (Murielle Varhelyi), is a reference to Nosferatu. Even Mary Magnum (Maria Moulton) is an obvious nod to a certain holy figure. Though they don’t become husband and wife, keeping in line with what the Bible suggests about their relationship, what’s presented hints at the opposite.
Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter is silly, budget-averse, and action-hero absurd in the best way. After all, if all JC did was ping the undead with the flick of a finger, that would be far too easy, especially when considering the powers he has acquired since his ascension and return home to replace Van Helsing. This work isn’t meant to be nitpicked because the surreal moments are part of the fun. Whether it’s the fourth-wall-breaking narrator, a talking cherry sundae, or hip hop as a musical number, this film should simply be enjoyed as the strange piece of Canadiana that it is.
4 Hail Marys out of 5
Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter Trailer
