A-Level Media | Kiss Of The Vampire

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to the poster for Christopher Lee's Dracula, but the fact that it's in colour (anchored by the text "In Eastman Color") connotes that this is a modern telling of an older story. • The gloomy grey, black and brown colour palette reinforces the film's dark, scary conventions while the red highlight colour draws attention to the attacking bats, the vampire and the blood - all key visual signifiers for the genre. • Conventionally, the stars are listed with the more highly paid male actors first and in order of fame, Clifford Evans having starred in Hammer's 1961 hit Curse of the Werewolf. Barthes' Semiotics • Suspense is created through the enigmas surrounding the connoted relationship between the male and female vampires (emphasised by the "kiss" of the title) and the fate of their two victims (Barthes' Hermeneutic Code). • Barthes' Semantic Code could be applied to images of the bats and their con- ventional association with vampirism and horror in general. • The Symbolic Codes (Barthes) of horror, darkness, and fear are more widely rein- forced through signifiers such as the moon and the male victim's 'submissive sac- rifice' gesture code. Lévi-Strauss' Structuralism • The idea of binary oppositions in texts can be applied to the opposing represen- tations of vampires and their victims. • The romantic connotations of "kiss" in the film's title can be opposed to the ste- reotypical "vampire" monster. REPRESENTATION KISS OF THE VAMPIRE Political & Social Context • The 1960s is often regarded as the beginning of women's sexual liberation, with events such as the introduction of the contraceptive pill in 1960. • More women were entering the paid workforce than ever before, and feminists of the sixties were campaigning for equal pay, an end to sexual harassment, and more equality between men and women in wider society. • In America, equal pay legislation was passed in 1963. • The film poster for Kiss of the Vampire encodes both older stereotypes of women as passive victims of men and more modern male fears of women chal- lenging male dominance. Construction of Representations • Both women wear pale dresses made of light materials, highlighting their curves and revealing the flesh of their upper chests and arms. • The woman on the left is portrayed as a stereotypical passive victim of the mon- ster, with her gesture code emphasising his power as he holds her by just one arm. • The second woman's gesture codes are more aggressive, with her baring her teeth and raising her arm almost fist-like as she's being bitten by the bat. The sub- missive pose of her male 'victim' (including being on his knees with his head back and throat exposed) represents her in a non-stereotypically dominant way. • The vampire himself seems uncharacteristically fearful in his gesture codes, with his arm thrown across his body in a defensive gesture, perhaps protecting himself from the female vampire. Hall's Representation • The images of a castle, bats, the vampire's cape, and dripping blood are part of the "shared conceptual road map" that gives meaning to the "world" of the poster. • The audience is actively encouraged to decode this familiar generic iconography. Gauntlett's Identity • The female vampire could act as a role model for women who are struggling against male oppression or want to be seen as equals of men. • This is true regardless of the narrative or environment. Zoonen's feminist • The female vampire is taking on a 'co-antagonist' role, which is contributing to social change by representing women in non-traditional roles. • However, the passive female victim does reinforce traditional gender roles. KISS OF THE VAMPIRE IN EASTMAN COLOR starring CLIFFORD NOEL EDWARD JENNIFER / BARRY EVANS/WILLMAN/ DE SOUZA / DANIEL / WARREN Screenplay by JOHN ELDER Directed by DON SHARP Produced by ANTHONY HINDS A Hammer Film Production Release Universal