Hot off the success of Poltergeist (1982), legendary director Tobe Hooper signed a three-picture deal with Cannon Films. That contract resulted in a remake of Invaders from Mars, a sequel to his own The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and what is perhaps one of the most unique vampire films ever made: Lifeforce.
The first picture of Hooper’s Cannon deal, Lifeforce, had no life whatsoever at the box office. It failed to bring in even half of the film’s estimated budget. With time, though, the sci-fi bloodsucker movie has grown quite a cult following. And it’s streaming now on Prime for those who have yet to experience why it managed to rise from the dead.
What’s Lifeforce About?
Based on the novel “The Space Vampires” by Colin Wilson and adapted by Dan O’Bannon and Don Jakoby, Lifeforce opens with a scene reminiscent of O’Bannon’s script for Alien. In it, we meet a crew of astronauts who discover an enormous alien ship drifting in the tail of Halley’s Comet. Once inside, they find a legion of dead, bat-like creatures, as well as three perfectly preserved humanoids. Upon returning to London, we learn that only Carlsen (Steve Railsback) has survived the trip home. The specimens—part of a race of powerful vampires that feed on human energy—have murdered the crew and are hungry for more. Within hours, the creatures escape, threatening a plague on the world of apocalyptic proportions.
Without a doubt, Lifeforce is Hooper’s most ambitious film. A bit like Mario Bava’s Planet of the Vampires meets Quatermass and the Pit, Hooper goes bigger than ever with his dreamy sci-fi horror epic. Vampires fill rooms with electric sparks as they suck energy from victims. Hordes of decrepit corpses create mayhem on the streets. Brilliantly conceived sets fill the screen, such as an organic spacecraft that would make H.R. Giger giddy. Not to mention Hooper’s visually striking imagery. All in all, it’s unlike any vampire film you have ever seen.
For Dread Central, James Francis wrote that Lifeforce is “a hidden gem if you are fond of 1980s practical effects”.
Even Mike Flanagan has listed Lifeforce among his favorite bloodsucker movies on Letterboxd. And while there aren’t any public comments about it from Flanagan, those who look closely can spot the film’s influence on his own work. Both Doctor Sleep and Lifeforce feature female villains who lure victims with their charm and feed on their energy. And then of course there’s the filmmaker’s vampire mini-series, Midnight Mass, itself an apocalyptic tale of fanged fiends that treads similar themes of human fragility as Lifeforce.
Whether you’re a fan of bloodsuckers or Hooper or just want to see what would earn it a spot on Flanagan’s list of favorite vampire movies, you can satisfy that craving now by biting into Lifeforce on Prime. And for you fellow physical media collectors, Scream Factory also released a gorgeous 4K edition of the film not long ago.
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