The Horror Of...Halloween Night, Daughter of Darkness (1990)

Halloween has plenty of big-budget gore and terror going for it in the modern era of horror. But the smaller scale endeavors in horror are often just as rewarding to fans. And among the golden age of TV movies, you can find many odd films that can fit in nicely into a night's scares.

One I can across earlier this year was a small 1990 film for CBS. Daughter of Darkness.

Filmed entirely in Hungary, it was one of the film projects taking early advantage of the changing environment for trade and commerce in Eastern Europe. As the 90's proceded we would see many more film crews racing into the region. Many lower budget horror films to come would be eager to visit the region to take advantage to lower costs and striking vistas.

The story takes place in modern-day Romania. Filmed in September of 1989, 2 months before the end of Nicolae Ceausescu's rule, the movie takes place in his world of secret police. It played on CBS by the end of January 1990, so it was only a month since Ceausescu's execution. So while they were editing, Romania changed greatly, but it was a time of quite a bit of upheaval and political shifts. So the film stands as a time capsule of that moment in time.


The film script was written by Andrew Laskos, who had a career writing for TV series and TV movies, including on the 80's Beauty and the Beast series. He seemed to focus on dramas and thrillers.

The film was directed by, much to my surprise by Stuart Gordon, of the Re-Animator series, among other noted horror films. This movie takes place between working on Robot Jox and Fortress. (There is also a film called The Pit and The Pendulum made just after this one, but I've not seen that one yet.) This film does not seem much like his other film work. It is a horror story, and there are monsters, but it is built to fit the prime time movie feel.

This film follows Katherine Thatcher (played by Mia Sara - Legend, Time Cop, Birds of Prey, and Ferris Bueller's Day Off.), who has recently lost her mother and is now drawn to Romania to find her father. Her parents had met for a short time before she was born (her an American, and him a Romanian), but parted, never to see each other again.

Mia Sara is interesting as a lost soul, confused about what is driving her on. She plays up a fragile emotional state that is fortified by her determination to understand her family.

Since her mother's death, Katherine has been besieged by dreams that scare her. Crypts. Fire. Darkness. A robed man with no eyes or nose.

In Romania, she has trouble finding her father. She follows her visions and finds the place he once worked. But there she is told he died. Then at the hospital, she learns that there are no records from when he died. It is almost all omitted. It could be a totalitarian bureaucratic cock-up or...


And, of course, the film would be short if there was no trail. So her father does seem to live on. Anton (played by Anthony Perkins - the Psycho series of films) moves around her, with a new name, but isn't eager to reveal himself. You see, he is a vampire. About 200 years old, and not eager for a daughter to enter his world.

Vampires don't have kids. It shouldn't be possible. But one has come into being. And this is dangerous for Katherine. Particularly in a land of vampires.


It is fun to see Perkins in this role. For once, people aren't trying to wedge mother issues into a role he's playing. Instead, he's a distant father, leading a troubled existence. Plus you get to see him pull out a Romanian accent for the film. It is quite different from what I'm used to seeing him play, making it all the more fun to watch.

Along the way, Katherine seeks help. First, from Max, a local cab driver eager to show up, give her a lift, and offer advice.

He is played affably by Dezsõ Garas. He was a long-standing actor in Hungary.

Katherine also seeks help at the US Embassy. There a low-level diplomat does try to help her, but he can't accept the fantastical things she tells him are happening to her. And he's got to deal with all the whiney rich Americans in town to make business deals.

He's played by Jack Coleman. He would be most memorable to people as the Horned Rimmed Glasses Guy on Heroes. And it is odd to see him younger, with blonde hair, and some more meat on the bones.

Luckily, as busy as he is, he does try and help her out. Though it is mostly to try and get her to leave the country.

Even with help, Katherine is in over her head with the secret police looking for her and a community of vampires dying to meet her.

And I should add that they add a curious feature to these vampires. They have most of the bits you expect, with strength, sun aversion, pale skin, etc. But they don't have the fangs.

Instead, they have tongues...with a tiny mouth in it...?

Now it's starting to feel like a Stuart Gordon film.

It is an odd addition. It is different, true. But it comes out of nowhere and remains unremarked on.

Still, vampire lore is full of many different forms of vampires. How they act. How they look. How they feed. How they are made. And how they are stopped. Outside Hollywood conventions, anything goes.


And what these vampires are going for is Katherine. They have plans. And she is central to them.

So will her dreams and visions lead her to her doom or some sense of peace?

You will have to check this film out to find out.