Sucker: The Vampire is a very interesting Troma pickup with a really cool concept. The producer/writer/director Hans Rodionoff is working on an adaptation of the comic book Man-Thing currently, which is understandable because of Sucker's manic rock and roll comic book style.
The story follows Anthony(Yan Birch), the lead singer of the band Plasma. They're just like most rock groups, with groupies all over them. However, instead of taking their groupies back home for sex, they suck their blood. That's right, the band's full of vampires, using their band as a disguise for being vampires. But as the band gets bigger, Anthony wants it to end, so their secret never makes it out. This is a good idea, since they have a descendant of Van Helsing on their case.
Anthony has an assistant named Reed(Alex Erkiletian) who helps him dispose of his bloodsucked groupies, due to his job at a hospital. However, what Anthony doesn't know is that Reed likes to dress up the corpses and have sex with them. When the Van Helsing descendant pays Anthony a visit and attempts to kill him, he bites her on the neck. While she dies, she hands Anthony a bottle of pills used by AIDS patients. Now, Anthony is infected with the virus and Reed must help him, even though Reed too has the virus, due to his necrophiliac ways.
The film has a very interesting concept: a vampire catching AIDS from one of his victims. Added to the mix are lively characters and artistic lighting. Unfortunately, a few of the actors are not exactly that talented. Alex Erkiletian is hilarious as Reed, who adlibbed some very brilliant scenes for the film. One really bad addition would be the character Reed's obsession with attempting to sing kareoke, leading to some of the most obnoxious scenes of the film. But honestly, when it comes to independent films such as Sucker, you really should try to ignore these short-comings and enjoy the story, which is written rather well. Overall, Sucker: The Vampire is a very entertaining film.
You can find Sucker: The Vampire for about $10 at most stores on DVD. For that low of a price, I definately suggest you check it out. It's a great newer Troma pickup with a good soundtrack, featuring The Mr. T Experience and Groovie Ghoulies. Would make a great double feature with Sergio Lapel's Drawing Blood. Also, listen to the DVD commentary, which features a hilarious impression of Lloyd Kaufman by Alex Erkiletian.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
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