I’m obviously a big fan of Yoshiaki Kawajiri. Maybe it’s his direction or stylish action and dramatic art style. I’ve already done an article of his classic anime, Ninja Scroll, and now we’re on to Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust. If you like Ninja Scroll, then this movie is right up your alley. My love of Yoshiaki Kawajiri is probably why Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust had more of impact on me than the first Vampire Hunter D movie.
After rewatching this movie again, I spotted so much toxic masculinity that I nearly wanted to go hunt some demons myself! Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is the perfect flick to fight your toxic masculinity with more toxic masculinity!
Going old-school with the VHS trailer!
PLOT:
D is a Dhampir, which is a half human, half vampire. Just like Blade, D has all of the vampire’s strengths and little of their weaknesses, outside of heat syndrome when he has been in the sun too long. D is your typical stoic, masculine anime protagonist that has a force of will to get the job done at all costs. He travels a post apocalyptic world aiding humans against monsters that stalk the night. He’s helped by the symbiotic Left Hand which plays as the comic relief but serves a purpose.
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust begins with a woman named Charlotte being kidnapped by a powerful vampire named Meier Link. Awesome name aside, Charlotte’s father hires D to find her one way or the other, meaning do not bring back a vampire. Charlotte’s brother hires the Marcus Brothers, who are a band of powerful mercenaries of Nolt, Kyle, Grove, Leila and led by Borgoff, to find her.
This is what makes Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust so similar to Ninja Scroll as the cast of characters are as diverse and impactful. While D and the Brothers hunt Meier Link, they run into a pack of zombies and vampires left behind to hold them off and we get to see the protagonists in action. The visceral violence in the action scenes are what make Yoshiaki Kawajiri films such an adrenaline ride to watch.
When D finally does catch up to Meier, we learn Charlotte went with the vampire of her own free will, which begins to add intrigue to the plot.
To add more to the wonderful cast, Meier hires the Barbarois mutants who set a trap for the Marcus Brother hunters. Typical of a Kawajiri film, we get our first gut punch as Nolt is killed by Benge, a mutant who can manipulate shadows…okay, now that I think about it, this is really like Ninja Scroll since that film too had a shadow manipulator.
D is relentless in his pursuit and visits the Barbarois to ask them to stop protecting Meier, but they have a code that they follow. They vow to attack D knowing he will kill many of them before he dies but the battle in interrupted when Grove arrives in his ghost form.
One of the main reasons why Anime and Manga are eating the west’s lunch culturally is that they are able to quickly make you empathize with even the side characters. Grove is a feeble, dying but caring man. He has to be injected with a serum just to be able to use his power. You can tell each use of the power is killing him but he presses on.
D hurts Grove when he defeats his ghost but is ensnared by Benge’s shadow spell. This is when Left Hand comes in handy and he uses his power to suck up the spell and frees D.
Borgoff and Kyle get their revenge for Nolt and we finally see that the Barberois can be defeated. Yet, Leila goes rogue and chases after D. While in town, she is confronted by the local sheriff whose she slickly tricks into going after D. Vampires are hated by pretty much everyone, so even helpful Dhampir’s like D draws ire.
D was in the town buying another horse when he was confronted by the sheriff and his deputies but is saved by the horse seller when he recalls a story of children being saved by a Dhampir. Now an old man, the horse seller was one of those children and he pulls a gun on the sheriff to allow D to leave. This is the kind of deep storytelling the west needs to remember how to do again because you get how honorable D is without him having to say it.
This is “show don’t tell.”
Eventually we learn that Leila hates vampires because her and Grove’s mother was kidnapped by one and killed her father when she returned. She was then stoned to death by the town’s people. Of course, this type of trauma had an impact on her but her and D eventually form a bond and she make a pact with him that whoever lives must visit the others grave because she feels there will be no one to mourn her passing.
Why You Should Watch:
I’ll leave the review off here as Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust descends to some seriously tragic stuff if you’ve grown fond of the characters. Even Meier is not what he seems and your opinion of him may change as you get more information.
I’m not up on all the latest anime, but if it came out in the 80s or 90s, then the ending was going to be epic and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust does not disappoint. There is a point where it actually might tug on your heartstrings, but if you’re a man then those tears would just turn to oppression, so hold them back masculinely as you watch this movie.
You can watch the full length Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust movie for free on YouTube here.
****
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English (US) · 