As Spooky Season gets into full swing, parents might be looking for a film that’s fresh and slightly sophisticated to watch with their kids. It’s good to a have something to mix with the rotation that might be a bit education without being educational. Little Vampire is an animated film from France which allows you a chance to bring a little international scare to the TV screen.
A little boy and his mother are being chased down by one a horseback rider who is upset that the mother didn’t love her like he expected. The mother makes a plea as she’s being lowered into a pit with an ominous creature in the bottom. This causes a pirate ship to sail down from the sky to rescue them. The skeleton captain offers a chance to survive, but they get turned into vampires as part of the bargain. The upset wannabe lover discovers what the creature in the pit has in store for him. The little vampire at first thinks it is cool that he will never have to grow old. But what he doesn’t count on is in order to be protected, they have to live hidden in a house beneath a dome. After 300 years, the Little Vampire wants to make new friends. He sneaks out. But as he finds a pal, he also runs into a familiar face.
Little Vampire is an action packed animated spooky feast. The swashbuckling supernatural element adds a lot to the tale of a kid just wanting to have a pal. The movie is based on a series of graphic novels. The character design ads to the action feel of the tale as the Little Vampire zips all over the screen.
The movie was made in France so the French audio track is the native tongue of Little Vampire. There is an English audio dub so you don’t have to frighten the kids immediately by making them read subtitles. But remember that at some point, your child is going to have to take a foreign language in high school to get a few credits to get accepted in college. Why not use Halloween as a good time to introduce a foreign language to the kids? It’s a trick that might turn into a treat. Little Vampire is a full size candy bar in your Halloween bag.
The video is 2.35:1 anamorphic. The animated action looks sharp in the 1080p resolution. The audio is both the original French and the English dub soundtracks in 5.1 DTS-HD MA Surround and 2.0 DTS-HD Stereo. The film is subtitled in English in case you want to run the original French version and learn the language.
Trailer (1:57) is all about the friendship and pirate related adventures.
DVD with all the features of the Blu-ray.
Shout! Factory presents Little Vampire. Directed by Joann Sfar. Screenplay by Sandrina Jardel and Joann Sfar. Starring Camille Cottin, Louise Lacoste, Jean-Paul Rouve, Claire de la Rue du Can, Alex Lutz and Quentin Faure. Rated: Unrated. Running Time: 82 minutes. Release Date: October 5, 2021.
