Jakob's Wife

This is one of those movies where I'm glad a friend showed it to our group and I was completely blind about it. Obviously if you've seen the poster here, you're clued in on what the subject matter is, but it's interesting that the movie isn't super blatant about it. The first third of the movie is kind of a tense paranormal thriller, and it gives you plenty of room to make up your own assumptions about what's going on.

Then the reveal hits -- and the tone of the whole movie shifts to something a little more tongue-in-cheek, complete with Evil Dead amounts of blood spray. Something that initially appears buttoned-up and serious turns out to be pretty fun, all told. Some of the more complex effects look a little cheap, but the movie doesn't take itself too seriously in the end, so it's fitting with the spirit of things.

I thought it was pretty good, and I liked the fact the Minister was more than just a walking stereotype. Always gotta have a little dimensionality to your characters, and the range of his character fits with the range of the movie itself.

'Jakob's Wife' can't really decide what it wants to be. It goes from a very subtle first act, to an extremely bloody and gory second act, to a comedy third act - almost to the point of becoming slapstick.

This is a very different vampire movie and will be for an acquired taste only. The film's highlight and draw card is undoubtedly screen legend Barbara Crampton, who was excellent as Anne Fedder. I'm not sure whether one could refer to her as the film's protagonist, but she is the lead, and magnificent! She also looks amazing. She plays a woman trapped in a marriage to a minister who repulses her. Once bitten by a vampire - which happened off-screen for some reason, by the way - she undergoes a transformation. This was very exciting, scary and funny. The first act was highly effective with a haunting score.

Unfortunately the film itself transformed, as it turns out. As mentioned, the second act became very bloody; and I mean bucket loads of blood squirting from victims. Unrealistic and overdone, to say the least. It was still entertaining in a way, but it then goes from this gory act to a humorist final act. The creature was scary in the beginning but in the third act he looked like a creature more suited for a comedy - as if a spoof from other vampire movie creations. The humor during the first act was really funny, but it became a bit overbearing during the final act. What a pity.

Still, this is not a bad movie and deserves a watch if you're into this genre - and a MUST if you're a Barbara Crampton fan.

Would I watch it again? I doubt it.

Barbara Crampton chews every bit of scenery in this film and takes us on a journey from repressed housewife to liberated vampire vixen. I thoroughly enjoyed the indie vibe, old school special effects, stellar cast, and nods to Salem's Lot. It felt like a labor of love and Barbara Crampton really gave it her all in every frame she was in. Jakob's Wife has a lot of heart and is a great little film that will provide you with laughs, gore, and plenty of Barbara slaying the screen.

And succeeds in almost combining an otherwise dull vampire tale with a story of feminine liberation from marital woes. Crampton, one of the last legitimate scream queens, goes for the the gold. The core problem remains that horror films are supposed to provide thrills in otherwise dull lives. Today reality provides all the horror anyone can stand.

When I sat down to watch the 2021 horror movie "Jakob's Wife" from writers Kathy Charles, Mark Steensland and Travis Stevens, I wasn't sure what I was in for here. Well, aside from it being a horror movie and it was something with vampires, from the movie's cover/poster.

But of course, I opted to sit down and watch "Jakob's Wife" given the fact that it was a horror movie that I hadn't already seen, plus it also had horror icon Barbara Crampton on the cast list. And I have always enjoyed her movies since back in the 1980s when seeing her in "Re-Animator", "From Beyond" and other such classic horror movies.

The storyline told in "Jakob's Wife" was actually good, and it provided a nice, new approach to the vampire genre. So the writers definitely managed to churn out something that broke the usual stereotypical formula that is often used in vampire movies. And it was a storyline that proved entertaining and enjoyable from beginning till end, and the pacing of the movie was nicely constructed.

The special effects were good, and it certainly was nice to see that writers Kathy Charles, Mark Steensland and Travis Stevens took a Nosferatu approach to the appearance of the vampires in the movie.

"Jakob's Wife" does have a good ensemble of actors and actresses, with the likes of Barbara Crampton and Larry Fessenden. It was also nice to see Bonnie Aarons in the role of The Master, as she really portrayed that character rather well.

If you enjoy vampire movies then "Jakob's Wife" is certainly well worth giving a chance. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie from director Travis Stevens.

My rating of "Jakob's Wife" lands on a six out of ten stars.