Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Well, at least it paved the way for the TV series
Joss Whedon was so upset with the way things were going on the set of the movie, for which he wrote the screenplay but over which he exercised no artistic control, that he walked off the set. Indeed, this is a very hard movie to watch today after the TV series. I did, in fact, moderately enjoy the movie when it first came out. I actually appreciated and enjoyed the absurd tension contained in the title, an airhead bimbo cheerleader called upon to be her generation's vampire slayer. But viewed today, the movie isn't terribly successful, and is in fact made much worse by the genius of the television series. It isn't just a question of Sarah Michelle Gellar being more appealing in the title role than Kristy Swanson (though SMG's much smaller stature increases the paradox of a tiny girl beating up large, supernaturally strong vampires) or the movie missing all the familiar characters of the show; the movie is almost completely devoid of its own style, look, and feel. Although the TV...

In the beginning, there was Buffy the camp comedy classic
Pity poor Buffy (Kristy Swanson). She just wants to enjoy her life as a cheerleader/Valley girl when some scruffy old guy (Donald Sutherland) shows up and tells her she is "the Chosen One." You cannot believe how being a Vampire Slayer puts a crimp in a young girl's lifestyle. But when vampires (Rutger Hauer & Paul Reubens) are snacking on your classmates, what's a girl to do but grab some stakes and get down to some serious slaying. Fortunately, there is a cute guy (Luke Perry) as a bonus.

For fans of the hit television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," the original movie is certainly a mixed bag. The strengths of the film come from Joss Whedon's script, which takes the ...idea of the blonde bimbo being chased by the monster and reverses it so that she end's up kicking the monster's butt. The weaknesses of the film come from director Fran Rubel Kuzui, who plays the whole thing for camp, personified by Paul Reubens over the top turn as "Lefty" and his agonizingly long death...

Funny movie that takes a beating because of the series
This movie is funny. Unfortunately, it is dissected by the hardcore Buffy fans that were lured in by their love of the television series, and subsequently bashed.

I liked this movie back in the day, and I still enjoy it. I never watched Buffy the Vampire slayer on TV, so I don't hold a grudge against this movie as its predecessor.

If you watch this movie expecting what you saw on TV, you will be disappointed, but it's unfair to drag this movie into the mud just because it's not the same thing as the TV show.

Overall, it's a funny movie that will give you a few laughs and that you'll enjoy, as long as you don't watch it expecting Buffy from the WB series.

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