‘Unusual Vampires’ come to Pera Film

ISTANBUL

Between Oct. 31 and Nov. 29, Pera Film is set to celebrate Halloween with the strangest undead beings: Unusual Vampires.

Tales of supernatural beings consuming the blood or flesh of the living have been found in nearly every culture around the world for many centuries. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the first appearance of the English word vampire (as vampyre) in English from 1734 in a travelogue titled “Travels of Three English Gentlemen,” published in The Harleian Miscellany in 1745.

The notion of vampirism has existed for millennia. Cultures such as the Mesopotamians, Hebrews, Ancient Greeks, and Romans had tales of demons and spirits, which are considered precursors to modern vampires.

The charismatic and sophisticated vampire of modern fiction was born in 1819 with the publication of “The Vampyre” by John Polidori. The story was highly successful and arguably the most influential vampire work of the early 19th century.

Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula is remembered as the quintessential vampire novel and provided the basis of the modern vampire legend.

Unusual Vampires brings together films that explore the atypical vampire character. The selection salutes certain cult classics such as Jaromil Jireš’s “Valerie and Her Week of Wonders,” David Cronenberg’s 1977 film “Rabid” and Guillermo del Toro’s “Cronos.”