Vampirella is a 1996 Showtime movie produced by Roger Corman and based on the Vampirella comics.
Vampirella (Talisa Soto) is a member of a society of vampires living in peace on the planet Drakulon when the traitorous murderer Vlad escapes his trial and kills Vampirella's father before fleeing to Earth. Vampirella follows him to the planet for the sake of revenge and runs into a group of vampire hunters including Adam Van Helsing who are willing to help her with her mission.
This film provides examples of:
- Adaptational Modesty: Vampirella's famous slingshot bikini costume had to be reworked for the movie to something slightly more modest because of its known propensity for Wardrobe Malfunction.
- Alien Fair Folk: Vampires originate in the planet Drakulon.
- Big Bad: Vlad Dracula, who killed Ella's father and is responsible for Earth's vampire plague.
- The Cameo: John Landis appears as an astronaut.
- Covers Always Lie: The back cover of the movie shows the heroine in her traditional comicbook costume, concealing the fact that it was actually substituted with a less skimpier version.
- Creature-Hunter Organization: Adam Van Helsing and his father are a part of P.U.R.G.E., an organization dedicated to fighting vampires.
- Daywalking Vampire: The allergy to sunlight is a mutation that only vampires bred on Earth have. Native Drakulonians, including Vampirella and Vlad, aren't bothered by it.
- Distracted by the Sexy: When Adam van Helsing comes home, an evil vampiress is reclining on his settee and shows her naked breasts. It's the last what he sees for a while because a second one gives him a Tap on the Head. Subverted in the sense that the action probably wasn't needed for that goal.
- Game Face: Vampirella briefly changes her appearance to make a point to Adam Van Helsing, gaining red eyes and fangs in the process.Vampirella: This is what I am. [changes back] And this is who I am.
- Groin Attack: Vampirella knees Vlad in the groin after briefly feigning joining him.
- Holy Burns Evil: Subverted when Vampirella meets with the head of a Creature-Hunter Organization and he tests a crucifix on her. She points out that as a space vampire, she has no reason to fear earth-based holy figures.
- Horror Hunger: The bad guys take away Vampirella's synthetic blood vials and lock her up with her human ally Adam Van Helsing so that she'll be forced to feed on him. After she tries to resist the urge for a while, he offers himself voluntarily so that she can regain enough strength to take on Vlad on her own.
- Innocent Fanservice Girl: There's a Lampshade Hanging on Vampirella's costume when, after she saves a nerd from a mugging, he asks her why she's wearing such a revealing outfit and she just replies "Why not?". He lends her a trenchcoat to be more inconspicuous anyway.
- Kryptonite-Proof Suit: The vampiric villains used full body suits to go around in the daylight.
- Man on Fire: Vampirella disposes of Vlad by throwing a metal stake at his heart. Not to kill him, but so that the rod will attract a lightning strike, which causes him to burst into flames.
- Mugging the Monster: Vampirella stops a robbery-in-progress when she first arrives on Earth. Of course, the robbers have no idea they're dealing with a vampiress until she throws them around like a bunch of ragdolls.
- New Era Speech: Vlad gives a gratingly hamfisted one when he announces his plans for world conquest to his army of followers.
- The Night That Never Ends: Vlad's big bad plan is to use a system of satellites to create a nuclear winter on Earth, allowing vampires to hunt humanity to extinction.
- No Kill like Overkill: Vampirella beats Vlad to a pulp, impales him with the sharp end of a metal pipe, which proceeds to get struck by lighting and set Vlad on fire, before he finally plunges hundreds of feet off the dam he was fighting Vampirella on, his still-flaming body bouncing along the dam just to drive the stake in that he's truly dead.
- Rooftop Confrontation: Vampirella's final showdown with Vlad takes place on the roof of his base.
- The Sociopath: Vlad Dracula, who kills the king of his planet because he believes drinking artificial blood has made vampires soft, and then goes to Earth with his army to prey on humanity.
- Vampire Variety Pack: Discussed when Vampirella draws a distinction between herself and the evil vampires stuck on Earth. Due to being away from their homeworld Drakulon for so long, they've become a mutant substrain whose bite infects rather than kills victims and are also vulnerable to the traditional vampire weaknesses.
- Voluntary Vampire Victim: The bad guys deliberately lock up Vampirella with Adam Van Helsing so she'll have to kill him for his blood sooner or later. He eventually gives her permission to feed on him just enough so that she can break out.
- We Can Rule Together: From the moment they meet, Vlad tries to get Vampirella to join his side.
- You Killed My Father: Vampirella's motive for wanting revenge on Vlad, who killed her father on Drakulon.
