Research - Film: Excision vs. Twilight - The Modern Vampire?

Following my post about what our fears were in the Victorian era (fantasy monsters) vs. our fears in modern day (real life fears influenced by media) in my 'What is Horror?' post: I pose the question as to whether the Vampire concept is phasing out / used for tradition purposes, or if it is simply evolving? In my opinion, the answer is both.
I have chosen the films 'Excision' and 'Twilight' to look at the modern Vampire. I want to consider the evolution of the Vampire concept to now, how it is interpreted, and how I can use this information to create my own design.

Traditional Modern Vampire - 'Twilight':

In Twilight, Vampires are of a super-human nature and are extremely mysterious and compelling. Their Vampire features are what makes them attractive to the human - Light hazel eyes, glowing white skin, and brooding facial features. The Vampires have super-human physicality too, with super strength, speed and even mind-reading. These attributes are quite traditional to the old ideas of a Vampire, but adapted slightly so that the Vampires could fit into modern society.

Twilight - Edward Cullent. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/edward-cullen/images/30128794/title/imagens-edward-twilight-photo [Accessed 16 Feb. 2016].

Cullens at highschool. (2010). [image] Available at: http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/58/32/Lunch%20Scene2_1.jpg?itok=vhAvHIMS [Accessed 16 Feb. 2016].

Despite Vampires mostly belonging to the 'Horror' genre typically, Twilight has not gone for this angle, despite blood, death and lust still coming into the story line. This is likely due to a modern audience being immune to the horrors of a Vampire, but instead it has been made into a  film mostly targeted to preteen girls, a very different audience to that original Vampire concept intention. This is most likely due to the Vampire concept being worn out of impact, and instead has been left for a whole new take on it.

Due to my perception of the Twilight film, I do not feel that the Twilight Vampire is something that I wish for my final design to be inspired by. I do not feel that the adaptation of it's features to fit into modern society has a big enough impact for the character I am designing for, therefore I aim to distance myself from such approach.

Modern Horror Vampire - Excision

Excision is a film about a teenage girl who's dream is to become a surgeon. She suffers with mental health condition Borderline Personality Disorder and has a fetish for blood. The film features various scenes of her vivid dreams both relating to her wish to become a surgeon and her sexual interest in blood which feature of an extreme and horror nature. Although this film is not explicitly about a Vampire, the character's physical features are closely linked to that of a traditional vampire - Deathly pale complexion, lack of color to even the lips, very thin and of course has a strong link with blood as a means for boosting her as an individual.

Excision Film. (2012). [image] Available at: http://batcavereturns.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/excision.html [Accessed 16 Feb. 2016].

Excision - Dream Scene. (2012). [image] Available at: http://www.ohmygore.com/critique-excision-1049.html [Accessed 16 Feb. 2016].

The basis of this character could have easily just have been an actual vampire, but this would not have as high impact as a Horror film as the character adaptation that has been undergone. As I stated before, modern fears are often around the fear of Psychos - people who are mentally unhinged and therefore a threat to those around them. The film covers traditional vampire values: death, blood and lust, only this time it is done to shock. In the ending of the film, the character drugs her sister and a neighbour who she has captured (and hates) to do a lung transfer which she has innovated herself, killing her neighbour and also her sister who she aimed to cure from Cystic Fibrosis.
This film is set in a typical highschool movie way, which brings it closer to home for those who are watching it as the film isn't a fantasy - it is a reality.

Excision Highschool Scene. (2012). [image] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/nov/01/excision-review [Accessed 16 Feb. 2016].

As the aim of the brief is to adapt my character's description for the screen, my audience will be a modern one. Therefore, this film may be a great source of inspiration on how to use vampire-esque characteristics but still make a big impact to a modern audience. Excessive use of blood and gore with a hint of reality may make for a great modern horror design.