the best vampire movie you never saw

Rockula is, by far, my favorite vampire movie. In fact it is most often what I name as my favorite movie ever. This is usually baffling to people since virtually no one has seen it, and it sounds wicked dumb from the title alone. Sadly, Rockula seems doomed never to come to DVD, but you can watch it in 9 pieces on you-tube or scour your local video stores for a VHS copy like I did. Mine doesn't play anymore - I wore it out over prolly a hundred viewings. That's not an exageration at all.

I first saw it when I was 14 - my step-mother used to tape all the Dean Cameron movies for me - and it was a huge inspiration to my then-developing idea of what cool is, due in a large part to the absolutely pitch-perfect 1990 costumes. When I found out this morning that the costuming was done by Pamela Skaist - now Pamela Skaist-Levy of Juicy Couture - it all made sense.

You'll have to excuse the poor quality of these screen shots - you tube compression is ugly - but you can still get an idea why this movie stuck hard to me.



Toni Basil plays the most beautiful vampire ever - she has this 40s /what-we-now-know-as-Juicy-Couture thing going on that just slays me. That's a little white bolero w yellow puffballs, worn over a vintage cream beaded wiggle dress that we never get a great look at.



She rocks the giant bows pretty much throughout the whole film. She also raps. I'm telling you this movie is good.

Then there's Tawny Fere doing the quintessential 1990 thing



That's 50s vintage shortened in front only, with cowboy boots. She wears it with this motorcycle jacket with a Madonna painted on the back




Add this to the best shades ever file:




OK back to Toni Basil. Throughout she piles on the costume jewelry, and this version of the giant bow has morphed into a 40s floral tilt topper





here is the first thing we actually see her in - satin wiggle and a coque-feather fascinator



yeah I really love her whole thing


Giant evening bow, and piles of paste jewels. Seriously, slutty 1940s vampire mom is maybe my favorite look ever.

I tried hard to get a good cap of this dress, but it was impossible. You just have to watch the movie.. but here is the top part anyway:



those points at her hips are sort of pagoda-panniers, with a long slim brocade pencil skirt beneath. Here's the back:



This dress is art. I would love to really get a good look and know more about it.
I think my wardrobe goal in life now is to collect the pieces to be this woman.


I couldn't get any good caps of Thomas Dolby's wardrobe (yes, the She Blinded me with Science guy) but it is insane. He does this 60s Donovan at a rave thing that comes off as a sort of Seussian steampunk. Suits in insane prints, Lennon sunglasses, tiny top-hat with daisies on it, bell-bottoms, and an outstanding car:



Gotta love the car-as-fashion-accessory. Why have I been driving a soccer-mom truck for the last 10 years?

Bo Diddley is in it too, and the music is actually good, and the script is even funny. I am constantly referencing lines from this movie in my head. Really, it's a shame that rights issues are keeping this one out of public consumption. Or rather that the only way to consume it is with the crappiest picture quality in the universe. Apparently Paula Abdul was supposed to play the Tawny Fere part, and I can't help thinking if she had that this would be on DVD already. But Tawny is great in this, don't get me wrong. Everyone is very committed to the insanity here. And Toni Basil.. I'm telling you - life changing.