Vampiress Review: "The Playgirls and the Vampire"

The Gist:  A traveling group of Showgirls end up stranded during a storm and take refuge in a castle with a hidden secret.

Clarification:  This is your typical 1950's era pre womens lib film that feminists would totally hate. Not only are women objectified in it but they're made downright stupid and helpless but really weren't they always in early horror?

Apparently they weren't really good showgirls as they were too poor to pay their hotel bill which resulted in them having to choose between sleeping on a bus and trespassing onto the land of a creepy castle that everyone they spoke to told them not to and whose owners didn't even want them around if it weren't for the fact that one of the girls looked like his late relative that he apparently had an incestial crush on.

(spoiler alert)  The rest of the movie basically follows the same premise of "the Vampire Happening" in which you are made to suspect the owner of the castle of being a vampire (as does the showgirls) just to find out that the vampire just looks EXACTLY LIKE HIM and the not so friendly people of the castle were trying to protect the group the entire time.   

Selling Point:  The sexy curvy high waistline figures of 1960's T&A complete with mid movie striptease.

Female Vampire Factor:  You've got one in the character Katia played by Maria Giovannini

Katia was one of the showgirls.  She was turned by accident by the vampire of the castle as he mistook her somehow for his actual target Vera (Lyla Rocco) with the explanation that Katia was wearing Vera's jacket at the time of the attack.  Once Katia is out of her grave and walking around she doesn't wear clothes for the rest of the film (as you cas see above).  She only gets one real scene about her post vamp which is the above scene where she comes into the bedroom of the groups manager Lucas and attempts to seduce him.  The scene would be kind of hot if it weren't for Alfredo Rizzo's best Laurel and Hardy scardy cat impression at the site of her fanging out.

The next time we see her is unfortunately the last time.   As mentioned the vampire actually wanted Vera all along and once Katia finds this out becomes a bit of a pain in the butt for him.  Honestly who would want an eternity of nagging and "what, am I not good enough for you?" speeches.  Anyway once she threatens to kill Vera the vampire solves the problem the best way he knew how.

Down goes Katia and the movie pretty much comes to an end after that as soon after is the fight scene between the count and the vampire over Vera.  The movie is pretty entertaining as many during this time period were even with the corn factor.  Plus you have all kinds of fun screaming at women not to go into basements, spooky woods and other places that for whatever reason they feel the need to venture to after dark.  I give the film a Vampire Beauty Rating of 4 out of 5.