Thirst

Thirst (1979)

This ancient Evil is now a modern industry.

The descendant of Elizabeth Bathory is abducted by a cult of self-proclaimed supermen who achieve this state of superiority by drinking from the "blood cows" kept at the "dairy farm", and they try to get her to join them.

Date of release
1979-09-28
TMDB
6.0 / 10 (69)
Runtime
1h 35m
Genres
Horror, Romance, Thriller
Director
Rod Hardy

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Budget: $750K
  • Awards: 1 · Nominations: 0. Including: Sitges Film Festival best special effects award

Thirst is a 1979 Australian horror film directed by Rod Hardy and starring Chantal Contouri, Max Phipps, and David Hemmings. It follows a woman who is kidnapped by a blood-drinking cult of modern vampires who believe her to be a descendant of Elizabeth Báthory. It has been described as a blend of vampire and science fiction genres, influenced by the 1973 film Soylent Green as well as drawing on the folklore of Elizabeth Báthory – one of several vampire films in the 1970s to do so.

Production

Producer Antony I. Ginnane followed his then-usual practice of hiring new directors from television by giving the job of directing to Rod Hardy.

Producer Ginnane had sought out Hemmings and American Henry Silva in supporting roles to bolster the film's popularity outside Australia. Donald Pleasence was originally considered for Silva's role, but the production could not afford to hire him due to his rising popularity after the success of Halloween (1978). Chantal Contouri was cast in the film based on her performance in Snapshot (1979).

David Hemmings accepted the role of Dr. Fraser, which Ginnane said he took as he was suffering financial difficulty at the time and needed to work.

The film was shot in Melbourne. The artists' colony of Montsalvat north of Melbourne was used as the cult's headquarters.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

Recommended