User Reviews

Locally made horror thriller Blood Vessel embraces its concept and kookiness to deliver a fun throwback like experience that is sure to have genre fans excited about the proposition of seeing World War 2 citizens take it to a ship full of bloodthirsty nazi vampires.

Directed by Australian special effects/props guru Justin Dix, Blood Vessel overcomes its low-budget origins and DIY nature to end up as a final product that is both proficient as a spectacle piece and as a moody atmospheric horror that will entertain anyone willing to go along with its insanely over the top and schlocky premise.

Everything about the film is no fuss, Dix wastes little time in introducing us to a group of sea-stranded survivors that includes Nathan Philipp's Australian soldier Nathan Sinclair and Alyssa Sutherland's kindly Jane Prescott as they and their fellow raft members find potential rescue aboard a seemingly deserted Nazi minesweeper, that just so happens to be host to some extra-ordinary cargo that would rather suck your blood than say hello.

Taking it slow for the first part of the survivors searching of the ship and quest to uncover why a ship such as the one they find themselves on is devoid of human life bar a young girl, Blood Vessel eventually goes all out as we and the films group come face to face with the true horrors of what lays in store for them becomes increasingly more apparent.

With some great visual effects and make-up work, a committed cast who all "bite" into their roles, a great set courtesy of a real-life docked ship and an atmospheric score from Brian Cachia, Blood Vessel is a well-rounded package that never tries to do anything outside of its reach and while it fails to go to insanely creative levels of B-grade goodness, it remains a home grown affair that horror buffs can be proud of.

Final Say -

A fun and entertaining Australian made horror, Blood Vessel delivers exactly what its premise promises and has a lot of fun along the way in doing so.

3 neck bites out of 5

This movie isn't awful, but it's not good. Its a B-Movie and it doesn't set itself to be a masterpiece, which I can respect.

I think that the acting was a bit awkward at times, but passable and some scenes were even good. Also, the plot isn't original, but it isn't also as cliche as many other horror films. I think the setting was interesting and it had potential. Nevertheless, I must say the film fails to reach a good level simply because in many ways the director played it safe and followed cliches and tropes from other films. The ending is worst part of all, it falls under the category of "super cliches" and it is also the result of a quite big plot-hole. I think they wasted the potential to have an entraining film, the protagonists are luckluster and most of them die in stupid or anticlimactic ways. Therefore, I can't bring myself to rate this more than 5.

"It ain't about luck mate. It ain't. It's how you play the hand you're dealt."

My feelings towards this Aussie horror film are pretty much the same as a year ago when I caught it at a film festival. Generic, if slickly-competent potboiler. It feels like it was taking cues from 'Death Ship' and '30 Days of Nights'. Then trying to add its own spin to the familiar formula, but not completely landing it. By the end the pacing, script and performances probably lets it down.

Set during the end of the Second World War. A small group of survivors of a torpedoed hospital ship adrift at sea in a life raft board a passing Nazi vessel. The Germans were going to be the least of their worries, especially when they find out it homes much more of a threat than they could ever imagined. Something which rid the vessel of its original crew. It's a typical group of cliched caricatures in presenting their personalities and nationalities. The performances of the cast fall into the same pattern as the script. Not awful, just bland and mechanical in delivery.

A lot of the first half is spent on lazy scripted feuding between the characters and wandering dimly lit corridors of a ghost ship figuring out the mystery to what happened to the original crew. Too long is spent on those actions in-spite of the miraculously crafted and photographed set-designs. Very gothic in its vibes. Because when we find out about the real threat, it seems to rush through it without really establishing it properly. So it doesn't feel all that effective when it gets to the bloody carnage. It's one thing to start late, but disappointing when you think there's too little of it for your liking. The FX for the ancient Romanian vampires looked decent enough, but how they presented them in character seemed more laughable then imposing. Too exuberant. You know you're in trouble when the kid feels far more threatening then the adults. I would have been more interested in seeing what happened to the original German crew, then following this ragtag group. Especially with the interesting lore of the Nazi's curiosity in the occult/supernatural.

Blood Vessel isn't particularly unique or innovative, but it's a solid vampire low-budget horror film. Let's start with the bad. The movie spends almost a full hour and 15 minutes before the vampires start munching on people making the story drag until the action begins. Once the action did start, it was generally quick cuts and shaky cam rather than well-choreographed fights. Now for the good. The set, costumes, creature design, makeup, and practical effects were all excellent for a low-budget film. The eyes of the vampires looked so cool! I really liked the motley crew of characters and their struggle to survive. In the end, Blood Vessel wasn't an outstanding film, but I enjoyed watching it anyway!

I had really high hopes for this film after reading many comments. This film both worked and failed for me. It worked as a thriller more than a horror film, the acting was good on most parts, not all. The story was good to. The bad, why Tue bickering between characters, this to me fell right from the start and got on my nerves. There was no surprise at the end, so this was a bit of a let down foe me. The main problem I had was the film was slow in some parts and I found myself getting bored waiting for something to happen. Nearly an above average film but not this time.

The offerings of the considerably small niche of horror movies set during a war or another are always welcome in my world, despite most of them being lacklusters - "Blood Vessel", for the most part, is exactly that. Coming from Justin Dix, a special effects aficionado turned writer and director, "Blood Vessel" offers entertainment in the form of 80's best aesthetical traditions, and very little besides that. For extra bonus points, one must take this shlock horror not seriously.

It is 1945 and the middle of the ocean. A real ragtag team - including a tough but righteous Russian sniper, a moronic Englishman, an American cook, an Australian soldier, a useless captain, an all-motherly Alyssa Sutherland, and more - are hopelessly drifting on a raft to a certain death, but a chance at survival presents itself in a form of an eerie, silently drifting German minesweeper. As we tag along our indubitably stereotypical team of heroes on the mysterious Nazi ship, the excursion takes us through ~40 minutes of slow building of a shallow story that has frequent issues, before it kicks the gear into ~40 minutes of a tad bit more entertaining horror feast - none of which is scary. Frankly, "Blood Vessel" is almost entirely void of tension, and the turns of the plot are more likely to elicit a dry response rather than a surprising one.

One thing that "Blood Vessel" has going for it, is the fact that its maker knows and loves practical special effects. Though a low budget feature and playing out as such, among a little confusing action scenes there are mildly satisfying 80's kind of gore and make-up galore. Set designs are also quite fine, but cinematography's uneven and the original score - a highly typical one, not counting the chanting Nazi occult jingles. However, perhaps the most awesome part of "Blood Vessel" is comedy value. Some of it is intentional, some is not, but either way Teplov (Alex Cooke), Sinclair (Nathan Philipps), and even the villain will make up for some amusement, especially if You're not watching it alone.

The lovers of modern shlocks reminiscent of the 80's, and fans of horror movies set in wartimes, such as myself, can try and find some fun in "Blood Vessel", preferably with a friend and a beer. My rating: 4/10.

My expectations were kind of low, so I was surprised in a good way for a change. The acting was ok and also were the effects, it has a nice atmosphere wich overall made this movie a nice experience as for myself . I enjoyed this hour and a half, way more than I thought I would, so for me is a solid 6, for these quarantine days.

I really had high hopes for this. I love Nazi horror movies and shelled out $5 to rent this on-demand.

Five minutes in, I started having doubts and an hour in, I just wanted it to be over.

It starts with some text about how at the end of the war, the Nazis tried to sink allied vessels and kill all survivors. It then cuts to a life raft full of... survivors. Sigh.

Said life raft is floating on completely calm and flat water (the North Atlantic should be really rough). The survivors have no exposure damage from sun, salt, and look like they were told to fall asleep by the director. There's a woman, a black guy, an Australian, an even a Russian. LOL yeah, as if a ship would have been carrying one of everything... so bad.

The Russian soldier speaks perfect English. Because clearly Russian peasant soldiers are very worldly. He just omits "a" and "an" for extra-dramatic effect. Wow!

The black guy mouths off the white guys, because clearly that's what people did back in 1945.

I can go on and on, but that's just the first 10 minutes. The dialogue is cringe-worthy and painful.

Clearly this isn't a high-budget production, but the vampires look like Mickey Mouse with comically stupid fangs.

Don't waste your time. Go watch Dead Snow 2, Shock Waves, our Outpost instead.

I had not even heard about this 2019 movie titled "Blood Vessel" prior to sitting down here late in 2020 to watch it. I happened to stumble upon the movie by random chance, and I was intrigued by the movie's cover. So of course I gave the movie a chance.

And I will say that "Blood Vessel" actually turned out to be a nice surprise of a movie. Sure, it was predictable, but that didn't really play much of a factor, because the overall storyline was good and provided wholesome entertainment.

The storyline is one that draws you in right from the very beginning as writers Justin Dix and Jordan Prosser actually managed to churn out something that had that old school classic horror feel to it, and at the same time managing to be something up to date.

Not only was the storyline interesting and entertaining, but the movie also had an interesting character gallery to play out the movie's storyline on the screen. And it definitely helped that they had great talents to portray these characters.

I was impressed with the special effects, especially the Strigoi creature effects, because they definitely looked nice. There was a very bestial aura to the way these shapeshifting creatures were brought to life on the screen.

While the events portrayed in the movie took place aboard a boat only, and the movie had a relatively small cast, then it was actually pulled off quite nicely. The setting worked quite well in favor of the movie, and you definitely feel right there alongside with the characters aboard the boat.

As it turned out, then I was actually more than surprised with "Blood Vessel"; I was genuinely entertained. This was a much welcomed addition to the horror genre. So thumbs up to director Justin Dix for his accomplishments here.

My rating of "Blood Vessel" is a six out of ten stars.

"Blood Vessel" is Mystery - Horror movie in which we watch a group of people being in a life raft after the destruction of their hospital ship by a torpedo. They find an abandoned ship and they take control of it. There some strange events start to occur and everything change when they find the source of them.

Since I did not have high expectations from this movie I was not disappointed by it. It had a simple but interesting plot that is combined very well with a nice direction which was made by Justin Dix. The interpretations of the cast were the biggest problem of the movie because they were very poor and they drugged the movie down. Only the interpretations of Alex Cooke who played as Alexander Teplov and Nathan Phillips who played as Nathan Sinclair were good but they were not enough. Finally, I have to say that "Blood Vessel" is not a horrible movie but not even a masterpiece, it's another average horror movie.

The title, 'Blood Vessel' is a pun. One, the film is set on a ship, and two, on board are monsters that like their drinks served fresh from the jugular. Unfortunately, this is the smartest thing about this cheesy horror flick, which could be described as the Australian equivalent of Ghost Ship meets Evil Dead.

The film begins with seven people on a boat. How did they get there? Don't know. Did I mention this was WWII? Awaiting rescue, and embracing death, the band come across a Nazi ship and see this as an opportunity to trade up. Clambering aboard, they discover the original crew have mysteriously vanished. What ensues is a talk-fest, broken up with short scenes of exploration and discovery, for over half of the film's run-time. To say this is a slow-burn would be an understatement. The major addendum with this is our merry band...

Robert Taylor joins us for no longer than a minute as the titular captain. I hope it was worth it, mate. Next is Sinclair (Nathan Phillips), a dinkum Aussie bloke, who has suffered as a POW the last three years, with a high tolerance for pain and genuine leadership skills. Alex (Alex Cooke) is the Russian sniper, who is as suave as he is tough, swallowing back pain like it's a shot of tequila. Jackson (Christopher Kirby) is a former engineer, forced to enlist as a cook because the color of his skin, who has had a hard time trying to be taken seriously by his superiors. And that ladies and gentleman, rounds out the only likable members of the crew.

The remaining half of the characters are unlikable. The fact we spend so much time with them, does not help matters. Prescott (Alyssa Sutherland) is a nurse with a dark past, who is a bit too formal and polite for my tastes, whilst hypocritically harboring biases against others. Bigelow (Mark Diaco) is arrogant and obnoxious, with a strong desire to live, no matter the cost. Diaco's occasional fake American accent was passable, but half of the time he sounded Australian. Then there's Faraday (John Lloyd Fillingham), an antiquities dealer and code-breaker, with a penchant for cowardice and lying.

The audience's ability to like a character is usually traced back to how the film treats death. In the case of Blood Vessel, there is usually no empathy at all. In fact, often death is just followed by a joke. The humor isn't awful, nor is the dialogue cringe-inducing, but it sure is cheesy, and contains enough cliched one-liners, I wouldn't have been surprised if it had been penned by Skip Woods. This silliness would be almost charming, if the film didn't take itself so seriously.

As the group continue to explore the ship, tension builds, as issues of trust, rank and racism take their toll. None of these themes however are given the attention they deserve. Not long into the narrative, the band come across a little girl (Ruby Isobel Hall), alongside a collection of artefacts. These in particular were well crafted by the film's design department. When the group finally realize what happened to the Nazis, chances are, they'll wish they never left their little dinghy.

The movie is potentially at its best when it really leans into its stylistic design. In one scene, the lens is coated by the blood of a monster. In another, the screen changes color as evil is unleashed. True, both have been done before in other, more competent horror flicks (Dog Soldiers, Dead Birds, etc), but Blood Vessel needed to do more to separate it from similarly innumerable C-grade schlock. Other times, the movie is incredibly predictable, recreating scenes from other movies. There is one moment that will have you reminiscing of James Cameron's Aliens.

Perhaps Blood Vessel was designed as a homage to '80s horror. If so, it ought to have reveled more in the violence; this is a movie that should have had a Tarantino level of gore; to really embrace a sensationalistic aesthetic. It could have equally been a homage to classic movie monsters, and if so, a greater level of subtlety was required. This is one of the issues I have with the movie; there seems to be so many inspirations that are literally pulling the feature in all directions, and yet it never seems to really embrace any one of them. As for the creature designs, one of them, literally, looks like a combination of a pig and a fan-boy, cosplaying his favorite Buffy antagonist. Despite the almost laughable design choices, again, the film needed to lean into this goofiness and provide more screen time for the monsters, rather than instead being so somber.

Creature lore is briefly explored for the audience's benefit, while the diegetic sounds are nothing to rave home about. There is a score, but to be honest; I didn't notice it until over an hour in, which either means it was innocuous, or my brain tuned it out for safety reasons. The combination of violins and drums does add an almost gothic tone to the movie, increasing the sense of mystery.

Moreover, the way the film was framed works against the narrative at times, with details, that may be considered pivotal or interesting, partially out of sight or out of focus. Other times, something happens off screen that we are not made aware of. If this were done to hide budgetary constraints, it is acceptable, though it often seems to have been added to cheaply raise tension, which is unsatisfactory.

At the end of the day, Blood Vessel is a sponge, that has absorbed plenty of inspiration from elsewhere, but has not appropriately learned from any of it. The film's tone is all over the place. Unable to strike a balance between dead serious and silly, this is a movie that really needed more humor and insanity to truly stand out. Instead, it is largely forgettable, because we've seen this too many times before.

Yet another horror flick ruined by horrible characters. It blows my mind why these movie writers keep writing such stupid and inept people into these stories. Complete waste of everyones time but the industry keep churning them out. Stupid AF.

Australian movie industry seems to have enjoyed its involvement in a cult Finnish sci-fi satire "Iron Sky" so there's no wonder they ultimately decided to solely shoot their own 'alternate history' flick. "Blood Vessel" is a fun thrill ride fueled with nations conflict ('...and Australia? I ain't even know you people were in the war', desperately shouts Bigelow, an American cook stuck on the Nazi ship) and ancient East Europe evil (no, it's not Teplov, perhaps the finest film's character of Russian descent).

The screenplay doesn't offer much to reflect on and instead fully relies on visuals and actors. Both are indeed solid for an indie level. Nathan Phillips and Alex Cooke had some chemistry which was exteremy important when there's nothing but people talking (more often arguing, truth be told), the rest of the cast, excluding Robert Taylor's unnecessary cameo, also did their best to make their dull characters looks as alive as possible until they're dead. The aforenamed evil also lacks any signs of premise but doesn't make it a big deal when it's finally on loose. We've seen 'Nazis love occult stuff' trope for so many times that there's even no time to ask what the hell does it do here in the first place.

Summing it up, Justin Dix and Jordan Prosser had made a decent B-movie that works in its own cheap way and doesn't leave the prepared audience expecting more than "Blood Vessel" is capable to give.

Please don't, just dont. Worst vampire's I've ever seen. Just watch 30 days of night again, soooo much better.

When a script is this unoriginal, I can't believe the film got made. It's literally ideas pulled from already made films, which is why it feels like it was made in the 90's. The only thing going for it is the prosthetic FX and the production design. Besides that it's a mess.

A very unlikely group of allied forces survivors run into a seemingly deserted Nazi ship in the middle of Atlantic Ocean, only to find... stirgoi. The poster and the name tells you what this is so I don't it is a spoiler when I say vampires.

Despite plot holes the size of Donald Trump's ego and budget the size of his.... brain, this movie is campy fun, if you set your expectations low.

High production values given the budget, a decent ensemble makes this surprisingly enjoyable, even if the ending is predictable. So, stop complaining and just enjoy watching for Alex Cooke's Teplov steal the show from his higher billed co-stars. A star will be born soon, I think.

It's really about a 5 to 6.5 star film, but due to the fact that people will rate it 1-4 ...I feel a duty to raise that..

If you're a horror fan, you're aware that anything above 4.5 on IMDB is very decent, and 5-6 is gonna be pretty good.

The film was done well! Budget, & effects were great. The setting was fantastic, though the ship wasn't explored much, which gave a sense of it being small. The movie with with physical props/monsters over CGI which was a great move, the monsters looked pretty solid! Not all cheesy or anything.

The cast was a bit odd, how an Aussie, American, Brit, & a Soviet ended up in the same raft...no clue. Also, why does it seem the black fella has so much pull...? He would've been a cook, so I'm gonna chalk this up to some SJW nonsense.

I do fully agree with another reviewer that this would've been really waaaay better as a horror comedy, it had the perfect set up for one too!!!

All in all, it was a solid hour and a half! And I really wish people would stop being movie snobs with these films...why??

1) It's an ORIGINAL concept (you know what I mean...) & the reason these are rarely ever made is because when someone takes the risk of making one, everyone bashes it and doesn't support it!!! So why do you keep asking why we only see remakes and Marvel films...? Because you people walk all over anything different.

2) it's a lower budget horror film about vampire/zombies. What do you EXPECT? I'm asking honestly...what do you expect? Plot holes? Really!? Yes there's gonna be plot holes...how about the fact that these monsters don't exist for a plot hole...? Just enjoy the film!!!

With all this said I believe it is really a 6.5 star film, but I believe it deserves the 8 due to my thoughts above.

If you enjoy monster horror...give it a go.

It does not have a high budget money dumped or jump scare what it has is something to keep you watching and not bored and that is a + for any movie for me and that's my opinion. it's a mix of emotion,horror,thrill and sacrifice all in one and its good.

It's not too bad as a creepy creature feature on a deserted ship. The movie has similar vibes to Aliens, the Thing, Pitch Black, Underwater but is not better than any of them as it doesn't have a big budget so the movie focuses on character development and creepy atmosphere which is enjoyable for the suspense. Note it's not an action movie. The production and set design is well done. But once the vampire shows up it's just a guy in a Halloween mask so it's old school practical effects as CGI is expensive.

So the setup is great but the last half is a bit of a letdown. Still it's a fun creepy watch especially if you're into the Nazi occult thing. Overlord takes the top prize in that genre and Ghosts of War is also very good. I liked both of them a lot. But lower your expectations and this is watchable.