The much-anticipated Japanese live-action version of the hit anime movie “BLOOD: The Last Vampire” will begin a limited engagement at the Landmark Century Theater on July 10th.

On the surface, Saya is a stunning 16-year old girl, but that youthful exterior hides the tormented soul of a 400 year-old “halfling”.

Born to a human father and a vampire mother, she has for centuries been a loner, obsessed with using her samurai skills to rid the world of vampires, all the while knowing that she herself can survive only on blood like those she hunts. When she is sent to an American military base in Tokyo by the clandestine organization for whom she works, Saya immediately senses that this may be her opportunity to finally destroy Onigen, the evil patriarch of all vampires. Using her superhuman strength and her sword, she begins to rid the base of its evil infestation in a series of spectacular and elaborate showdowns. However, it is not until she forms her first human friendship in centuries with the young daughter of the base’s general that Saya learns her greatest power over Onigen may well be her ability to make a human connection…

Renowned producers Bill Kong (CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON; HERO) and Abel Nahmias (11 COMMANDMENTS, LA BEUZE) team up with director Chris Nahon (KISS OF THE DRAGON) on this English language vampire slaying adventure, where the hope of the world rests in the hands of a beautiful young woman.

Written and directed by Michael Spierig and Peter Spierig (the Australian brothers behind UNDEAD), DAYBREAKERS stars Ethan Hawke, Michael Dorman, Willem Dafoe, and Sam Neill. Click here to visit the official site.

Chicago RedEye reporter Kyra Kyles examines the current surge in vampire popularity (and fan reaction to it) in today’s RedEye Chicago. Grab a copy at a newstand near you or READ IT HERE.

On a lighter note, Kyles is also looking for your vote for Hottest Vamp in her Undead Beauty Contest – let her know your choice HERE.

In case you haven’t noticed, pop culture is sucking more than ever. This month alone, Anna Paquin reunited with her 173-year-old, bite-prone beau in season 2 of HBO’s True Blood. Director Guillermo del Toro scored a hit with his first novel, The Strain, in which bloodthirsty predators roam New York. Scream scribe Kevin Williamson is overseeing The Vampire Diaries, a CW series set to debut in the fall, based on L.J. Smith’s novels about high school vamps. Charlaine Harris released the ninth novel in her best-selling Sookie Stackhouse series, upon which True Blood is based. And movie execs announced plans for a Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot. (That’s all in the midst of the ubiquitous paparazzi shots from the set of Twilight sequel New Moon.)…

Read the full article at EntertainmentWeekly.com

Chicago Tribune/RedEye reporter Kyra Kyles is looking for vampire fans from and living in Chicago, especially those in their 20s and 30s. If that’s you, please e-mail her at kkyles@tribune.com. Her deadline is 6/17, so DON’T WAIT.

Jenette Goldstein, the actress who gave us 2 of horror’s strongest female characters (Vasquez from Aliens and Diamondback from Near Dark), has been confirmed as a celebrity guest for Flashback Weekend 2009, reuniting with fellow Aliens/Near Dark castmate Lance Henriksen.

First in a brand new series about a Chicago graduate student’s introduction into a society of vampires.

Sure, the life of a graduate student wasn’t exactly glamorous, but it was Merit’s. She was doing fine until a rogue vampire attacked her. But he only got a sip before he was scared away by another bloodsucker, and this one decided the best way to save her life was to make her the walking undead.

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