In this Movie, nobody can hear...well, anything.
Is that ableist or just wordplay?
This is Deafula, a 1975 Film that is pretty much what you'd guess.
A deaf guy is a Vampire, calls himself 'Deafula' and kills people.
There's more artsy BS- this is really a Film for Bob in many ways- but that is the summary I'm going with.
This one is both famous and also super-rare. It was saved on Archive.org, but I couldn't find it there.
My options were a very low-quality YT version or a slightly-less low-quality version elsewhere.
Peter Weschberg/Wolf did something interesting here as a Director, making a Film that has a deaf Cast, but has a Dubbed Audio Track for those of us not fluent in ASL.
I only reliably know the one phrase...and that's because it is also 'Wakanda Forever.'
To find out if this is a rare gem or not, read on...
As noted, the Film was shot and acted entirely in ASL.
Even if the print quality at this point wasn't 'squinting across the room without my glasses' at most times, I'd still be lost.
Thankfully, Signscope was made...which is just a Dubbed Audio Track.
This is all about a guy named Peter.
He has a tragic past and an issue with blood.
You see, he sometimes loses control- even as a kid, we learn- and transforms into Deafula!
To be clear, he calls himself this.
My guess is that it was to 'take the fun out of calling him that' a la Fat Amy.
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| Other jokes to make that don't involve him being Deaf though. |
Throughout the Film, we get this out of context Scenes of the titular Character killing people.
They are the most interesting parts, even if they are filler.
In other words, they are like adding bits of jalapeno pepper to your meatloaf.
 |
| Does my breath smell like spicy meatloaf? |
He eventually learns about his past in full detail from his Dad (who immediately dies) and then meets this lady that looks like the one from the Insidious Films.
You know her name- I don't need to say it.
He's apparently the son of Dracula and his Mom, but was raised by the Priest. He got monthly blood donations from his Dad to keep him normal, but they eventually stopped working.
We learn earlier from a pair of Cops that Dracula is dead, so it is a bit confusing when he then goes to see Dracula alive (as much as he ever is).
He stakes Dracula- which kills that lady for some reason- and he fully becomes a Priest.
The suspicious Cop- who seems to have inspired
the Lead from Disco Elysium- sets a trap however after finding proof that Peter is a Vampire.
His Cop buddy doesn't believe it...until Peter decides to confess...inside the Church to nobody.
The Film ends with a big old monologue from our Lead, who is talking to God.
Again- the Cops are outside and don't seem to be here for this at all.
He eventually commits a form of suicide- touching Dracula's evil ring to a crucifix- to die and escape his torment.
I just hope Deafula wasn't Catholic.
The End.
A Film with some great ideas, interesting visuals...and no Budget.
As you saw earlier, Peter becoming Deafula means a big old, silly fake nose. It just takes the drama out of it.
Speaking of that, he 'kills' one biker by telling him to drive off of a Cliff. That means driving for a good two minutes straight, stopping near a cliff and then slowly going over it...off-camera.
This Scene really gives you a good view of how this Film both works and doesn't.
Also, there's a guy who 'lost' his hands...and is clearly just hiding them in soup cans on the end of his wrist. That didn't help matters.
When it works, Deafula is an interesting Film about loss of control and occasionally interesting Vampire Scenes.
When it doesn't, it is long, droning monologues which are dubbed in by mostly-competent Voice Actors.
If there was a good print of this around, it would also help.
Hey, don't look at me like that- I'm just being honest!
A Film that is mostly more than its gimmick. Too bad the Budget was like $400, so they dragged every Dialog Scene out for eternity.
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