'70s Vampire(?) Movie I Just Saw for the First Time

Martin (one star total)
Contribution to vampire movie mythology - vampirism as mental illness and/or child abuse

You'd think that a one-star review would write itself, that out of bitterness or to get revenge I would get on my soapbox and blast this movie with every scathing criticism I could conjure. Mostly, I just want to forget it and move on. But the point of this movie review marathon is to document my experience, for good or bad, so here goes it. Sometimes it's easier to define something by what it isn't that what it is. According to my movie review guide to the right, the opposite of half an orange star and half a green would be full red, yellow and blue stars. A movie with great script, great acting and great music, but without cinematography or studio trickery could very well be just a play. But that is not Martin (1977). Martin chases his victims from room to room (not impossible to show on stage, but still) and has black and white daydreams (instantaneous costume changes are harder to pull off on stage). Cinematic technique aside, you're left with a bad script, worse acting and THE worst '70s music I've ever heard. If it couldn't work as a play, is it possible it could still make for a great movie? According to director George Romero, it's his personal favorite out of all the movies he made, and that includes Night of the Living Dead (1968), Dawn of the Dead (1978), Day of the Dead (1985), Land of the Dead (2005), Diary of the Dead (2008) and Survival of the Dead (2009). Martin proves that Romero hasn't just done zombies (he's done exactly ten movies without), but it also shows why investors haven't bent over backwards to throw bigger budgets at his projects. He's got his own way of doing things, but I still love the thick, square glasses and the gray ponytail. If you want to see what he looked like as a young man, without the glasses or ponytail, watch Martin. He does cameos in a lot of his movies but this one's a big speaking part. If you're not interested in what he has to say, avoid this movie like your life depended on it.