Vampires of television and film

'Near Dark'

While "Lost Boys" may be the more famous vampire film of 1987, horror aficionados have come to drink lustily from the veins of Kathryn Bigelow's cult favorite, "Near Dark." Set in the arid Southwestern plains, the film features a young cowboy, Caleb Colton (Adrian Pasdar), who gets kissed by the new girl in town, the tomboyish Mae (Jenny Wright), only to discover that he's been infected by a vampire. Cajoled into joining her family, a roving posse of violent bloodsuckers, Caleb depends on Mae for survival because he can't bring himself to kill anyone. When his own family is targeted by the sadistic coven in their never-ending search for nourishment, Caleb must painfully decide where his true loyalties lie - and so must the conflicted Mae.
—Christopher Wallenberg, Globe Correspondent