My first official day of vacation was on Friday, Oct. 25^th, and I headed down to St. Louis to witness something truly special, that probably has never happened before. And that was to watch some Jess Franco films in a theater . . . that once was an actual church! How could one pass that up!?!? Just thinking what Franco might have thought about these screenings and where, makes me smile.

My friend and Discover the Horror podcast co-host, Aaron AuBuchon, and Webster University, along with Severin Films, and Oscarbate Film Collective (John Dickson & Will Morris), hosted a 3-day event called Francomania: Vampyros Francos at the Webster University Film Series, where they would screen three different films from Spanish director Jess Franco, all dealing with the subject of vampires: Count Dracula (1970), Vampyros Lesbos (1971), and Dracula, Prisoner of Frankenstein (1972). There was another screening of Franco’s Mucuba Sexual at this cool little place called The Arkadin, which looks like they screen all sorts of cool titles there.

Once I got into the city, I met with Scott Bradley from Hellbent for Horror that flew in from the West Coast for the event as well. Before too long it was time to head over to Webster for the screening the screening Count Dracula (1970). Starring Christopher Lee, Herbert Lom, Jack Taylor, and the one and only Klaus Kinski, it was the version that Lee tended to like the most because it probably has the most faithful portrayal of the Count.

Matt Harding, Severin’s amazing Regional Warrior was there with a little pop-up shop, offering up plenty of Jess Franco titles, among some other offerings from Severin.

Before the film started, Mr. AuBuchon got up to say a few words about the event, about the film, and about Franco himself. Now, before we get any further, let me say my own words about Franco. I would not call myself a HUGE Franco fan, but I do love a few of his films, but I think I admire the man more than that. A lot of film fans will claim that he’s usually producing crap films, with ultra-low budgets, and with what seems like little or no talent. And with that, I would have to disagree. Sure, there are times when he had no budget, but that never stopped his passion for making films. I think Franco is one of those creatives that could border on insanity and genius at the same time. Even at some of his strangest films, or ones that I personally don’t care for, I still have to give him credit for what he was doing.

Now, folks like Aaron, Will and John from Oscarbate, and even Severin CEO David Gregory, will defend Franco and his work with as much passion as Franco himself had for his filmmaking. So maybe there is much more to see that us causal fans see. And right there lies the beauty of cinema. Now whether or not Franco gave two shits about what people think about his films, he cared about making them, no matter what. Maybe, just maybe, there is more to his films than the super-zooms, nudity galore, and crazy characters. As the Nietzsche saying goes, staring into the abyss long enough, you might see something staring back. So again, I will give him credit for that.

Back to the screening.

Before the film started, there was an introduction by David Gregory, which was recorded while he was at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain. Just as he was stating that he was the perfect person to talk about Franco, into the frame walks Franco scholar Stephen Thrower himself, taking over the intro with his thoughts on Franco! What a great surprise that was, and really fun.

While the Count Dracula is a wee bit slow, it has such a great cast, and seeing Lee portray the character a little closer to the novel, especially in how he looked, which was very cool. But it was a great start to the event.

Saturday started with a visit to a classic diner called Tiffanys. I absolutely love places like this. Small, sometimes cramped and crowded, and most likely not a Michelin rated restaurant, but where you can probably get a reasonably priced meal, and it will taste pretty damn good. And that is exactly what we experienced here. It reminded me of years ago, when these kinds of diners were located in just about every town, big or small. A hangout for the locals that would come in for a quick breakfast or just a cup of coffee. Really took me back. I ordered what is called The Slinger, which is a local thing, not just from this place, but everywhere, though they tend to be a bit different. Mine was eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns, coated in chili. And I mean COATED. While it might not be the healthiest of choices, it was pretty damn tasty. And of course, after our chef said that he makes the pies every day, I had to try a piece of the cherry pie and yes, it was pretty damn good as well! Next time I’m in town, I’m definitely making a stop here.

After we filled our bellies with some chow, it was time to head to All Star Tattoo to get some crazy Franco tattoos! Now let me back up a bit. In the early planning stages of this Franco event, it was suggested that we should all get a Franco tattoo to commemorate the occasion. Aaron was going to have a few simple and quick designs whipped up that we could choose from, that way since we’d all be walk-ins, they’d be quick and relatively cheap. At least that was the plan.

When it came to the designs, it seemed like a few wanted something specific, something that reminded them of Franco and his work. But those designs didn’t have the same feeling to some of the rest of us. Aaron designed an eyeball with a zoom lens for the pupil, while Matt Harding’s original design basically had a woman’s naughty bits in glaring view on a TV! I guess that is what sets tattoos apart, because each has their own meaning to that particular individual. I knew Severin had put out a Franco enamel pin some time ago, so I grabbed that artwork and decided to use that, minus the naked female corpse on the side. Scott decided on something similar to Aaron’s, except inside a film strip. So, these quick tattoos because most of the morning! When it was all said and done, I had no regrets and still don’t. The 4 of us did something special to really remember that weekend, as well as showing how important the event was, to us at least.

After making a quick stop at a bookstore, we headed to Webster that evening for round two: Vampyros Lesbos. Now I have seen this film a couple of times by now and while not a huge fan of it, I do find myself admiring it more and more. Yes, it is a bit artsy for me, but that is just my own person take on it.

But the best part of the evening was the great intro by Will Morris and the discussion between him and Aaron after the screening. While there weren’t a ton of people there, the ones that did come had some great and very interesting questions and comments. Once again, it was clear that there is a lot more going on in a Franco film that most will ever give credit for.

On Sunday, we headed over to The Arkadin Theater to see Mucuba Sexual, which I had never seen before. The Arkadin is a small little place, with seating for maybe a couple dozen, but looking at their schedules, I know I’d be at this place a lot if I was a local. Now, the film we were watching really is a remake of Franco’s own Vampyros Lesbos, except with no vampires. But there is a lot of sex. A LOT of sex. While I wouldn’t rate this too high up in my personal favorites of the director’s work, I do find it interesting that he would remake his own film, though changed a bit, a little over a decade later. I guess it shows that Franco still had some more elements in that story that he wanted to explore.

In the evening, we headed back to Webster for the last film screening, Dracula, Prisoner of Frankenstein, which is one of my favorites, only because it’s so bat-shit crazy. Pardon the pun. With very little dialogue, and Howard Vernon’s Dracula seeming having a permanent expression on his face, and a random werewolf showing up out of nowhere, one could easily look at this and say it’s a jumbled mess. At face value, I would probably find it hard to argue that point. But with Franco, you never know what was going on in that brain. Maybe this was his attempt to make his own version of the classic Universal monsters, legends and legacies be damned. You can’t watch this and ponder on some of the decisions he made, and what possible reasons for them.

Isn’t that the beauty of art? Looking at something and seeing what it means to you? Wondering why it makes you think what it does? And what was the creator’s intention? And really, if that creator even cared what you thought of it!

Also, there were also the special t-shirts we had made up for this event, featuring the incredible work of Don England. While some might not think it’s appropriate, I think Franco fans can see the sheer genius of this design! I know we do!

We do still have a few shirts available for purchase if you’re interested. Just email me with what size you’re looking for and I can tell you if we have it. They $20 with $5 for postage.

After the film, since it was pretty late, Scott and I decided to tempt fate and find a 24-hour diner to grab some food before we called it a night. At that time of night, not too many places were open other than this little establishment we found. Not being from the area, we obviously didn’t realize maybe there were some parts of the city that might not be the safest. But in our innocence, we took the chance. Another great little diner, with decent food. Although, the whole time while there, I was wondering if my car would still be in the parking lot when we got done. As well as being in one piece. But there were no issues, no stolen car, and we were quickly on our way back to our AirBnB, safe and sound.

I had to head out early the next morning, but it was an incredible weekend. Some might look at this trip and wonder why I’d travel 4-5 hours down to St. Louis to see some film that most of which I’d seen a few times before. But like I mentioned before, it is about the experiences and who you are with while you are having those experiences. Sitting the tattoo place for a few hours while we all got our new ink is something I will always remember, especially when I look down at my arm and see Franco looking back at me. The evening spent at Steve’s Hot Dogs with Scott, Aaron, Matt, and Will is another great memory that I will always look back and smile. The company and the conversations really are some of the most important parts of life and cannot be overstated.

But once I got home, this so-called vacation was far from the relaxing stretch of sitting on my ass watching movies. Time to get to work!

Up Next . . . Terror Tuesdays at the Library!