Film

I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle

Name: I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Released: 1990
Cast: Neil Morrissey, Amanda Noar, Michael Elphick, Anthony Daniels, Andrew Powell

A 1990 British horror-comedy where a possessed motorcycle develops a taste for revenge. Gloriously silly and earnest at once, it treats its absurd premise with genuine commitment. For anyone who's ever wanted to watch a bike hunt people with vampiric malice, or who simply loves genre films that swing for the fences without net.

TMDb rating

2.7

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy cheap-and-cheerful 1990s British horror-comedy, the kind with gleeful gore, rough practical effects and a straight face that knows it is ridiculous.

Skip it if you need slick modern scares or slow-building dread, because this is loud, scrappy and more interested in silliness than fright.

What it asks of you: At 101 minutes it moves briskly, switching between grime and gags so quickly that little patience or close attention is required.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Evil Dead II1987

Sam Raimi's masterclass in tonal balance: genuinely scary one moment, laugh-out-loud funny the next. If you loved the commitment to absurdity here, this nails that same energy with better resources.

But It's relentlessly kinetic and gory. If you want slow-burn horror or restraint, this will exhaust you.

The Return of the Living Dead1985

A zombie film that's also a comedy that's also genuinely frightening. Proof that horror and laughs aren't enemies—they're collaborators. The tonal DNA is all over I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle.

But The comedy is very '80s punk. If that aesthetic hasn't aged well for you, it might feel dated rather than charming.

Tremors1990

Released the same year, it shares the same spirit: a creature-feature premise played totally straight by likeable people. Enormously entertaining and endlessly rewatchable. Proof B-movies can be genius.

But It's a siege film with real tension. If you want pure comedy, the scares might get in the way.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Christine1983

Both films premise: a vehicle becomes animate and vengeful, turning a symbol of freedom into a weapon. But Carpenter made the idea matter.

John Carpenter's film about a car possessed by the spirit of its dead owner—it's the direct spiritual ancestor of your motorcycle film, but Carpenter's version is genuinely terrifying, visually perfect, and sings. If you loved the core idea of a vehicle with a bloodlust, see where it started.

But It's a serious thriller with real dread. The motorcycle film is giddier. This one commits to genuine horror.

Dead Ringers1988

Cronenberg's body-horror masterpiece about obsession and doubling. Darker and more serious than the motorcycle film, but shares that British horror willingness to be genuinely unsettling beneath the genre trappings.

But It's bleak, clinical, and deeply uncomfortable. Nothing here is fun. Wrong choice if you want levity.

Hellraiser1987

Clive Barker's breakthrough: transgressive, visually stunning, genuinely horrifying. Proof that low-budget British horror could reinvent the genre. Same era, same fearlessness.

But It's explicit and disturbing in ways the motorcycle film never attempts. Heavier than you might expect.

Bad Taste1987

Peter Jackson's splatter-comedy debut: anarchic, handmade, proudly trashy. Same budget-stretching ingenuity, same willingness to be ridiculous. You can see the DNA of every weird British film that followed.

But It's aggressively lo-fi and crude. The effects are deliberately cheap-looking. Craftsmanship-minded viewers may find it harder to settle in.

The Witches1990

Nicolas Roeg's children's film that's genuinely unsettling. Same year, same willingness to let weirdness live in the frame. Proves that restraint and craft can be scarier than jump-scares.

But It's a children's film, so the pacing and stakes might feel small. Darker than expected, but still a family movie at heart.

Hardware1990

A debut that wears its budget on its sleeve and dares anyway. Cyberpunk body horror with real style. Same year, same scrappy commitment to the premise.

But It's visually dense and sometimes hard to follow. Underbaked plot beneath the atmosphere.

Puppetmaster1989

A creature-feature with practical charm and genuine heart. Low-budget horror that knows what it is. Playful without winking at the camera.

But The sequels are terrible, which can taint how you feel about the original. It's lighter on plot than on mood.

The Phantom of the Opera1990

Both are late-'80s British genre films that take ridiculous premises with complete seriousness and somehow make you feel something real underneath the camp.

A made-for-TV miniseries with Bill Nighy as the Phantom—absurd casting, genuine earnestness, and a willingness to swing for emotional gut-punches alongside gothic melodrama. British television's commitment to oddness in the late '80s.

But It's a TV adaptation of an overstaged musical. If you hate the source material, this won't convert you. Dated '80s production values.

Nekromantik1988

Both are films that follow their premise to its logical extreme without flinching, regardless of how absurd or repellent. Both ask: what if this insane thing actually happened?

A transgressive German film about necrophilia, body horror, and industrial aesthetics. Grotesque and utterly committed to its vision. Not fun, but unforgettable. Proves that horror cinema in this era was genuinely pushing boundaries everywhere, not just in commercial films.

But It is extremely graphic, disturbing, and designed to make you uncomfortable. Not entertainment in the conventional sense. Not for most evenings.