Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a 1992 comedy film about a "Valley Girl" cheerleader who discovers she is The Slayer -- a young woman born with special strength and skill and a destiny to fight vampires. It stars Kristy Swanson, Donald Sutherland, Rutger Hauer and Luke Perry, and was written by Joss Whedon and directed by Fran Rubel Kuzui. It also features Paul Reubens in a departure from his better known role as Pee-Wee Herman as well as a young Hillary Swank.
The film also led to a darker and much more popular TV series of the same name, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, also created, and sometimes written and directed by Whedon. Whedon went on to state that the TV series was a much closer rendering of his vision than the movie, which was compromised by commercial concerns. The series finale aired in May 2003.
Trivia
- Ben Affleck has a role as an extra.
- Seth Green appeared as a vampire victim in a deleted scene which nonetheless featured on the original video cover; he would have been the only actor from the movie to appear in the TV series.
Canonical issues
The film is not considered Buffyverse canon. That means it is not considered as part of the official Buffverse fictional world. In fact many of the details given in the film directly contradict canon that would later be established by Whedon's televivion series. For example, in the film, vampires do not have 'bumpy' faces whilst feeding. According to established Buffyverse canon, vampires do have bumpy faces whilst feeding.
References
- Janet Maslin. "She's Hunting Vampires, And on a School Night." The New York Times. July 31, 1992. C8.