简介：Beingavampiremovieshotin1975,inblack&white,spokenentirelyinsignlanguage. Theworld’sfirstfeaturefilminsignlanguageanditHADtobeaboutavampire.You’renotlikelytohaveachancetoviewthisverylow-budgeteffort,butitfeaturesalimitedsoundtrackforhearingaudiences,ahunch-backservantwithtin-canhandsandaverytheatrical-lookingvampire.Thedirector[PeterWechsbergakaPeterWolf],whoisdeaf,startedthefirstTVnewsprograminsignlanguage(inSanFrancisco). Thefirstnationally-distributedfeature-lengthfilmpresentedentirelyinAmericanSignLanguage,Deafulaoccupiesauniquepositionasoneoftherarestvampiremoviesofalltime. ThestoryfocusesonSteveAdams,ayoungtheologystudentwhojusthappenstoturnintoavampire(completewithaflowingcape,pointyears,agiantnose,andbigpointyteeth)fromtimetotime,buthasnomemoryofdoingsoafterthefact.Afterachatwithafriendwhoisinvestigatingthebloodlesscorpsesturninguparoundtown,Adamsbeginstohaveflashbackstohischildhood-includingonesceneinwhichhisbloodlustcauseshimtoripoutthethroatofhispuppy.Havingpreviouslybelievedhehadjustbeenanunusuallyanemicyoungsterandthesonofasimpleminister,thesememoriespromptAdamstoinvestigatehispast;hefindsthatheisactuallythesonofnolessthanCountDraculahimself. FilmedinandaroundPortland,Oregonin1974,DeafulatookadvantageofthefactthatASLhadbeenrecognizedasaformallanguageabouttenyearsearlier.Whenthemoviewasreleasedin1975,though,itwasstillaboutthirteenyearstooearly:theDeafPresidentNowmovementof1988hadnotyetestablishedtheabilitiesofdeafindividualsinthemindsoftheAmericanpublic.Toounusualformostaudiences,themoviefailedattheboxoffice. WhenDeafulaisreviewedbycriticsofcampfilms,itisgenerallydepictedasoneoftheworstfilmsofitsgenre.Thespecialeffectsareoftendescribedascomical,andmanyinsisttheplotisalmostworthless.WhileAdams'stransformationsareadmittedlycrude(and,onecriticpointsout,canhappenindaylight),itisprobablethattheplotseemssoreducedbecauseofthepoorqualityofthevoiceovers.Althoughitwastobemarketednationallyandthereforewouldhavebeenseenmostlybyhearingpersons,thefilmmakerswerecreatingafilmbydeafpeopleandfordeafpeople-namesofthehearingmembersofthecastandcrewappearinitalicsduringtheclosingcredits.Thefilmwasshotwithoutsound,andjolting,badly-dubbeddialoguewasaddedlater,probablyprovidingglossesoftheASLconversations,ratherthantruetranslations. Whilethevoiceoversandplotmaynothavehadthedepthhearingaudienceswereaccustomedto,thetableswerefinallyturnedfordeafviewers.TheworldofDeafulaisentirelysuitedtothedeaf:everyonefromnewscasterstopoliceofficerscansign-thereareevenTTYsattachedtotheradiosofpolicecars.Infact,thefilm'sonlyhandicappedcharacterisahunchbackwitch...whoismissingbothherhands.…