Thirst (1979)

Kate Davis [Chantal Contouri] is waking up. As she becomes more lucid and realizes that she's been sleeping in a coffin, she begins to scream. She runs to the little hole in the wall that is her only contact with the outside world. A few weeks ago, Kate was living a wonderful life.

She is beautiful, wealthy, lives in a fancy house, has handsome architect Derek Whitehall [Rod Mullinar] for a boyfriend, and she's planning a four week holiday in the States. She doesn't know it, but her life is about to be turned upside down. It begins the next morning when Kate goes to the front gate to pick up her milk and newspaper. Her cat accidentally knocks over the milk carton and blood, not milk, spills out. The next thing Kate knows, she's been drugged and taken to the Q. A. S. T. A. Research Facility where she is poked, prodded, and questioned by a team of researchers. Turns out that Kate is a descendent of Elizabeth Bathory and that she has been kidnapped by The Brotherhood, a worldwide cartel of modernday vampires who think of themselves as a superior race that has gained youth, power, and immortality through the drinking of human blood. They procure their blood by raising "blood cows, " humans raised under controlled conditions so as to keep their blood free from contaminants and allergens. The blood from the human bloodcows is harvested by attaching them to a milking machine which sucks the blood from their veins. The blood is then processed, poured into milk cartons, and distributed to the other vampires. Q. A. S. T. A. is but one of several such farms that supply human blood to over 70, 000 vampires around the world. The aim of the Brotherhood is to awaken Kate to her legacy and rekindle in her the thirst for human blood. Mrs Barker [Shirley Cameron], one of the lead psychologists, wants to start Kate's "conditioning" immediately. Dr Gauss [Henry Silva] thinks that Kate is too strong-willed and that the conditioning might drive her insane, but he goes along with Barker's plan anyway. Mr Hodge [Max Phipps], also of some hoidy-toidy vampire lineage that is never identified, can't wait to mate with Kate and unite their blood lines. Only Dr Eric Fraser [David Hemmings] seems concerned with Kate's welfare and wants to use reason and persuasion to get her to willingly join them as their Baroness. Kate will have nothing to do with it, no matter how many times they try to force her to drink blood. When Barker and Gauss place Kate in the room with only a tiny hole through which to view the outside world, as it was done to her ancestor, Dr Fraser makes them release her. Kate attempts to run away, but she is hunted down and brought back to the farm. It looks like there is no escape. Tonight is the opening ceremony for The Farm's Festival. Visiting vampires from around the world will be attending. Kate is invited to participate but refuses. That night, just after midnight, she is awakened by the chanting of "Hyma Perpetui" (Human Blood Always), the motto of The Farm. Kate peeks in the chapel door and witnesses an elderly vampire drinking the blood from the neck of a young bloodcow. Kate's screams disrupt the service. Barker is not pleased, but Fraser reminds her that Kate needs time. Against Fraser's advice, however, Barker decides to proceed with the conditioning. First, Kate is drugged. When she wakes up, she finds herself on a picnic with Derek. After making love to Derek, Kate bites into a chicken leg and gets a mouth full of blood. Derek suddenly turns into Hodges, who thanks her for honoring him. Feeling soiled, Kate jumps into a nearby river. When she emerges, a rainstorm is hitting. She seeks shelter and finds herself at the gate of her own house where she is met by her maid, Lori Dantry [Rosie Sturgess]. Lori assures Kate that she only left the house an hour ago and escorts her to the shower. Kate strips and enters the shower stall, but the shower spews out blood. "The thirst is in all of us, " Lori consoles. Kate screams, "NOT IN ME!"Suddenly, Kate is 5-years old. She is being sent off to boarding school where she learns that her mother has died. Mrs Barker's voice tells Kate to "Cut your ties with the past, " but Kate goes in search of her mother, Barker, Lori, anyone. Instead, she finds herself in a room that seems to be collapsing around her. Only when she picks up a mug of blood does the destruction stop, but she pours the blood onto the floor. Suddenly something starts hacking through the door with an axe. Terrified, Kate finds another mug of blood, but this time she drinks it and the hacking stops. For the next fourteen days of her programming, she willfully drinks the blood whenever it is given to her. Everyone is pleased with Kate's progress except for Dr Fraser. "Let us hope that, despite all this, we're still able to earn her respect, " is his only comment. It is several days later. Dressed in regal splendor, Kate is preparing to engage in ceremonial blood-drinking. Urged on by whispers of, "It's your destiny, " Kate allows the silver fangs to be placed in her mouth, a cut to be made in the bloodcow's neck, and she willingly bends forward and begins drinking the spurting blood. Again, everyone is impressed, but Mrs Barker wants to make sure that Kate's indoctrination will hold up in the outside world, so they send her home. The indoctrination appears to be holding, as Kate willingly drinks from the neck of her secretary but, when it comes to drinking from Derek, she balks. Mrs Barker decides that Kate needs more conditioning, but Dr Fraser refuses to allow it. Before the committee can meet to discuss what to do about Kate, Fraser decides to help Kate escape. He first releases Derek from the cell where he is being held. As they attempt to escape from The Farm, they are seen by Mrs Barker. Derek runs, but Fraser stays to struggle with Barker. Barker falls into a blood processing vat. While the workers try to figure out what is blocking the number three tube from the vat, Fraser goes back to get Kate and they prepare to take off in a helicopter. Unfortunately, Gauss sees them and grabs the runner of the helicopter as it takes off. Gauss eventually falls off, lands on a string of high voltage wires, and is fried to a crisp. Fraser leads Kate to a hut in the woods where he says that Derek is waiting for her. What she finds, however, is Derek being exsanguinated. Kate orders Fraser to release Derek. As Kate and Derek embrace, Fraser puts in a pair of fangs. Kate begs Fraser for a second chance. "I AM one of you, " she says over and over as Fraser drinks her blood. In the distance, Hodges' voice can be heard thanking Fraser for heading up the conditioning program that will now make it possible for the two greatest vampire families to be united forever. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl. ]