The dual nature of the mercenary is a recurring theme in Italian Westerns, a genre that Master of Horror John Carpenter pays homage to in "Vampires". He offers an ultra-violent and feral take on the vampire figure, graphically rendering them in a manner reminiscent of the zombie. A truly badass James Woods plays the leader of a gang of mercenaries hired by the Vatican. They cross paths with Sheryl Lee, who plays one of her most important cinematic characters after incarnating the mythic Laura Palmer in "Twin Peaks".

"Flesh+Blood" is the first American-made by Dutch director Paul Verhoeven... and his last collaboration with his favorite actor, Rutger Hauer, who depicts a ruthless mercenary from the Middle Ages to an unsettling, filthy and particularly realistic degree. Despite rubbing elbows with big names in Hollywood, Verhoeven doesn't sugarcoat his work. He perseveres with a ferocious film that is quite possibly his masterpiece!