Vampire Hunter D (2000)

When the soothing comfort of sunlight starts to fade, beings of seraphic beauty become the undisputed masters of the night, instilling fear in every living creature. Water turns into ice before these blood-sucking monsters, and their victims realize that this uncanny chill is the harbinger of their inevitable demise. Fortunately, the number of vampires is dwindling thanks to the dauntless bounty hunters who track down and slay the near-immortal predators.

One night, tragedy befalls the Elbourne family as their daughter, Charlotte, is abducted by Meier Link, a revered vampire lord protected by an army of monsters. To save their beloved Charlotte, her family recruits the Marcus Brothers, a group of vampire hunters known for their ruthlessness; and D, a sword-wielding dhampir—a half-vampire, half-human who has the strengths of both species and the weaknesses of neither.

The hunters rush to rescue Charlotte, but if her abductor decides to turn her into a vampire, they should eliminate her. Moreover, their mission must be completed before Meier reaches the impregnable vampire castle of Carmilla and takes Charlotte out of humanity's reach forever.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

D Main

Tanaka, Hideyuki Japanese

Link, Meier Supporting

Yamadera, Kouichi Japanese

Leila Supporting

Hayashibara, Megumi Japanese

Left Hand Supporting

Nagai, Ichiro Japanese

Marcus, Grove Supporting

Seki, Toshihiko Japanese

Elbourne, Charlotte Supporting

Shinohara, Emi Japanese

Carmilla Supporting

Maeda, Bibari Japanese

Caroline Supporting

Soumi, Youko Japanese

Marcus, Borgoff Supporting

Yara, Yuusaku Japanese

Benge Supporting

Fujiwara, Keiji Japanese

Maruyama, Masao Producer

Yamamoto, Mataichirou Producer

Nagasawa, Takayuki Producer

Kawajiri, Yoshiaki Director, Storyboard, Screenplay

Reviews

Dec 22, 2025

SFlame

Recommended

Aaand I've read the manga now so I can compare how different the anime is from it. In short - the anime is very good!

Nice graphics, iconic even and seems like manga is using very similar style because of it.
Nice character design and characters themselves...tho manga is likely closer to the novels since there almost everyone are asshats, but I like anime characters much more. They are also much more complex in anime.
Nice story with the ending that leaves some questions yet answers more than what manga does. Also I like the worldbuilding here more.
No weird sex stuff at all, not even insinuations of such.

Seriously, ... watch the anime first, both of the movies and then read manga. And forget about the novels. Unless you are into graphic description of violence and weird sex stuff.

Only thing I don't like in the anime is how hunter gang main weapons are...kinda stupid. In manga they at least have somewhat viable stuff.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Sep 30, 2025

Miinerbah

Recommended

I watched the movie because of my love for all things gothic, and it did not disappoint me. I only wish there were more Vampire Hunter D animated works, because its animation captures the gothic atmosphere so beautifully: delicate linework, androgynous and mysterious characters, gloomy settings… not to mention all the fine details. The story itself is engaging and quite moving towards the end, though I don’t want to go too deep into spoilers.

D being a dhampir is a crucial element in the plot: a creature that belongs to neither world, not to the darkness nor to humanity. His psychology and inner conflict make him ... incredibly compelling. As I said, I truly wish more content had been made. I know there are novels, but I’ve got friends who don’t recommend them because some scenes are rather unpleasant and questionable. They also told me the movie changes certain characters and circumstances, and that those changes are actually for the better.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Mar 5, 2024

Haustlaufivindi

Mixed Feelings

What would happen if Sergio Leone, in collaboration with Luis Bunuel, filmed in animation form a book by Stephen King, written by him in the mid-1980s (during the period of Stephen’s severe drug intoxication), where the main character would be Zorro, fighting vampires in the Wild West? The result would be surreal trash, but decadent, aesthetic trash. It would be "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust", or something very close to it. As much as I, to put it mildly, am not close to the stories of Kikuchi Hideyuki, how secondary the plot is, how vulgar the characters are, how intellectually and morally powerless the narrative is, ... so much captivating the decadent aesthetics of this anime are. Just as sweetness can be found in pain, so in the destruction of ethical and aesthetic beauty, in decay, one can find decadent pleasure like "Belle De Jour". Perhaps this is what catches “Bloodlust” - the visual aesthetics here are extremely consistent with the ethics of storytelling. It has a peculiar “beauty of ruins”, a borderline sadistic pleasure of destruction, the withering of goodness and beauty. It fascinates, just as a poisonous snake fascinates its victim, just as the viewer is fascinated by the animation of a bouquet of roses withering as Meier approaches to take Charlotte to the “underworld.” The animation, I note, in “Bloodlust” is amazing. The references to Leone's western film aesthetic are animated masterfully, D against the backdrop of a full moon looks as good as Zorro against the setting sun, and it all comes together with a gothic design fused with art nouveau. Eclecticism? Definitely, but it works in "Bloodlust", paired well with an equally eclectic narrative. We can say that this anime is an empty shell, a pretty rotten one, but you can’t deny its visual peculiarity.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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	Poll: Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Karikaturata - Jan 16, 2010	91 replies	by shwoom »» Dec 29, 2025 11:27 PM
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	VHD Dub xMatronxMalicex - May 11, 2009	6 replies	by JVskunkape »» Oct 10, 2025 12:19 PM
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