I noticed this resurgence of vampire lore back into popular culture around three years ago, but it's always been present in Western culture, in pockets of time dating back to the 11th century, earliest written accounts if I recall correctly.
My best example and representative is that of yes, the
Nosferatu, and delving deeper into the relationships of monstrous myths, entangling the stories with that of the
Fenrir, and
Ereshkigal, etc. Varying cultures worldwide have a form and embodiment and lore of what creates and constitutes a vampire, and why they have come into existence. To me, just recently I likened vampires and zombies to one another, for they are in essence, of the same kin, yet they both possess differing cultural attributes that sets them apart; but in their unending desire to feed, their relationship to the "undead", and overall, being harbingers of gloom and despair, I loosely associate the two as one.
Of the popular culture and media references to the vampire, of which there are many, some hit the mark quite well and can resonate decades beyond its origins, and some are so ridiculously-laughable that it appeals to only a certain subsect.
I am somewhat tired of hearing about "Twilight" for the same reason I become langished with more news about "Hanna Montana"; both of these products are not marketed to me, the average one-half statistic of a 18-34 or 35-59 year-old male.
Though, as I recently discovered, I am quite interested to follow this vampire feature as it progresses along until its debut:
http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/tilted-...ybreakers.html