Horror of Dracula (1958) Review

It is Hammer time which means another horror movie review to celebrate Halloween. This time the most famous vampire of them all gets the British treatment in glorious Technicolor! Blood is sucked, victims are seduced, and a battle of wits between good and evil is enjoined.

After the monster success of The Curse of Frankenstein, Hammer Films decided they needed follow it up with another horror movie. The obvious choice was to remake Dracula using the same formula of action, serious acting, pretty ingénues, gothic sets, and shooting in color. Bringing back the same director and stars would guarantee success. But did it work out as hoped?

Read on to see why I consider Christopher Lee’s Dracula the best portrayal by any actor and Peter Cushing’s heroic Van Helsing the definitive version.

After a long opening credits sequence, the camera zooms in on a crypt placard with the infamous name of Dracula on it. Bright red paint is spattered on it for shock effect and that particular bit is more amusing than frightening. But to audiences back then, it probably worked, since it was a far less jaded time. For us older folks, this kind of in your face “scary” mood setter brings forth feelings of nostalgia. At least it did for me.

Where Hammer’s Frankenstein opened with a lone rider, here we are presented with an entire carriage following along a rustic road. Just as in the earlier film, a lone man arrives at a fortress like edifice. So far, so good in keeping the formula the same.

But instead of a prison, it is a well appointed castle. Instead of dark and dreary, it is brightly lit, if beset by long shadows. Jonathan Harker (John Van Eyssen) has arrived to find his host absent and a note informing him to go ahead and eat. As night falls, Harker is surprised by a young woman in a flowing white dress.

Yes, those dresses could have been trademarked by Hammer Films. At least one was seen in every horror movie they made and they always foreshadowed very bad things. You may recognized the actress wearing this one, since she wore one in The Curse of Frankenstein. Valerie Gaunt returned for this movie too after playing the lusty maid.

She is a strange girl, this apparition in white. Desperate to escape the castle, she begs Harker to help her. Showing some signs of succumbing to the pleas if not charms of the girl, Harker agrees to help. Then she bolts from the room in fear.

Just like the original 1931 Dracula, the Count makes his appearance at the top of a stairway. Cloaked in shadows as well as cloth, Christopher Lee cuts a far different figure from Bela Legosi. At 6’ 4”, an abnormal height for a leading actor, his is an imposing presence.

But a civilized charm is there and Count Dracula comes off as a gracious host genuinely interested in his guest. Or at least the photographs of his fiancé, Lucy.  Hired as a librarian, Harker has a pleasant exchange with his eccentric employer but soon finds himself locked in his room by the Count. But Harker has some ulterior motives himself for being there…

Later that night, the door to his room is mysteriously unlocked and he catches a glimpse of the girl from before. Since girls in white dresses equal bad things to come his second encounter with her does not go as well as his first. She’s a little clingy for one thing.

Horror of Dracula does not waste much time in getting to the reveal, as an angry and demonic looking Dracula intervenes when Harker and the girl get a little too close. This is old school vampire action at its best, with no “twinkling” to be found anywhere. Instead it is feral and brutal, with Harker having of no effect whatsoever when he tries to aid the girl.

When he awakens, he finds the mother of all hickey’s on his neck. That kind of thing is what happens when you consort with strange girls, you know. Upset, Harker takes drastic measures to cover up his affair.

Okay, he really was intending to kill the Count and his “bride” the entire time. Anybody who travels around with a hammer and sharpened wooden stakes has it in for vampires, clearly. So he leaves some bread crumbs behind and goes on the offensive.

One thing I liked about the staking scene was how it was portrayed as something ugly and upsetting to do. This is no neat and tidy “dusting” like in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It is bloody, messy, and very loud as the screams of the girl awaken Dracula.

Yes, Harker wins the Darwin Award by taking out the girl first, not the bigger threat. In his actions, he demonstrates the classic ineffective Englishman stereotype of the period. That is despite the change to being German for the film!

His shock when the girl he had been “necking” with turns into an old woman is a nice touch. It also adds an “ick” factor beyond the blood to up the creepiness of the proceedings. But Harker has run out of daylight…

Enter the real hero of the movie, Doctor Van Helsing (Peter Cushing). Having received a letter from his friend, he has come to the little village near the castle to find him. The local inn has interesting decorations up and the innkeeper is decidedly uptight. Fortunately for the good doctor, the barmaid is not and provides him with what he needs to find Harker.

Check out the décor in the inn. Hammer Films sets always made me want to enter that location and poke around since they were always filled with interesting things. The music player in particular brought that out in me upon viewing this again.

Helsing makes it to the castle only to see a fancy hearse speed out of the gates with an even more fancy coffin on board. Entering the foreboding building, he finds it empty and one room left in a complete mess. Speaking of messes, it is up to the doctor to clean up the one left by Harker.

So ends the beginning of the movie. This is another fast paced film and runs just over 80 minutes, so buckle up for the ride.

Ten days later in the city of Karlstad, Doctor Helsing informs the soon to be in-laws of Harker of his demise. Arthur Holmwood (Michael Gough) is not friendly and is rather peeved at the lack of details. Gough was something of a specialist at playing peeved back then and is most recognized for playing Alfred in the 1990’s Batman movies.

But his wife, Mina (Melissa Stribling), shows more trust in Helsing and confides to him that Arthur’s sister, Lucy, has not been well. In fact, Lucy (Carol Marsh) took ill about ten days ago. Hmm…

An interesting interlude chock filled with information on vampires and their weaknesses gives us a further look at Van Helsing. In this interpretation, he is something of a fusion of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson into one man. The keen intellect of Holmes is combined with the warmth, physical prowess, and profession of Watson. As a kid, I wanted to be just like Cushing’s Van Helsing.

All of those attributes come into play as Doctor Helsing is called in to give a second opinion on the anemic Lucy. The subtle way he reveals the bite mark while examining the young woman is a clever bit and his bedside manner is impeccable – and unflappable. Alas, his prescriptions are to no avail.

One of the more memorable sequences in the film involves the now vampiric Lucy and her prey, Tania (Janine Faye). Using the girl’s trust in her “Aunt Lucy” to lure her to a graveyard, Lucy is a lovely, captivating menace. Nothing screams predator like going after a little girl and it is an unsettling scene.

But the symbol of good has power over evil and a timely rescue convinces Arthur Holmwood that the threat is real. As a kid, the physical damage done by the cross really impressed me as something cool. Now as an adult, the coolest part of the confrontation is Helsing comforting little Tania. He is a sweet and strong protector which makes it a very charming moment in a dark movie.

I get the impression this was a glimpse of the man Peter Cushing more than the character.

Sadly, Lucy must be liberated from her damnation and her end is gruesome. Indeed, it was censored in many cuts but is presented in its entirety on this DVD. If anything, it reinforces the idea that vampire hunting is not fun in the least bit. Poor Holmwood has now been brought into a world he not ready for, but he has family to avenge and protect.

The movie morphs into a detective film and a tricky game of cat and mouse with Count Dracula is the result. Events unfold very quickly and the finale moves blazingly fast. Those used to an overly extended final battle will not find it here. Instead, it is immediate, urgent, and very satisfying.

Thoughts

It is always interesting to me to view films many years later, especially ones loved when young. Some hold up, some don’t, and some seem curious. This one held up and that has everything to do with Peter Cushing’s performance as Van Helsing.

Introduced to these films by my older brothers, the closest of whom was sixteen years older, I remember being awakened to see a midnight broadcast of it on a ghosted television set. Usually getting me up to see these failed, since I was in the single digits and slept like I was drugged.

I am still angry they failed to wake me up to see Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman. Sure, they ran me around the outside of the house in winter temperatures and doused my face in cold water, but surely they could have hooked me up to a car batter or something!

Anyway, when I watched the movie as a child, I came away wanting to be Van Helsing. Here was a decisive and brainy man of action who also was a genuine nice guy. Re-enacting the climactic battle was something I did with my oldest brother, Steve, with him substituting for Lee’s Dracula. Given that he was twenty years older than I, it was a nice thing to do for a little kid.

Putting emotional attachments aside, Horror of Dracula is a good movie. The acting is good, the direction is good, and the pace excellent.  Vampires are animalistic and not sympathetic, while the human factor is never forgotten. Holmwood can be annoying and dense, but is a believable person for example.

Count Dracula is a creature to be feared. After the first encounter with Harker, he never speaks again. Lee’s portrayal is that of a feral beast in the limited time he appears and you can believe a village would be terrified into submission by him. Give me vampires who are scary rather than emo any day – or night as the case may be.

There is nothing gory about the film, except for bright red blood that looks like paint. Seriously, it looks like paint. But there is an intensity to the violence involved that makes this something not for young children. I would give the film a PG rating by the current system.

I recommend the film to those who appreciate old fashioned scary movies, serious acting, and a ripping good yarn in the English style.

Technical

The copy of Horror of Dracula I have is part of Hammer Horror Turner Classic Films Collection along with three other films split across two discs. Also included are Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, The Curse of Frankenstein, and Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed.

The picture is presented in 1.66:1 letter box format and is quite good, though not as good as The Curse of Frankenstein. Specks, scratches, and blemishes are present but not distractingly so. Color is wonderful, especially if you are old like I am and remember watching the faded versions broadcast back in the day.

Unfortunately, part of the film is still lost and I suspect the existing prints are not in the best condition. The final sequence is only available in the edited down version and I will discuss that further in the spoilers section.

Audio is crisp monaural and English only. Subtitles are available in English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. I keep forgetting to mention whether movies are close captioned, but I can report this one is.

The barebones extras include:

Cast & Crew which is less than the credits and a waste of bits and bytes.

Dracula Lives Again has a small amount of information on the making of the movie and brief descriptions of its many sequels.

The Theatrical Trailer is very melodramatic and gives away almost every scene the title character is in. The grainy quality of it is a good contrast to the remastered main film.

BEWARE! HERE BE SPOILERS!!!

 

 

 

Dracula went after Lucy to replace his lost “bride” and also to get revenge on Harker.  So it follows that after losing the replacement, it was time for Plan B – Mina Holmwood. Luring her into a trap, it isn’t long before she is under his spell.

An interesting idea is floated via Van Helsing’s audio dictations: that being under a vampire’s control is like being a drug addict not wanting the compulsions but unable to fight them. When Mina voluntarily takes the cross from her husband, it indicates at least some rebellion.

The Count actually hiding in the basement of the Holmwood residence while his foes are trying to track him down is clever, very clever. Nothing like hiding in plain sight while the cops are after you. Also, we get white dress time for Mina to cement that it is an ill omen in Hammer productions.

Doctor Helsing being on the cutting edge of Victorian technology is a good bit of fun. From his wax cylinder Dictaphone to performing an emergency blood transfusion on Mina, he is the ideal intellectual of the era and a true man of science.

Oh that final chase and battle, how I love it so even after all these years. Reportedly partially improvised by Cushing and Lee, it is still something to behold despite only existing in its edited form. Using brains to counter Dracula’s brawn, Helsing turns the tables on his foe in wonderful fashion.

Van Helsing became a role model to me and I absolutely loved the character once introduced to him. I ran around making crosses out of any handy items for days after watching the movie as a child. If we had candlesticks I would have used those, of course. But watching it again, I was sure that something was off.

The final disintegration in the sunlight was shorter than I remembered. Where was his completely exposed skull? Well, it turns out I was not misremembering things, it had been longer. Alas, the original version of the ending no longer exists. Still, it is a very effective piece of special effects and ground breaking at the time.