A petición popular (dos personas y yo mismo) reincido en el universo “Hammer Films”  tratando además de dar cierta coherencia interna a las tres entradas, interconectando “Sangre sobre la tumba de la momia” como exponente del estilo más explícito en todos lo órdenes que se impondría en esta década, con los títulos sobre el Barón de Fisher. De tal modo este “El horror de Frankestein” aparece como una pieza perfecta para explicar esta nueva “Hammer”, es un ”remake” del fundacional “La maldición de Frankestein” de 1957 en el que se trata, del mismo modo que se hace en la gran mayoría de las cintas setenteras de la productora, de llevar a los mitos a una segunda modernidad, es decir, mientra los films originales eran el resultado de  la modernización de la mítica del terror que había impuesto la “Universal” estos segundos son el siguiente paso, la “Hammer” vista por la “Hammer”, en un ejercicio revisionista que implica autoconsciencia (eran ya una marca, una manera de hacer) y necesidad de reinventarse para avanzar con el mercado.

Además la película resulta ser el primer trabajo a la dirección del excepcional guionista Jimmy Sangster, que fue pieza fundamental en esplendor de “la casa del terror” durante la década anterior y encargado ahora de su puesta al día. Sangster  reincidiría en la dirección otro par de cintas, también con el gran Ralph Bates, “Lust for a vampire”(1971) que se regodea en el erotismo sáfico en salto de cama que había originado la notable “The vampire lovers”(1970)  y “Miedo en la noche”(1971)  que retoma tardíamente el terror/suspense psicológico que el mismo Sangster inauguró en la estupenda “El sabor del miedo”(1961) dirigida por el prematuramente fallecido y muy talentoso Seth Holt.

El horror de Frankenstein (The horror of Frankenstein)

Director: Jimmy Sangster

Año: 1970

País: Gran Bretaña

95 min.

Fotografía: Moray Grant

Música: Malcolm Williamson

Guión: Jimmy Sangster y Jeremy Burnham

Reparto: Ralph Bates, Kate O’Mara, Veronica Carlson, Dennis Price, Jon Finch

La película nace con esa voluntad ya explicada de revisitación de la seminal “La maldición de Frankenstein” adaptándolo a esta nueva “Hammer” (re)naciente de los setenta que abandonaba el suntuoso goticismo y la perversidad estilizada en beneficio de un estilo visual más mortecino y menos colorista, una explicitación agresiva de las constantes erótico-sanguinolentas de la productora y un humor negro bien apreciable que supone el punto de mayor interés y distinción de la película, convirtiendo el horro en comedia grotesca. La película se resiente de una estética coyuntural y de un feísmo un tanto vulgar (aunque no faltan los aciertos, como el Barón mirando a sus compañeros y viendo los órganos que le hacen falta) pero a cambio ofrece una virulencia asombrosa en la presentación del protagonista al que Ralph Bates presta su inigualable genio, creando una personaje totalmente diferente al de Cushing, un enfoque casi de choque generacional (algo en lo que se reincidiría en la época, por ejemplo “El poder de la sangre de Drácula” que dirigió también en 1970 el interesante Peter Sasdy, al que traeré de paseo), un joven egoísta, un “angry young men” convencido de su absoluta superioridad en todos los ámbitos, desde el intelectual al moral , pasando claro por el amatorio, magnético y falto de cualquier escrúpulo, cuya maldad e indiferencia a todo lo que no sea el mismo no parece conocer límites, desafiante con la autoridad y sexualmente depredador y que se debate en el clásico dilema entre la rubia angelical, la maravillosa Veronica Carlson, y la morena viciosa, Kate O’Mara y sus irresistibles ojos que acaban siendo merendola sexy para el monstruo de turno (al que interpreta David “Darth Vader” Prowse) en una escena especialmente despiadada, que ya es decir.

Un diletante de la maldad, aristócrata hedonista y cruel que usará a la criatura con total sangre fría, un bicharraco fascinante al que la pose y el rictus de asco y desprecio universal de Bates mezclado con su evidente chispa de ingenio maléfico sienta como un traje a medida.

El resultado es un film que merece bastante mayor crédito del que habitualmente se le concede y que sin ser uno de los títulos cumbre de la “Hammer” de los 70, si presenta no poca originalidad en su insistente cinismo y en esa oscura comicidad (antológico el final con la niña), dejando por el camino buenos destellos de puesta en escena y además reservando un bienvenido papelillo para el singular (y “franquiano”) Dennis Price como extravagante ladrón y comerciante de cadáveres al por menor.

Dracula Has Risen from the Grave is a 1968 British horror film directed by Freddie Francis for Hammer Films. It stars Christopher Lee as Count Dracula, with support from Rupert Davies, Veronica Carlson, Barry Andrews, Barbara Ewing, Ewan Hooper and Michael Ripper.

The world of the film is arguably far darker and more ambiguous than the world created by director Terence Fisher for the previous three films in the Dracula series.

Trivia:

Dracula Has Risen from the Grave is a 1968 British horror film directed by Freddie Francis for Hammer Films. It stars Christopher Lee as Count Dracula, with support from Rupert Davies, Veronica Carlson, Barry Andrews, Barbara Ewing, Ewan Hooper and Michael Ripper.

The world of the film is arguably far darker and more ambiguous than the world created by director Terence Fisher for the previous three films in the Dracula series.

Dracula Has Risen from the Grave is the Sequel to “Prince of Darkness” (1966).

Veronica Carlson and Christopher Lee

Directed by Freddie Francis

Writer – John Elder

Producer – Aida Young 

Cast
  Christopher Lee … Dracula
  Rupert Davies … Monsignor Ernest Mueller
  Veronica Carlson … Maria Mueller
  Barbara Ewing … Zena
  Barry Andrews … Paul
  Ewan Hooper … Priest
  Marion Mathie … Anna Mueller
  Michael Ripper … Max
  John D. Collins … Student
  George A. Cooper … Landlord
  Chris Cunningham … Farmer
  Norman Bacon … Mute Boy
 
 The Story: (Spoiler Alert!!)

A year has passed since the demise of Dracula, buried under the ice in the river that flows past his castle. Ernst Mueller [Rupert Davies], monsignor of the monastery at Kleinberg, has decided to visit the village to see that all is well. What he finds is appalling. The village priest [Ewan Hooper] has become an alcoholic. The villagers will not attend Sunday Mass because the shadow of Dracula’s castle touches the church during the evening hours. The Monsignor decides to exorcise the castle and prove to the villagers that the evil is gone. He and the priest climb the hill to the castle, but the priest chickens out halfway. The Monsignor continues alone to the castle door where he performs his exorcism and seals the castle door with a large cross. The priest, in the meantime, is taking swigs from his hipflask. He stumbles over a cliff, cuts his head, lands on the river ice, causing it to crack open just above Dracula’s body. The priest’s blood drips through the cracked ice, flowing into Dracula’s mouth, and Dracula is thus resurrected.

Veronica Carlson

Barred from his castle by the cross on the door, Dracula [Christopher Lee] must now find other lodgings. He enslaves the priest, forcing him to dig up a new coffin for him. He also forces him to reveal who is responsible for the exorcism. The coffin is loaded onto a funeral coach, and the priest and Dracula head toward Kleinberg. His exorcism finished, the Monsignor also returns to Kleinberg where he lives with his brother’s widow Anna [Marion Mathe] and his niece Maria [Veronica Carlson]. It is Maria’s birthday, and a dinner party is planned for her. Tonight, Maria will introduce her boyfriend Paul [Barry Anderson], who she has been climbing over the rooftops to meet secretly) to her family. Paul works as a baker at the Johann Cafe and engages in scholarly studies during his spare time. Scared to meet Maria’s family for the first time, Paul’s plight is not helped when his friends at the cafe spill beer down his shirt. Still, all goes well at the dinner until Paul, in a fit of truthfulness, admits to the Monsignor that he is an atheist. Paul returns to the cafe, downs 3 glasses of Schnapps, and passes out. The waitress Xena [Barbara Ewing] carries him up to bed just as Maria enters through a window.

On her way home, Xena is attacked by Dracula. With Xena’s help, Dracula and his coffin are moved into a storage room in the cafe cellar, and the priest takes a room at the cafe. The next evening, when Maria drops by the cafe to see Paul, Xena leads her into the bakery, covers her head with a bag, and takes her to see Dracula. Maria escapes, however, when Paul comes looking for her, and she tells of being attacked by a man “with burning eyes.” Angry at the failed attempt, Dracula kills Xena and orders the priest to destroy her in the furnace fire. Later that night, Dracula comes to Maria’s bedside and drinks from her. He returns the next night but, just as he prepares to drink from her, the Monsignor enters the room. Dracula sees the cross in the Monsignor’s hand and leaps from the window. The Monsignor attempts to follow but is knocked out by the priest. As the Monsignor lies dying, he sends for Paul and tells him what he must do to save Maria. Paul finds Dracula’s coffin and drives a stake through his heart but, because neither he nor the priest can pray to God, Dracula succeeds in removing the stake. He escapes, summons Maria and, together with the priest, they return to Dracula’s castle. Paul gets a horse and follows.

Upon reaching the castle, Dracula forces Maria to remove the cross from the castle door. As she throws it down the cliff, Paul arrives. He and Dracula battle. They both fall off the porch. Paul catches a branch on the way down but Dracula falls to the ground where he is impaled upon the cross just tossed away by Maria. As the priest recites the Pater Noster, Dracula turns to dust.

Production Info:

This was the first of the Hammer Dracula films to be shot at Elstree Studios in London. Notably missing are the approach road, coach path and moat seen in front of Castle Dracula in 1958’s Dracula and 1966’s Dracula: Prince of Darkness. Those films were made at Bray Studios.

The film was photographed by Arthur Grant using colored filters belonging to director Freddie Francis, also a cameraman by trade, who used them when photographing The Innocents (1961). Whenever Dracula (or his castle) is in a scene, the frame edges are tinged crimson, amber and yellow.

In Australia, the film was the first Hammer Dracula to be passed by the censors; the previous films Dracula (1958) and Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966) were banned. The film was slightly censored and ran for a three-week season at Sydney’s Capitol theatre in January 1970. In the US, the film was rated G. ……… Source(s) IMDB, Wikipedia

Amazon Specials!

Sin muchas presentaciones ni ceremonias, dos película de Terence Fisher, uno de los mejores directores de la historia del cine, así como suena, perteneciente a su esplendorosa saga sobre el infame Barón Frankenstein. Ambas son, en principio, cuerpos extraños dentro del ciclo, en una el personaje es casi un secundario y en apariencia y solo en apariencia es un título menor “Frankenstein created the woman”. La otra es la última y fue “la última”, parece fea y lo es, parece destartalada y lo está pero entre las paredes mohosas de manicomio sórdido encierra y nunca mejor dicho toda una reflexión/recapitulación demoledora sobre el personaje e incluso sobre el devenir de “la casa del terror”, “Frankenstein and the monster from hell”, a la vez parodia y espejo.

“Does the body rule the mind or does the mind rule the body? I don´t know…”

Frankenstein created the woman

Año: 1967

País: Gran Bretaña

86 min.

Fotografía: Arthur Grant

Música: James Bernard

Guión: Anthony Hinds

Reparto: Peter Cushing, Susan Denberg, Thorley Walters, Robert Morris

Terence Fisher retoma el personaje casi diez años después de “La venganza de Frankenstein” y con el interludio de “The evil of Frankenstein” facturada por el magistral operador de fotografía y apreciable director Freddie Francis en 1964, en esta extraña realización, mucho más densa de lo que el aspecto levemente “kitsch” de su desaforado romanticismo pueda aparentar.

En esta ocasión el progresivamente enloquecido Barón ocupa una posición secundaria ejerciendo como el elemento necesario para una (doble) venganza de ultratumba, la de una muchacha deforme, coja y con medio rostro desfigurado, víctima de las burlas y vejaciones de los mozos del pueblo a la que el doctor reconvertirá en una belleza despampanante y la del novio de esta (y ayudante de Frankenstein en su nuevo laboratorio), falsamente acusado de asesinato y por ello ajusticiado, tal y como lo había sido su padre. Un fatalismo que Fisher inmortaliza con la presencia obsesiva de una solitaria y descomunal guillotina que amenaza ominosa el plano cada vez que puede. Todo ello en el marco de esa historia de amor entre desesperados que acabará retorciéndose entre todo tipo de sugerencias pringosas y/o luctuosas. El Doctor Frankenstein aprovechará tan dramáticas circunstancias para poner en práctica sus nuevas técnicas de transmigración y sus teorías sobre conservación, es decir queda claro que nuevamente es ajeno a la tragedia y a las personas que le rodean a las que no contempla más que como probetas y sujetos experimentales, un desapego emocional y una frialdad indiferente a la que nuevamente Cushing presta su ensimismada energia y su magnético carisma.

De tal modo el “alma” o la “identidad” conservada en la cabeza decapitada del muchacho será trasportada (¿mesmerizada?) al (arreglado) cuerpo de la chica. A partir de aquí la atmósfera perversa y trágica que Fisher crea resulta tan pegajosa como audaz, de una profundidad conceptual y de huna turbiedad sexual asombrosas: la mente escindida de la chica es dominada alternativamente por uno de los dos ocupantes. El deseo de venganza provoca que la aparte masculina prevalezca y entonces nos encontramos con que el descabezado novio utiliza a “la criatura”, al nuevo (y espléndido) cuerpo de su amada y el deseo que esta lustrosa apariencia provoca, como cebo sobre sus antiguos acosadores a los que irá ejecutando, es decir usa sexualmente a el objeto de su amor, a la que defendió hasta la muerte para satisfacer una vendetta personal. Pero más aún, tenemos una mente masculina usando un cuerpo de mujer para satisfacer apetitos ocultos de la mente femenina y de la misma masculina, recordar que también el era rechazado y así es aceptado….y deseado lo que incluso desliza una extraña pulsión homoerótica. Y viceversa claro, la parte femenina también reclama su ración de atenciones eróticas que no había tenido antes y además saca a la bestia castradora a pasear, exhibiendo con orgullo lo que antes había sido rechazado y negándolo en el último momento. En fin…increíble, que cada cual elucubre su combinación, son tan inagotables como retorcidas. En cualquiera de los casos una idea magistral en su subversivo tratamiento de la dualidad sexual y el descubrimiento del poder erótico como arma. Todo en 86 apretados minutos y sin salirse del género.Formalmente resulta ser una (otra) película tremendamente brillante merced a la elegancia habitual del director, a ese intransferible sentido de la puesta en escena y a l adinámica interna del plano, una mezcla de precisión en el encuadre y movimiento constante en el interior del mismo. Peter Cushing tan bien como suele, dando aquí una imagen más distendida del Barón (sobre todo en comparación a la siguiente y magnífica “El cerebro de Frankenstein” donde descenderá a simas de abyección nunca vistas) que incluso y dada la magnitud de la tragedia acabará por verse conmovido y la más que saludable Susan Denberg antológica en su (doble) papel como pobrecita desvalida y mantis depredadora sexual.

“..y podeis moriros todos de risa porque la llevo con orgullo”, Elvis Costello

Frankenstein and the monster from hell

Año: 1974

País: Gran Bretaña

99 min.

Fotografía: Brian Probyn

Música: James Bernard

Guión: Anthony Hinds

Reparto: Peter Cushing, Shane Briant, Madeline Smith, David Prowse

Un título bastante superior a lo que se le suele conceder que supone un cierre divertidamente sardónico para el glorioso ciclo “frankensteiniano” pero que aún así resulta una triste despedida para el gran Terence Fisher además de una película desmañada y carente casi por completo, aunque refulja por instantes, de la elegancia del maestro, claramente incómodo con las modas hacia las que la “Hammer” viró en los años 70 y que en gran medida precipitaron el adiós de un director que había sido viga maestra en su crecimiento y evolución conceptual y estética.

Ofrece una relectura crepuscular cuyo punto de partida absolutamente genial ya sienta las bases de la ironía cruel que preside toda la función, de tal modo que reencontramos al inefable Barón en un manicomio ¡pero como director!, siendo así el regente el más loco de todos los internos, una inmersión a lo bruto en la demencia y el sinsentido, un mundo bocabajo regido por la lógica extraviada de un personaje convertido en parodia. El atildado “look” de Cushing y el aire ensimismado e incongruentemente risueño que otorga a su interpretación o el aberrante aspecto de la criatura no hacen más que subrayarlo. El antaño imparable Doctor Frankenstein ni siquiera parece darse cuenta de la chapuza que está perpetrando en la creación de ese  recosido grotesco compuesto por abollados restos de serie, en cierto modo tanto como lo está el mismo a esta alturas.

Frankenstein atraerá con malas artes (será condenado por sus experimentos a una temporada en el sanatorio) a un prometedor y revolucionario médico al que forzará a colaborar en una lucha eterna que a estas alturas ya ha adquirido un carácter mitológico y patético a partes iguales. El nuevo discípulo necesario (recordemos que, aparte del carácter vanidoso y arrogante del Barón, este necesita unas manos que hagan la faena desde que el se las quemase en la tercera parte de la serie) está interpretado por el inquietante lampiño Shane Briant, uno de los actores que la “Hammer” intentó lanzar como herederos de los clásicos con bien poca fortuna, a excepción del gran Ralph Bates, claro.El resto es más o menos lo de siempre (el doctor recolectando las piezas de entre la quincalla que ofrecen su enfermos, el jovenzuelo engreído dándose cuenta del camino que toma, la damisela en apuros, aquí la sexy Madeline Smith,  irresistible “Hammer girl” a la que Ingrid Pitt vampirizaba a base de bien en la simpática “The vampire lovers”, etc …) pero todo visto a través de una óptica de frenopático, que acentúa despiadadamente lo inútil del intento y exhibe sin pudor la eterna repetición a la que esta condenado el protagonista. Fisher desnuda a su personaje y lo despoja de cualquier grandeza para dejarlo convertido en un guiñapo terrorífico, un espantajo que barre el suelo de su último fracaso con la ilusión  de comenzar el próximo mientras la cámara se aleja de semejante mundo dejando a los personajes encerrados en una habitación mientras el espectador se va de allí espantado, y con Terence Fisher de la mano.

La “Hammer” dio lo mejor de si desde mediados de los 50 y durante la década de los 60 llevada de la mano de ese maestro del cine que fue Terence Fisher, en ese periodo instauró un estilo, un ideario y una iconografía. Un tratamiento completo y renovador de la mitología del terror al que además incorporó sus propios originales. Los 70 fuero la decadencia y como siempre en términos de decadencia lo mejor y lo peor van de la mano. Así refulgen algunas de sus mejores obras, títulos audaces en su descaro como “Drácula y las mellizas”(1971) de John Hough o “Capitán Kronos, cazador de vampiros”(1973) y obras maestras del calibre de “Doctor Jekyll y su hermana Hyde”(1971), estas dos bajo guión (y dirección en el caso de la primera) de el extraordinario Brian Clemens, materia gris tras esa serie fundamental que fue “The Avengers”, bailan con las infumables lecturas contemporáneas del Drácula en bodrios como “Drácula 73”(1972). Se incorpora el choque generacional, la estética coyuntural y el “look” setentero hace estragos, se extreman el erotismo y la sangre….se embrutece la fórmula pero el genio de algún modo permanece, solo que está más escondido y si en la casa del terror de la edad anterior cada casi título era una fiesta y un carrusel de sugerencia en esta década habrá que rebuscar y a mi me encanta rebuscar.

Así “Sangre en la tumba de la momia” será mejor acercamiento a la imaginería egipcia por parte de la “Hammer” (adaptando muy libremente “La joya de las siete estrellas” de Bram Stoker) a pesar de ser un film realizado en las peores circunstancias; Peter Cushing tuvo que ser sustituido por Andrew Keir (el último Quatermass de 1967 en la estupenda “¿Qué sucedió entonces?”) tras el fallecimiento de su mujer y Michael Carreras (principalmente productor pero también ocasional director que ya había trasteado con momias en 1964 con “Curse of the mummy’s tomb” y que entre mucha medianía dejó ese delirante festín de pura irrealidad que es “Mujeres prehistóricas”,1967) finalizó el rodaje debido a la muerte repentina del director Seth Holt, un prometedor realizador que había llamado y mucho la atención con “El sabor del miedo”(1961), obra sobresaliente que, bajo guiones de Jimmy Sangster, abrió la veta e instauró el estilo barroco y en claroscuro del terror/misterio psicológico-retorcido en la casa, que daría joyas como “El alucinante mundo de los Ashby”(1963) bajo la inspirada dirección del gran operador de fotografía Freddie Francis y la desatada “performance” de un Oliver Reed a sus anchas. Corriente continuada por el propio Holt en “A merced del odio”(1965) con Bette Davis de “nanny” sospechosa. Director de notable poderío escenográfico y gusto por la planificación rebuscada, lo que unido a su dominio sobre la mecánica del suspense llegó a valerle el apelativo de “el nuevo Hitchcock”, sin duda un ditirambo excesivo pero no muy desviado.Aún con todas estas trabas que con el tiempo han terminado por instaurar un aura de film maldito alrededor de esta producción, el resultado es una película realmente curiosa, que en sus mejores momentos desborda capacidad de sugerencia, misterio y encanto “pulp”, además de un arrebatado toque onírico y “fantastique” que mece esoterismo y ocultismo con el erotismo perverso que desprende su extraordinario personaje central.

Una archipoderosa sacerdotisa egipcia que tratará de reencarnarse en la hija del director de la expedición que encontró su sarcófago en el intento de que este la devuelva a la vida en el presente con la ayuda de una serie de objetos rituales. Memorable personificación de la bellísima y voluptuosa Valerie Leon en el doble papel protagonista, expresando/encarnando mejor que bien el balanceo entre la ingenua jovencita contemporánea y la malignidad seductora y el descaro sexual de su yo pasado. Como siempre en la “Hammer” la comodidad burguesa es corroída por la infiltración de lo inexplicable, sacando a la luz las pulsiones ocultas a través del encuentro frontal con la encarnación de aquello que realmente más se desea.

Desgraciadamente las inclemencias del rodaje hacen mella y el invento padece no pocas arritmias e incongruencias tonales/estéticas (y alguna interpretación muy mediocre) pero pervive la huella del intenso estilo visual de Holt, tanto en las estupendas ensoñaciones que corresponden a los recuerdos egipcios como en ese particular don que tenía Holt para convertir en amenazadores los objetos a través del encuadre o en la sofisticada planificación de alguna secuencia, el ataque en el callejón debe por fuerza ser suyo. La música y la fotografía son tan excelentes como era norma y toda la película está dotada de ese algo inmarcesible de “la casa del terror”, esa magia del cine que sublima, incluso desde la inconsciencia, sus propios puntos de partida.

Sangre en la tumba de la momia (Blood from the Mummy’s Tomb)

Director: Seth Holt, Michael Carreras

Año: 1971

País: Gran Bretaña

91 min.

Fotografía: Arthur Grant

Música: Tristram Cary

Guión: Christopher Wicking según la novella de Bram Stoker, “La joya de las siete estrellas”, 1904

Reparto: Valerie Leon, Andrew Keir, James Villiers, Hugh Burden, George Coulouris, Rosalie Crutchley

You were so sweet when we first met

The Horror of Frankenstein is a 1970 British horror film by Hammer Film Productions that is both a semi-parody and remake of the 1957 film The Curse of Frankenstein. It was produced and directed by Jimmy Sangster, starring Ralph Bates, Kate O’Mara, Veronica Carlson and David Prowse as the monster. The original music score was composed by Malcolm Williamson.

Baron Victor von Frankenstein, a cold, arrogant and womanizing genius, is angry when his father forbids him to continue his anatomy experiments. He then sabotages his father’s shotgun, killing him as a consequence. Inheriting the family fortune, he uses the money to enter medical school in Vienna, but is forced to return home when he impregnates the daughter of the Dean. There, he sets up his laboratory, starting a series of experiments involving the revival of the dead, eventually building a composite body from human parts, which he then brings to life.

Kate O'Mara

Cast
  Ralph Bates … Victor Frankenstein
  Kate O’Mara … Alys
  Veronica Carlson … Elizabeth Heiss
  Dennis Price … The Graverobber
  Jon Finch … Lt. Henry Becker
  Bernard Archard … Prof. Heiss

Make Up Department
  Tom Smith … makeup supervisor
  Pearl Tipaldi … hair styles supervisor

Veronica Carlson

Amazon Specials!

Scars of Dracula is a 1970 British horror film directed by Roy Ward Baker for Hammer Studios.

It stars Christopher Lee as Count Dracula, alongside Dennis Waterman, Jenny Hanley, Patrick Troughton, and Michael Gwynn. Although disparaged by some critics, the film does restore a few elements of Bram Stoker’s original character: The Count is introduced as an “icily charming host”; he has command over nature; and he is seen scaling the walls of his castle. It also gives Lee more to do and say than any other Hammer Dracula film except its first, 1958’s Horror of Dracula.

Trivia:

• Jenny Hanley was dubbed by Nikki Van der Zyl.
• Dennis Waterman was Hammer’s choice; Roy Ward Baker has said in interviews he thought Waterman was badly miscast.
• The last feature of Toke Townley
• Last Hammer horror of Michael Ripper.
• Scars of Dracula is the first Dracula film to attempt to capture the scene in Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel where the Count actually crawls out and climbs along a wall in a bat-like manner, the only difference being that in the Stoker novel, Dracula climbs down, while in Scars of Dracula he climbs up.
• This is the second Hammer Dracula film to feature a servant to the count named “Klove” (the first was Dracula: Prince of Darkness, though the role was played by a different actor in each film.

Cast  
  Christopher Lee … Dracula
  Dennis Waterman … Simon Carlson
  Jenny Hanley … Sarah Framsen
  Christopher Matthews … Paul Carlson
  Patrick Troughton … Klove
  Michael Gwynn … The Priest
  Michael Ripper … Landlord
  Wendy Hamilton … Julie
  Anouska Hempel … Tania
  Delia Lindsay … Alice, burgomaster’s daughter

Jenny Hanley

Make Up Department
  Heather Nurse … assistant makeup artist
  Wally Schneiderman … makeup supervisor
  Pearl Tipaldi … hairdresser

   Roger Dicken … special effects

Amazon Specials!

Yes indeed, it’s that time again, and in honour of this momentous occasion, Out On Blue Six presents five amazing facts you never knew about Britain’s favourite defunct provider of third rate sub-Amicus/Hammer horror flicks:

- despite winding down operations in 1976 for absolutely no suspect reasons whatsoever and subsequently having a nice day out at the seaside with a vicar (we will of course not be naming the vicar), the Tyburn Films name was briefly revived in 1984 for a project entitled Batty!, a movie based on the incident in which popular puppet rodent Roland Rat was hit with a cricket bat; this failed to get off the ground when the film was seized before production as a ‘Video Nasty’, though it was later released as a blank disc in a box set of former Nasties alongside Threads: Just The Swearing, Ghostwatch Smeg-Outs and some bloody ITV wartime drama that even Network considered ‘too obscure’. Lawyers have asked us to emphasise that Tyburn Films were never involved with any prospective films about erstwhile celebrity puppets.

- in 1972  Tyburn Films were the recipient of a prestigious ‘Uncle’ award, given out by Fans Of The Silents in recognition of contributions to the genre, in response to their soundless presentation of Frank Zappa’s over-droned-on-about concert at the Royal Albert Hall where he phoned Mary Whitehouse and called her a “Swizzlewick silly” or something, which many noted was vastly improved in the absence of the audio track, though this has posthumously been withdrawn after it was discovered that the master tape was recently recorded over with the Supergrass ‘mockumentary’ Glange Fever, and the original was unable to be recovered even from an off-air recording retained by superfan Ian Levine. Lawyers have asked us to emphasise that Tyburn Films have never even met Frank Zappa and were on holiday when it wasn’t made.

- amongst numerous Tyburn Films projects that were abandoned during production were Mutiny On The Pipkins, Eli Culbertson Vs. Pterodactyls, The Furious Windcheaters!, Spangles Galore and The Waltham Green East Wapping Carpet Cleaning Rodent And Boggit Extermination Association Live At Somewhere They Couldn’t Fit This Billing Onto The Marquee. Lawyers have asked us to emphasise that Farewell To John Denver has been removed on legal advice (and also because it wasn’t funny).

- the Wikipedia page on Tyburn Films is one of the most rigorously maintained on the whole of the site; moderators waste no time in removing unverifiable claims that the company existed, operated in the early seventies and made films, while ensuring that vital information such as “Tyburn Films is not to be confused with Milburn, who worked in the cafe on Last Of The Summer Wine, which sounds a bit similar” is always present and correct. Lawyers have asked us to emphasise that [CITATION NEEDED].

- Sendhil Ramamurthy, TV’s Mohinder from Heroes, considers Tyburn’s output to be “full of exemplary acting”. Lawyers have asked us to emphasise “Sylar!” in a ’shocked’ voice.

Demons of the Mind is a 1972 British period horror film, produced by the Hammer studio. It was directed by Peter Sykes and its cinematographer was Arthur Grant. The cast includes Gillian Hills, Robert Hardy, Patrick Magee, Michael Hordern and Shane Briant.

Trivia:

• Robert Hardy replaced Eric Porter who withdrew from the movie to
  

  Gillian Hills

  film Hands of the Ripper (1971) which was made simultaneously.

• Gillian Hills was a last-minute replacement for Marianne Faithfull who was recast due to insurance reasons.
• The role of Elisabeth was originally intended for famous pop icon Marianne Faithfull.
• Although the movie was completed in 1971, it sat on a shelf for over a year and was finally released on a double bill with the trashy psycho feature Tower of Evil (1972).
• The role of Baron Zorn was originally offered to Paul Scofield and James Mason, both of whom turned it down.
• Shane Briant made his film debut as the tormented Emil.
• John Atkinson is dubbed.
• Paul Jones was suggested by the director.

Amazon Specials!

Hope you didn’t think we were done with Halloween! Like all good horror fans, TSFI is ensconced in horror movie marathon. So here’s what has been watched so far…. Do I have to mention here there be discreet linkage? Be sure to explore. If you haven’t been during the 31 posts blog to Halloween, there are many treats hidden there.

Instead of going for the obvious Hammer Horror choices like The Horror of Dracula, I tried to mix it up a little.

Though I was fascinated by Christopher Lee’s feral agressive sexualized Dracula as a teen, I find myself becoming drawn more and more to Peter Cushing’s amoral deluded Doctor Frankenstein as I get older. The evil that he represents in the Frankenstein cycle of films is so much more real. Well, in a pulpy over the top way. But in the colorful atmosphere of Hammer Films that’s close enough for me.

Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed, the 5th film in the cycle, takes the spirit of the original novel and runs it through the early 70s shock combine. In alot of ways this is one is pretty gruesome and, in one scene, sleazy.  Cushing pretty much dominates this cast, though George Pravda’s portrayal as Dr. Brandt is memorable as well.  Veronica Carlson’s turn as the gothic horror honey of the piece is merely okay.  A good start to the fest.

How was I to know I was going to be doing a Veronica Carlson double feature?  Dracula Has Risen from The Grave was a surprise in several ways. It actually has continuity with previous installments in a clever way. The prologue  fits around the time of The Horror of Dracula and the movie starts proper around the time following  Dracula Prince of Darkness. While not having Van Helsing or vampire hunting monks, it has a decent cast of supporting characters.  I enjoyed the turns of Ewan Hooper as the tormented priest and Michael Ripper as tavern owner Max.  Just wish I could get the appeal of Barry Andrews. Not that he’s bad just compared to Lee’s Dracula, he’s a really trivial hero. That said, he’s sudden conversion from atheist to true believer is handled pretty succinctly in this most overtly religious of the Dracula cycle.  Some obvious plotting flubs keep this from being my favorite but it had that flavor I crave!

Then the fest jumped from Hammer to 1953’s House of Wax.  What can I say?  It is a movie that seems to bridge two eras of horror.  Vincent Price is great as usual. But the more I watch this one, I am more freaked out by Carolyn Jones’s portrayal of Sue’s friend. Did people like her really exist? Yes it is a campy movie but there are many effective bits. I really enjoy the bit when Professor Jerrod is giving the tour of the museum. And the chase through the rainy fog shrouded streets. And the elevator murder. And the part where Professor Jerrod…uh…loses face with Sue. I wish there were more horror villains like Professor Jerrod than Jason.  I mean there is always room for one more knife wielding psychotic but could we get some classy monsters too?

Due to Tim Lucas’s awesome commentary on the latest  DVD of Baron Blood,  House of Wax lead me to this Bava shocker.  Baron Blood is not the best Bava but damn it sure finds its way back to the player a lot. It sends my brain back to a time when late night was ruled by horror films and not info-mercials. The atmosphere is mesmerizing. I also enjoy the way that Bava uses the Baron Blood character to make commentary on his obsessions. Very meta for its time. While it does resound in proximity to House of Wax, it seems more personal.  Before I start to babble..Here’s to shutting up!

Not to be confused with….

Okay that’s it for now. This fest will end sometime tomorrow as the world stumbles through All Saint’s Day like the undead! Don’t forget to set your clocks back!

EL TERROR Y SUS NOVEDADES QUE VIENEN PROXIMAMENTE

En  STYD encontramos   las primeras imágenes de The Resident el thriller que produce, cual Ave Fenix, la Hammer.

The Resident cuenta la historia de una doctora que se traslada a vivir Brooklyn. En su nuevo hogar comenzarán a suceder cosas extrañas y sospechará de que realmente no está sola en el lugar…

Jeffrey Dean Morgan y Christopher Lee completan el reparto.

Gracias a Fear.NET Les mostramos una nueva imagen oficial del remake de Mother´s Day que está dirigiendo Darren Lynn Bousman (Repo!, Saw 2).

Arrastradas hasta una casa aislada, donde son atacadas y torturadas, las tres amigas deberán luchar para sobrevivir.

This is the actual Dracula… but it isn’t my Dracula:

And this is not my Dracula:

Not this one:

Or this one:

And I don’t really think this is anyone’s Dracula:

When I apply the ownership of “my” to it, I’m talking about when you close your eyes and think “Dracula,” the image that pops into your head is “your” Dracula. For me, THIS is my Dracula:

That, my friends, is Christopher Lee. (Pausing for the appropriate oohs and ahs.) Christopher Lee starred in seven of the nine films in the Dracula series from Hammer Films, from the late ’50’s to the early 70’s.

One of my greatest memories of childhood is my father and I, each Saturday afternoon, watching old horror films on The Channel 20 (WXON) Saturday Afternoon Thriller and Sir Graves Ghastly on channel 2 (WJBK). And, of those old films, my favorites were the Dracula movies.

And, among those Dracula movies, the Hammer films rose to the top. At the time, I probably wouldn’t have been able to talk about the production values, or the acting… I would have just said they were better. Despite my age, and my ability to analyze the films and explain what draws me to them, I find myself falling back into my childhood feelings about them – they are just better.

They weren’t slow and plodding, they didn’t look like they were filmed in someone’s basement with cardboard props, and Dracula was what he was supposed to be – a monster. Evil and nasty, and not terribly talkative.

(All due respect, and I say this as a fan of both Angel and Forever Knight, but I miss when vampires weren’t all sensitive and brooding.)

I really enjoyed these movies, but hadn’t seen them in years. Oh, there have been a few releases for home entertainment over the years, but nothing great or even complete (due to rights issues, I believe).

Then, a few weeks ago, I was told about a DVD set that was out from Warner Bros. called, “4 Film Favorites: Draculas.” This is a two disc set, containing four of the Christopher Lee/Hammer Films Dracula movies – Horror of Dracula, Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, Taste the Blood of Dracula, Dracula A.D. 1972. The price for this assembled bit of cinema greatness? Around ten bucks.

I was immediately doubtful. First, I’m not a fan of double sided discs when it comes to movies. They seem really susceptible to scratching and damage. Second, squeezing four films onto two discs usually mean low quality. Third, what could I really expect for $10.00?

But, fan of the films that I am, I went ahead and bought the collection.

And I’m so glad I did.

What you get is a pretty straightforward, no frills kinda deal with these. You essentially get the movie and its trailer for each film. That about does it in the area of “extras” on these discs. What makes this set worth more than the cost though is the quality of the films themselves.

Remember how I mentioned there have been various releases of these films in the past? Generally, those releases were crummy, lifted from less than stellar prints of the originals. This set, though, is sharp and crisp, not plagued with saturation problems or muffled sound like previous releases. And, the original trailers? They are pretty cool.

I would love to have a complete set of the nine Hammer Films Dracula movies, but I’m happy that four of the best of these films are collected here. (Maybe someday, the rights issues will be cleaned up and we’ll see an entire set!)

(Just in case you were interested, that set would include: Horror of Dracula, The Brides of Dracula, Dracula: Prince of Darkness, Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, Taste the Blood of Dracula, Scars of Dracula, Dracula A.D. 1972, The Satanic Rites of Dracula, and The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires.)

I’m not going to go into each of the movies right now, for two reasons. One, tacking on four movie reviews to this is far more work than I want to do right now (yeah, I’m lazy, but I may review the movies separately at a later time), and, Two, it is four movies for ten bucks! Even if they were horrible, that’s only $2.50 a film. I’m sure you’ve spent more on a bad film sometime in the last decade!

But, these aren’t bad. They are pretty awesome. Admittedly, I’m biased, and I’m sure nostalgia is playing a big part, but even so, I would not hesitate recommending this set to someone that wants to see some really great Dracula movies.

And, with that, my good readers, Vampire Week here at The Steve Austin Book Club draws to a close.  Thanks for joining us, Happy Halloween, and we’ll see you next week!

Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell

October 30 1974

Trivia: Peter Cushing claimed that the wig he was required to wear made him look like Helen Hayes.

A brand new film from Hammer Films and it stars Christopher Lee – first time they’ve worked together since 1976.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Watchmen, Supernatural) plays a bit of a psycho stalker in this one and Lee plays his Grandfather.

The Resident finds Hilary Swank playing a doctor who moves into a new tenement only to be stalked by her landlord (Morgan).

Source: STYD

Christopher Lee

By Grace Wong for CNN

London, England (CNN) — Although his name is synonymous with horror, Christopher Lee says he doesn’t have much desire to see pictures that fall under that genre these days.

The 87-year-old, who helped Britain’s legendary Hammer studios breathe new life into the horror genre in the 1950s, says he rarely watches horror films.

“I find it quite nauseating what they do,” Lee told CNN. “The blood is all over the screen like an avalanche — the mutilation — dreadful things, and I just don’t enjoy that.”

The veteran actor, who played Count Dracula and Frankenstein in a series of Hammer movies from the 1950s until the 1970s, says it’s “obscene” how much is displayed in horror films today.

“What you don’t see is far more frightening than what you do see,” said Lee, who considers Roman Polanski’s 1968 supernatural thriller “Rosemary’s Baby” the scariest film he’s ever seen.

That may explain his attraction to upcoming psychological chiller “The Resident,” his first Hammer film in more than 30 years.

Starring Hilary Swank and Jeffrey Dean Morgan, the movie is about a young doctor whose landlord develops a creepy obsession with her.

Lee was a perfect fit for the film, which takes on a nightmarish quality in a nod to the noir style of Alfred Hitchcock, director Antti Jokinen says.

“He has that presence that a movie like this needs because a single look can be the scary atmosphere that you need,” Jokinen told CNN.

“The Resident,” due out in the spring, is the first theatrical feature under the banner of the re-launched Hammer Films. It is being revived by new investors who bought the company two years ago.

Lee says his reunion with Hammer is ironic in a way. He didn’t leave the studio on the best of terms — “I’m not going to go into it, but take it from me, they ruined it,” he says of his last Hammer film, bizarre 1976 cult classic “To the Devil a Daughter.”

Some remarkable films did come out of that era: He describes black-and-white “Scream of Fear” (1961) as “brilliant,” and fondly recalls working with the close-knit Hammer team, which was like a family.

“Occasionally they’d change the cameraman or something but otherwise the whole crew was the same all the time, and I knew all of them extremely well,” he said.

But the white-haired actor doesn’t wax nostalgic. “Not every Hammer film was perfect,” he said.

In 1966’s “Prince of Darkness,” he ended up playing the character of Dracula silent because the lines “were not good and I couldn’t do anything with them.”

Lee played a central role in the rise of Hammer, starring in 1958’s “Dracula,” which helped both him and the studio gain international recognition.

The film was instrumental in launching a golden era for the production house, whose films, with their gothic qualities and use of vibrant colors, helped reinvigorate the horror genre.

But the movies began to seem outdated as movies like “The Exorcist” and “The Omen” came on the scene, and Hammer produced its last film in 1976.

Lee — or to be precise, Sir Christopher Lee, after Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in June — has come a long way since his first Dracula film, a six-week job that he says paid £750.

Although he’s often associated with Hammer films, Lee is quick to point out that he hasn’t really taken many horror roles.

Aside from the Dracula movies, “The Curse of Frankenstein” (1957) and “The Mummy” (1959), “I haven’t done lots of horror,” the prolific actor told CNN.

Of course, that hasn’t kept him from achieving cult status among horror fans.

Included in his legion of fans is “The Resident” co-star Morgan, who says he “hit the ceiling with excitement” when he found out Lee was joining the cast.

Morgan told CNN: “He’s got this kind of dignity to him that’s just great.

“I work with so many actors that don’t have respect for what we do, or respect for the history of what we do and not only does he respect it, but he is a part of the history of this craft.”

Over the decades Lee has starred in hundreds of movies. He has a predilection for playing baddies, including Bond villain Scaramanga in “The Man with the Golden Gun” (1974).

“I haven’t spent my entire career playing the guy in the bad hat, although I have to say that the bad guy is frequently much more interesting than the good guy,” Lee said.

His more recent film credits include the menacing Saruman in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and fallen Jedi knight Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels.

But he considers 1973’s “The Wicker Man” “the best picture I’ve ever done.” The role was written for him and remains his favorite.

“They didn’t have to look for me to play the part; they wrote the part for me,” which doesn’t happen very often, he said.

Lee has kept a busy work schedule. In addition to “The Resident,” he stars alongside Colin Farrell in the soon-to-be-released “Triage,” is involved in a film from the director of “The Wicker Man” and lends his voice to animated film “Monstermania!”

Lee, who doesn’t show any signs of slowing down, despite approaching the age of 90, is pragmatic about his extraordinary career.

“Well,” he said. “What else would I do?”

Read MORE about Christopher Lee HERE

When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth is a 1970 movie starring Victoria Vetri, set in the time of cavemen. The film was made by Britain’s Hammer Films.

Like several of Hammer’s previous films, such as One Million Years B.C. (1966), the film portrays dinosaurs and humans alongside each other. Directed and scripted by Val Guest, it was based on a treatment by J.G. Ballard, and nominated for an Oscar for its visual effects.

The special effects are considered a benchmark in stop-motion animation believability, so much so that the film is referenced in the movie Jurassic Park. Stop-motion effects were created by Jim Danforth, assisted by David W. Allen and Roger Dickens.

The landscapes (Earth during the Quaternary) were filmed in Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura (Canary Islands), in some places as Maspalomas beach, Ansite Mountain, Amurga and Caldera de Tejeda, in others. It was briefly released on DVD as an exclusive from Best Buy with a G-rating, but was later recalled because it was the uncut version and contained nudity. The original is now a collector’s item.

Trivia:

Cast:

Victoria Vetri

  Victoria Vetri … Sanna
  Robin Hawdon … Tara
  Patrick Allen … Kingsor
  Drewe Henley … Khaku
  Sean Caffrey … Kane
  Magda Konopka … Ulido
  Imogen Hassall … Ayak

Magda Konopka

This episode is about as good as it gets as we talk Horror, Beatles, and comics. And semi in depth look into the master film making of that perennial classic Jeepers Creepers and TJ’s favorite film franchise SAW. We then discuss the beatles remasters; Find out who is a Paul Person and who is a John Person, or don’t, i really don’t care. We then touch on the solo careers of the two intelligent beatles and discuss which is better. IN comic talk we discuss Return of Shadowhawk on the iPod and Spacedoubles. Then Kevin talks about the Fable Novel, Peter and Max. Just like Deadpool 900 this episode is dedicated to the loving memory of Bea Arthur.

Get it on iTunes, or www.fbombcast.com, or download directly from here: http://media.libsyn.com/media/fbombcast/fbc56.mp3

The Gorgon (1964)

 

The Gorgon is a 1964 British horror film directed by Terence Fisher for Hammer.

Buy This Title on DVD

It stars Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Barbara Shelley and Richard Pasco. The film was photographed by Michael Reeves, and designed by Bernard Robinson. For the score James Bernard combined a soprano with a little-known electronic instrument called the Novachord. The film marks one of the few occasions when Hammer turned to Greek mythology for inspiration; this time it is the legend of the Gorgon that is respun for the Hammer audiences.

Tagline:  A Monster With the Power to Turn Living Screaming Flesh Into Stone!

Trivia:

• Prudence Hyman’s snake-filled wig was worked by five wires which were attached to a box that was about 25 feet behind her.
• Although the UK cinema version was uncut some shots of the Gorgon’s decapitated head were slightly darkened by the BBFC.
• Actress Barbara Shelley, who played the possessed heroine, Carla Hoffmann, wanted to play the part of the gorgon as well for continuity, and suggested to producer Anthony Nelson Keys that she use a special wig with live green garden snakes woven into it for a more realistic effect. Her idea was rejected by Keys due to budget and time considerations. When Keys saw the abysmal gorgon effects in the finished film, he told Shelley that he should have listened to her suggestion. As Christopher Lee quips, “The only thing wrong with “The Gorgon” is the gorgon!”
• The name of the Gorgon character is “Megaera”, supposedly taken from mythology. But Megaera (“jealous”) in ancient myth is one of the three Erinyes, or Fates – the goddesses of revenge – not a Gorgon. According to Hesiod, the three Gorgons were Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa.
• Prudence Hyman was nearly decapitated for real. She was supposed to duck when Lee swung the sword but forgot to do so at the critical moment. The assistant director pushed her aside just in time. The scene was then redone with a dummy.
• Michael Goodliffe who plays Richard Pasco ’s father in this film is only 12 years older than Pasco.

27 x 40 Movie Poster!

Hands of the Ripper (1971)

 

Hands of the Ripper is a 1971 British horror film directed by Peter Sasdy for Hammer Film Productions.

It is set in London in Victorian times, and stars Angharad Rees as Anna, a vulnerable young woman who is exploited by her guardian (Dora Bryan), a medium, and haunted by the subconscious memory of her mother’s murder by her father – Jack the Ripper. She is taken in by a Freudian psychiatrist (Eric Porter), who is determined to find out the cause of her by-now-murderous impulses.

Buy this Title on DVD

The film also stars Jane Merrow, Keith Bell and Derek Godfrey. It was filmed at Pinewood Studios, with some location work at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.

T-shirt available

Tagline: A new terror-filled X film

Trivia:

• Lynda Baron’s character is named after one of Jack the Ripper’s real-life victims, Elizabeth Stride, whose nickname was “Long Liz”.

Buy Movie Soundtracks Here!

• For the climactic scenes in St Paul’s Cathedral – permission was requested and turned down to film on location. A replica was built instead.

Angharad Rees

Amazon Specials!

Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (1971)

 

 

Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde is a 1971 UK film based on the short story Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. The film was made by British studio Hammer Film Productions and was their second adaptation of the story after their 1960 film The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll.

Cast:

Ralph Bates as Dr. Jekyll

Martine Beswick as Sister Hyde

Gerald Sim as Professor Robertson   

Buy this title on DVD

Tagline: The sexual transformation of a man into a woman will actually take place before your very eyes!

Trivia:

• Husband and wife Ralph Bates and Virginia Wetherell first met as they prepared to shoot the scene in which Bates as Dr. Jekyll kills the prostitute played by Wetherell.
• Caroline Munro was offered the part of Sister Hyde but refused because it required some nudity.
• The BBFC requested cuts to remove the inter-cutting of a murder and a rabbit gutting, and to edit a bedroom murder and the stabbing of Professor Robertson. The bedroom murder was shortened though Hammer re-edited the stabbing of the doctor to comprise flash shots of earlier killings. Despite initial BBFC objections the film was then passed, and all later releases feature this same edited print.

27 x 40 Movie Poster

Martine Beswick

Mary and Madeleine Collinson in Twins of Evil (1971)

 

 

Twins of Evil is a 1972 horror film by Hammer Film Productions starring Peter Cushing. It is the third film of The Karnstein Trilogy, based on the vampire tale Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu. The film has the least resemblance to the novel and adds a witchfinding theme to the vampire story. It is sometimes seen as a prequel to The Vampire Lovers, the first film in the Karnstein Trilogy, as the set design and costumes give the film an 18th Century look and feel. Much of the interest of the film revolves around the contrasting evil and good natures of two beautiful sisters, Frieda and Maria Gellhorn (played by twin Playmates Mary and Madeleine Collinson). Unlike the previous two entries in the series, this film contains only a brief vampire lesbian element.

Tagline: A new terror-filled X film

Trivia:

• Harvey Hall is the only actor to appear in all three films of the Karnstein trilogy, although in different roles in each one. Peter Cushing also played one of the leads in the first, The Vampire Lovers, and also Luan Peters, who plays a small role in this film, also appeared in the second film Lust for a Vampire.

Hammer Films on DVD

• Both the Collinson Twins were dubbed
• Ingrid Pitt was offered the cameo role played by Katya Wyeth.
• Used the same sets as Vampire Circus (1972)

30x24 Movie Poster

• According to Damien Thomas Dennis Price was Ill and in a great pain while filming his brief cameo.

27x40 Movie Poster

11 x 14 Movie Poster

 

 

 

The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires was a 1974 horror film produced by Hammer Studios and Shaw Brothers Studio.  Starring Peter Cushing, David Chiang, Julie Ege, and John Forbes-Robertson.

Both Roy Ward Baker, a British director who had helmed several previous Hammer films, and Chang Cheh, a veteran Hong Kong action director, worked on the movie, though only Baker is credited.

Tagline:  Deadly Horrors! Dragon Thrills! The First Kung Fu Horror Spectacular!

The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires was a co-production with Hong Kong’s Shaw Studio, made in the hope of garnering some of the kung fu movie market share.

The movie was released with various titles in different locations, including The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula and Dracula and the Seven Golden Vampires. It is a clear precursor of the ghost kung fu comedy genre initiated by Sammo Hung some ten years later (Encounters of the Spooky Kind, Mr. Vampire).

Double Feature!

The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula version trims twenty minutes of the film’s footage and soundtrack and loops several remaining scenes to fill the running time. The Anchor Bay DVD release features both the Seven Brothers Meet Dracula version and the original uncut Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires version.

Trivia:

WILHELM SCREAM: During the big fight scene at the village (at 1hr 12mns) when Van Helsing shoves a zombie into the fire pit.

Julie Ege

24x36 Poster The Vampire Lovers (1970)

 

The Vampire Lovers is a 1970 British Hammer Horror film directed by Roy Ward Baker and starring Peter Cushing, Polish actress Ingrid Pitt, Madeline Smith and Kate O’Mara. It is based on the J. Sheridan Le Fanu novella Carmilla and is part of the so-called Karnstein Trilogy of films. Other films in the trilogy are Lust for a Vampire (1971) and Twins of Evil (1972). The three films were somewhat daring for the time in explicitly depicting lesbian themes. In the early 1980s a punk group in tribute Vampire Lovers (Australian band) named themselves after the movie.

Buy this Title Here!

Tagline: Beautiful temptress …… or Bloodthirsty monster?

Ingrid Pitt 12x16 Photo

In The Vampire Lovers (based on J. Sheridan LeFanu’s “Carmilla”), Ingrid Pitt’s sensuous bloodsucker seduces Hammer starlets Madeleine Smith and Kate O’Mara and incurs the vengeful wrath of Peter Cushing.  The Vampire Lovers aims for comic-book thrills with plenty of nudity and violence (much of which was trimmed from the American version, but reinstated in the DVD).

Before production the script of The Vampire Lovers was sent to the chief censor John Trevelyan who warned the studio about depictions of lesbianism, pointing out that a previous lesbian film The Killing of Sister George had had five minutes excised by his office. In

Madeline Smith 12x16 Photo

response Hammer replied that the lesbianism was not of their doing but was present in the original story by Le Fanu. Trevelyan backed down (Sinclair McKay 2007: 118). Production of The Vampire Lovers began at Elstree Studios on 19 January 1970 and used locations in the grounds of Moor Park Mansion, Hertfordshire (standing in for Styria, central Europe). It was the final Hammer film to be financed with American money — most of the later films were backed by Rank or EMI.

Kate O'Mara

Trivia:

27x40 Movie poster

The Terror of the Tongs (1961) is a Hammer Film starring Geoffrey Toone, Christopher Lee and Yvonne Monlaur.

The film is a quasi-remake of Hammer’s Stranglers of Bombay from 1959. The setting is changed to Hong Kong in 1910 from India in the 1800’s but the basic plot of a middle-aged hero attempting to uncover the crimes of a secret sect in a British colony, being captured by the sect, and later released, having a personal stake in the outcome ,finding that there is an inside villain, and losing friends or family are all there.

The low-budget film is distinguished by good color photography and an interesting performance by Christopher Lee as Chung King, the aphorism-quoting leader of the Hong Kong division of The Red Dragon Tong.

Tagline: Deadliest, Diabolical Brotherhood of Terror!

But this title on DVD!

Christopher Lee is the imperious leader of a cutthroat tong–a secretive, organized criminal society–in the exotic 1961 Terror of the Tongs. Geoffrey Toone plays the captain of a British passenger ship whose daughter is murdered by the Red Dragon Tong during the latter’s attempt to find incriminating papers smuggled (against her knowledge) within her possessions. As the captain seeks vengeance, he gets close to the dangerous heart of the tong, which exacts punishment over anyone who does not cooperate by hacking off his or her fingers.

Yvonne Monlaur