BLOOD WORK: HALLOWEEN HORROR DAYS ~ DAY 30: HORROR OF DRACULA (1958)

Hammer Studios hit major success with 1957's THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN. A big budget serious reimagining of the classic horror tale. Directed by Terence Fisher from a screenplay by Jimmy Sangster and starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee in the central roles. Hammer Studios injected new and terrifying life into what had become a stale and laughable franchise from Universal. So what did Hammer Studios do next? Well, naturally they sought to achieve the same success with another horror franchise driven into the ground by Universal Studios.

THE HORROR OF DRACULA also known as in the United Kingdom simply by DRACULA, was released the following year in 1958. Hammer combined all the elements from The Curse of Frankenstein that made it a success. Terence Fisher calling the shots, Jimmy Sangster with a visceral update to the story, and Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing as the leading actors. What resulted was an even bigger success and a new beginning to the franchise. With two horror successes now under their belt and more on the way, The Horror of Dracula helped launch a new renaissance in horror cinema, the era of Hammer Horror.

The Horror of Dracula marks the birth of the modern vampire film.

THE PLOT

Jonathan Harker arrives at Castle Dracula as the new librarian. Dracula bids him welcome and shows him to his room. That night Jonathan is attack by a comely female bearing fangs. Jonathan's true purpose is revealed as he grabs his stakes and hammer and slays the vampire. His primary target: Dracula. The lord of vampires lures Harker into a trap, disarms him, and turns him into the very creature he fights against. Van Helsing arrives shortly thereafter and unfortunately too late. Van Helsing tracks Dracula to Harker's home where the vampire continues reaping his revenge against Harker's whole family. Van Helsing confronts Dracula in a battle to the death.

THE GOOD

Vampire Slayers. The film begins calmly but with an undercurrent of dread. The introductions to both Harker and Dracula are very civilized, both appearing as gentlemanly unassuming men. We begin to hear recitations from Harker's journal, a faithful recreation from the book. Then the movie takes a 180 degree turn and dives right into the action. Jonathan Harker is revealed to be a vampire hunter stalking his greatest prey: Dracula. Hammer immediately differentiates its Dracula from the book and previous film incarnations. Director Terence Fisher dispenses with the long character reveals and already assumes the audience's acceptance of vampires. Then the film moves Harker out of the way and places the more compelling protagonist, Van Helsing, as the main character.

Epic Nemesis. Peter Cushing plays Van Helsing as a consummate professional in his role as the vampire hunter. No longer the wise old man possessing arcane knowledge of the nosferatu content merely to impart the information to the younger generation. This Van Helsing is a man of action, young and physically capable of battling vampires on his own. Peter Cushing's portrayal is easily the best rendition of the character in film. Likewise Christopher Lee plays Dracula with equal enthusiasm. His Dracula is fast and powerful. His eyes are unnaturally bloodshot, his fangs long, sharp, and dripping with crimson gore. He plays Dracula with frightening intensity and menace. Cushing and Lee are perfectly matched.

Blood and Fangs. Up until the release of this film in 1958, vampire films seldom showed blood nor the vampire's fangs. Strange to imagine today, but the censors were far more strict in the dawning decades of film, especially in Hollywood. F.W. Murnau's 1922 silent classic NOSFERATU was one of the few vampire films to show the fangs. Here it's not ten minutes in that we get a clear and terrifying view of Dracula's fangs and spurts of blood. In addition this film doesn't skimp on the slaying scenes either. Hard hits from the hammer, blood bubbling up, and the vampire screaming in agony. Sure, that's not big deal today, but back then it was shocking.

THE BAD

Censored. As I previously stated the graphic content of this film was shocking and unprecedented for its time. As a result many countries, including the United Kingdom, demanded cuts be made to the movie. Sadly several scenes of gore and violence were cut. Most of the world, including myself, has only ever seen the edited version of the movie. For a long time these scenes were thought lost. Recently a foreign print of the film was discovered containing a select portion of these cut scenes. A restored version of the film had been assembled and released on Region 2 blu ray and DVD. Sadly for us Americans we are Region 1 for DVD. I still have yet to see this new restored version and eagerly await its stateside release.

THE VERDICT

Peter Cushing's first legendary role was that of Victor Frankenstein. The following year he landed his next legendary role as Van Helsing. Once again Cushing played opposite Christopher Lee in his legendary role as Dracula. This film introduced the action element delivering a fast paced and exciting rendition. Along with action it thrust the character of Van Helsing into the spotlight. It also elevated Dracula to a whole new level of terror and menace with the addition of large scarlet hued fangs and intense bloodshot eyes. And the blood. Maybe the first vampire movie with onscreen blood. Modern vampire films wouldn't be what they are today if not for this movie. The Horror of Dracula is one of the greatest vampire films ever made.