Dracula A.D. 1972
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Movie Reviews of Dracula A.D. 1972
Movie Review: Like, Taste the Blood of Dracula, kids!
Summary: 3 Stars
For reasons known only to the author, Bram Stoker's Dracula never included the line "Sergeant, I'll bet you a pound to a pinch of s**t that there's a little piece of hash at that party, and if there is, I've got them.", but the early 70s saw that particular oversight put right. Dracula A.D. 1972 saw Hammer trying to pump new life into the old Count with a new creative team whose big idea was basically to rehash the plot of Taste the Blood of Dracula in the 1970s with Christopher Neame in the Ralph Bates role as Johnny Alucard, here conning a thrill-seeking group of with it kids (Michael Kitchen and Caroline Munro among them) into making a date with the Devil with a Black Mass at the deconsecrated church that not only holds Lawrence Van Helsing's body (Lawrence? Whatever happened to Abraham?) and Dracula's ashes. "Okay, okay. But if we do get to summon up the big daddy with the horns and the tail, he gets to bring his own liquor, his own bird and his own pot."
As with the Godzilla films, the main attraction is kept off the screen for most of the running time - top-billed Christopher Lee's role is probably smaller in this than any other in the series, four brief scenes probably totalling no more than ten minutes. Worse still, looking more like Peter Sellers than Transylvanian aristocracy, he brings nothing except continuity to the part: he does what is asked of him with professionalism, but that's about it. Instead the bulk of the film is carried by Neame's Malcolm McDowell wannabe, second-billed Peter Cushing as Van Helsing's grandson Lorimar, Stephanie Beacham and Michael Coles' open-minded cop ("There is a Satan." "Of course. Otherwise we wouldn't need a police force, would we?"). Yet despite the clumsily handled prologue and finale it's fairly entertaining even if it is completely derivative, perhaps even more entertaining now than when it was released because its hip and happening trappings are far funnier than the intentional comic relief - not least Johnny Alucard urging "Dig the music, kids!" during the black mass - and it's a lot better than Dracula 2000.
The DVD also includes the wonderfully over the top trailer - "Are you ready? He's ready. He's waiting to freak you out - right out of this world!" - but not the short making of documentary from when the picture was still called Dracula Today (other rejected titles included Dracula Chases the Mini Girls and Dracula Chelsea '72!).
Movie Review: Dracula adapted a new fashion of Rock N Roll & hippies youth culture in the 70's
Summary: 3 Stars
Christopher Lee could replace his predecessor Bela Lugosi as Count, This film is a great example for Lee as Count. Though his style was a bit floppy, cause he becames slowly tired to play Dracula at that time.
As a result the Hammer Film bosses have tried to mixture the old gothic horror elements with a new fashion like a youth Rock And Roll culture during the 70's. It sounds a bit silly, but that was 1972 when they had produced for something new.
Christopher Lee could balance and continue his charismatic predecessor Bela Lugosi(1882 - 1956) in the 60's Hammer british Dracula series.
The differences are:
- Lugosi was more a theatrical Dracula from Broadway. Lugosi acted very elegant, exclusive & gentleman as a Dracula star. His charming style becomes a legend.
- Lee is more a mainstream Dracula star. He is not a theatre star like Lugosi did in 1931. He'd prefer a type of cold elegant beast. His style is less charming because he has to accustom himself into various directions in eight Dracula series.
Lugosi played as Dracula three times:
1. Dracula 1931
2. Return of the Vampire 1944
3. Mark of the Vampire 1935
Lee played as Dracula 8 times (see Filmography Imdb)
Frankly Bela Lugosi was a bit more charismatic than Christopher Lee, but Christopher Lee could balance the great charisma of his great predecessor.
Movie Review: Cushing and Lee make this a worthwhile watch.
Summary: 3 Stars
Dracula A.D. 1972 is a campy instalment in the Dracula series made by Hammer Films. The gist of the movie is that Dracula gets resurrected in 1972 by a young acolyte, Johnny Alucard and seeks to destroy the remaining Van Helsings, i.e. Dr Van Helsing [Peter Cushing] and his beautiful, hippie granddaughter Jessica [Stephanie Beacham].
Though Christopher Lee reprises his role as the malevolent count, his screen time is quite limited and I felt too much screen time was wasted on portraying the debauchery and free-swinging lifestyle of 70s Hippie culture - drugs, sex and rock n roll. But, when he does appear, Lee is magnetic as the count and doesn't disappoint in his performance.
But the best performance in this movie is Peter Cushing's 20th century Van Helsing - he is assured, intelligent and above-all single-minded in his determination to save his granddaughter Jessica from the vampire's clutches. Stephanie Beacham is luscious to look at and feisty in her portrayal as the strong-willed Jessica.
The rest of the actors were ho-hum - a bit overdone in some instances [the guy who played Johnny Alucard for example].
All in all, this isn't a great Dracula movie, but it isn't the worst either.
Movie Review: You Just Can't Keep A Vampire Home On A Friday Night In London
Summary: 3 Stars
Do You remember the wonderful Hammer horror films that came out of Britain in the sixties and seventies? If you do what did you like the best about them? Was it their first rate production values, the incredible gothic atmosphere or the numerous classic British actors who starred in these productions like: Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and Oliver Reed? If you were a young teenage boy at the time like I was you certainly did appreciate all the above, but they weren't the reason. When you talk about Hammer horror you're talking about the most beautiful, buxom actresses of the century.
'Dracula A.D. 1972' was no different, there were four lovely ladies in this film, the two most well known being Stephanie Beacham and my personal favorite Caroline Munro.
Basic stuff here, Dracula (Christopher Lee) rises from the grave once again, this time in modern day London and seeks revenge against the ancestors of Van Helsing (Cushing and Beacham), the man who last put him in the grave.
Enjoyable, well done, but all in all predictable. And as already mentioned lots of pretty woman being terrorized by the horrible Christopher Lee to keep the young boys interested.
Movie Review: It's the 20th Century and you STILL can't get the help
Summary: 3 Stars
"Master, let me serve you! Make me one of the undead!" Now, steady on, matey. You haven't even proved you're a decent valet yet. Have you pressed his cape or prepared a three course meal for visitors to castle Dracula? Of course not. This is 20th Century Britain and nobody wants to work for a living. Everybody is looking for shortcuts. Even though Dracula's cape would make him bang up to date walking down seventies Carnaby Street, the Count decides to delegate his chicanery to, you guessed it, another rubbish Butler. Taking after his master, this groovy servant of the Lord of Darkness (TM) decides to take a bath with his clothes on, a Dracula family tradition it seems.
Later, Dracula confronts a descendant of his old nemesis, Van Helsing. "Do you think you can defeat me, I who have commanded armies?" he snarls. Since you can't even command a bloody butler for hundreds of years, matey, I'd say that's a certified yes.