Horror Of Dracula (1958)

The British horror Hammer Productions have never been something I was all that interested in. I find the films to be a bit slow with not enough sleaze-factor. I am also very partial to Vampire movies in general with the exception of the ultra trashy or just totally bizarre ones.

With that being said you would think that Horror Of Dracula would probably find its way into my nearest garbage can. The truth is I kind of dig this one. First off this was the first of Hammer vampire flicks and we all know that the first is almost always the best. This Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee combo was originally titled Dracula and was intended to be taken as a modern retelling of the classic Dracula (1931) with Bela Lugosi. It would be latter retitled The Horror Of Dracula in the United States which I think was a wise decision. I mean it is unoriginal enough to make yet another Dracula film but the least you can do is give it a different name.

For some reason in this British take on the evil vampire, Dracula's castle is located somewhere in Germany. Transylvania is never mentioned. It all starts off pretty slow with the oh so familiar tale of Johnathan Harker slowly being drained of life from the evil count but Harker finds the underground sleeping place of Dracula and his bride and drives a steak through the vampiric brides hart. Harker falls victim of Dracula's fangs and Christopher (Dracula) Lee takes revenge by making Johnathan's wife his new vampire bride.  This is where the film gets moving... Peter Cushing plays the part of Van Helsing and teams up with Michael Gough (Horror Hospital, Legend Of Hell House) and they track down the count and battle it out in an awesome climax.

The end of the film makes it all worth while with a really cool vampire melt down. The special effects may not be the best but it still makes for a fun watch. The Horror Of Dracula offers up a tid bit of blood here and there with steaks through the heart and of course throat biting. One thing I noticed is that Christopher Lee doesn't seem to be a neat eater because he always has blood running down his cheeks, even in his sleep. Somebody should get this guy a bib.

Check it out to see where it all started in Hammer studios. The director would go on to do a shit-load more of these Hammer horror flicks including Dracula : Prince Of Darkness which is a cool follow up. Brides Of Dracula and The Revenge Of Frankenstein.