Draculas Blutnacht

One almost expects Ward, June, Wally and the Beav to visit too...Yes, this is an underrated masterpiece. "What? What did you say?" In the main title Dracula is shown standing still behind a three-stick candle...the "scene" reminds me of an icon in a Byzantine Catholic or Orthodox church...and what happens when Jennie is staked...Cousin Bellac temporarily reels and almost faints...reminds me of "Whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers you do unto me"...and that line, "You will arise reborn in ME!"...there's a discernible anti-theology here and I hope whoever was responsible for it didn't believe it. But I'd not be surprised if there were a cult-especially in CA-which worships Dracula. The most chilling scene in the film is the scene in which Rachel is primping at the downstairs mirror, but-to me-the most chilling line of dialogue is the interchange between the pastor and Cousin Bellac concerning Rachel's charm, when Cousin Bellac says, "Why yes...I daresay she'd even charm the devil himself." Lederer-may he rest in peace-may have hated this film, but he turned in a truly great performance. Pity this film is so little credited.

I first saw this film when it was originally released in 1958 and it literally scared the hell out of me. Once I got significantly older and happened to see it available on video, I purchased it for old times sake. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it had lost not one iota of it's power! The casting of the suave Francis Lederer in the title role was a master stroke. It indeed does bring back memories of the superb "Shadow of a Doubt". Although a low budget entry, it still causes uneasiness to its viewers. Gerald Fried's eerie score is a plus too. It was largely overshadowed in 1958 by the "Horror of Dracula" (also a fine film as any Draculaphile would agree) but it deserves to be recognized as the fine chiller it is. i heartily recommend it to any fan of good thrillers.

Paul Landres directed this better-than-expected updating of the Dracula legend. Francis Lederer(quite good) plays Count Dracula, who flees his native land when vampire-hunters threaten him. He kills a Czech artist on a train, and assumes his identity as "Cousin Bellac", who visits the man's family in America, where he stays. Young Rachel Mayberry(played by Norma Eberhardt) becomes infatuated with her "cousin", who is both suave and mysterious, which makes her boyfriend jealous. Meanwhile, Dracula proceeds to seduce a local blind girl named Jenny, with tragic consequences, which climaxes with a pursuit in a spooky cave... Good horror tale cleverly uses the premise of "Shadow Of A Doubt" to fine effect, resulting in an atmospheric Halloween-setting, with a good score. Not a classic, but better than the title would suggest.

Trivia note: Lederer would "return" as Dracula in a fine episode of the "Night Gallery" TV series called 'The Devil Is Not Mocked'.

Posing as a foreign relative, Count Dracula moves to an idyllic 1950s American town to look for a fresh batch of victims. Other than the odd hours he tends to keep, the family he's moved in with doesn't suspect anything out of the ordinary. They explain away his eccentricities to either being tired or his European heritage. But a couple of unusual deaths in the small town catch the eye and attention of an investigator hot on Dracula's trail. Can he track down Dracula before anyone else dies?

I've got to agree with several of the other comments on IMDb - The Return of Dracula is one spooky and fun little movie. It's also a real under-seen gem from the 50s that deserves a much wider audience. The movie's got a lot more atmosphere going for it than most of the other, cheaply made, b-type films of the period. Francis Lederer is suave and creepy enough to pull off the role of Bellac Gordal aka Dracula. There were at least two instances where I nearly jumped out of my skin as the camera panned to find Lederer. The score is another contributing factor to the eeriness of the movie. It hits all the right notes (pun intended). But my favorite moment in The Return of Dracula has to be the staking scene. It may go by quickly, but it's awesome. I won't spoil for those who haven't seen it, so I'll just say that it's one of those unexpected moments that make discovering these oddball 50s movies such a blast.

Indeed this is a vampiric version of SHADOW OF A DOUBT. Nonetheless it is a fun romp and a tremendous performance by Francis Lederer as Count Dracula who has assumed the identity of Belloq Gordal, a Hungarian visiting his Southern California family. There is a wonderful "Dies Irae" score by Gerald Fried and excellent performances and atmosphere throughout. There is a color insert shot of the staking of a vampire woman that is also fun. This film is another in the Fifties canon of cult horror which deserves classic status of sorts. One can almost imagine Joseph Cotten in the titular role, though. The comparison between this film and SHADOW will be obvious, but who cares?