Les Sévices de Dracula

The delicious Collinson twins, Mary and Madeleine, are reason enough to catch this technically accomplished and subtly erotic horror flick from Hammer; these ladies are sex incarnate and burn up the screen every time they appear.

Twins aside, director John Hough's contribution to English vampire lore is a very tight, exceptionally well directed and staged tale of bloodsucking and rampant desire.

Peter Cushing, as Gustav Weil, is the God-fearing leader of The Brotherhood, a bunch of old witch-finders who stalk pretty girls with bad reputations and confine them to burning crosses. Life gets complicated for old Gustav when his sexy niece (Madeleine Collinson) gets curious about Karnstein castle and its Satan-worshipping occupant (Damien Thomas) and decides to open her legs and heart to the arrogant neck-biter.

TWINS OF EVIL gets everything right. The photography, by Dick Bush, is stunning; the miniature work is never less than believable; the violence is more bloody than usual. The on-screen nudity is more explicit than is typical for a Hammer production and the storyline adequately provides for a generous amount of chills and thrills.

An evocative exploration of the fascinating nature of evil and reasons aplenty to submit to the humid charms of ladies with voracious appetites.

Highly recommended.

Hammer has a lucky to be able to make this movie after the British movies raise age allowing from 16 to 18 years old to show more nudity scenes as gory neither, was the sexual revolution that gave an upgrade and freedom, after a strong wave of liberalism from Europe, then Twins of Evil was made with two premises, firstly the Brotherhood of the Puritans leading by the bigot Gustav Weil (Peter Cushing) whom pursuit young women supposedly by practice of witchcraft and burning all them at fire without mercy, in other hand the Count Karnstein (Damien Thomas) protect by the Emperor stays free to get their victms, Mircalla arose from the grave, just to justified the trilogy's name, in fact she wasn't in the plot, then appears on the little village a gorgeous twins Sister from Italy after lost her father, Frieda and Maria (the Maltese Collinson sisters) a soft sexploitation picture has just few scenes cut by censorship, the candle a dared suggestive scene and the when Frieda bites a woman breast, the DVD bring all scenes in fullness as conceived at this time, also some front nudity showing pubes, one greatest movies from Hammer fully restored !!!

Resume:

First watch: 2015 / How many: 2 / Source: DVD / Rating: 7.75

Hammer movies seem to divide horror fans. You either dig them or you don't, and I most certainly do! In my opinion even the weaker movies from that studio are still worth a look, and 'Twins Of Evil' is one of the better ones, and therefore essential viewing. It may not be as great as 'The Vampire Lovers', which it has a tenuous link to (it isn't really a "sequel" as such but also deals with the wicked Karnstein family, so if you haven't seen the former, don't sweat it), but it's still damn entertaining. Horror legend and Hammer regular Peter Cushing puts in a strong performance as the overly zealous witchfinder Gustav Weil. He always can be depended upon to take the material seriously, sometimes more seriously than it deserves. The Collinson twins who play his nieces are pretty and can act adequately, but show nowhere near as much flesh as you might expect. They may be the stars according to the title of the movie but are easily overshadowed by Cushing and cult figures Dennis Price (Franco's 'Vampyros Lesbos', the Vincent Price black comedy 'Theatre Of Blood') and David Warbeck (Fulci's 'The Black Cat' and 'The Beyond', and Russ Meyer's little seen 'Blacksnake!'). The rest of the supporting cast are all fine, especially Damien Thomas as the decadent Count Karnstein. As I said 'Twins Of Evil' didn't impress me as much as 'The Vampire Lovers' which I still think is THE Hammer vampire classic, but along with 'Vampire Circus' it is an underrated movie that deserves to be seen by every horror buff. Director John Hough incidentally went on to make the frightening 'Legend Of Hell House' and the cult Peter Fonda road movie 'Dirty Mary Crazy Larry'. 'Twins Of Evil' is yet another solid effort from the much loved Hammer studios.

Gustav Weil (Peter Cushing) is the leader of a rampaging vigilante group determined to eradicate vampires and witches. Weil's job is complicated when his twin nieces move in with him, and one of them is attracted to the local bloodsucker. Frieda and Maria (Madeleine and Mary Collinson) discover the allure of sinister aristocrat Count Karnstein (Damien Thomas), and he unleashes the evil inherent in one of them ... but can Weil tell which one?

Netflix says this film features "busty teenage orphans". Not sure what to make of that. I guess it is true they do spend part of the time laying around in low-cut nightgowns, and another time the nightgown of one comes open when a crucifix is thrown at her, and they were Playboy models, but is this the selling point of the film?

From director John Hough ("Legend of Hell House"), based off of "Camilla" and being a Hammer Production, you know this is going to be good. Not sure what to make of the black servant who grunts and gesticulates wildly, being treated like Lassie, though.

Some reviews stress the way this film "tears" the audience: you do not want to root for the vampire, but you also do not want to side with the puritan. I thought the decision was pretty easy, but maybe some people get torn on issues like this.

Filmed on the same set as the better-known "Vampire Circus", this one is not to be missed. Really, any time Peter Cushing fights vampires is not to be missed.

The third and final entry to the 'Karnstein Trilogy', "Twins of Evil" of 1971 is doubtlessly one of the creepiest and best films the great British Hammer Studios have brought forth in the early 70s. After the fantastic "The Vampire Lovers" (1970) and the mediocre "Lust For A Vampire" (1971), this prequel to its predecessors is set in 17th century Austria (my home country), and unites several favorite Horror elements such as Witchhunts, Devil-Worshiping and Vampirism. After many Hammer beauties in other films, "Twins of Evil" brings us the eponymous twins in the leading role, played by the 19-year old former Playboy playmates Madeleine and Mary Collinson. Even though the busty twin sisters, as well as some of other beauties are very nice to look at, this film relies less strongly on eroticism than its predecessors, and focuses mainly on creepiness and suspense. The film follows the 70s Horror-trend of witch-hunts, which became popular after Michael Reeves' British Horror masterpiece "Witchfinder General" (1968) starring the great Vincent Price. This time, it is another brilliant Horror icon, Hammer's very own Peter Cushing, who plays a merciless Witchfinder. Only that this ruthless witch-hunter stands in opposition to a devil-worshiping clan of Vampires - The Karnsteins.

After their parents' death, Venice twins Frieda and Maria Gellhorn (Madeleine and Mary Collinson) are sent to live with their aunt and uncle in an Austrian village. The uncle Gustav Weil (Peter Cushing), a strict religious fanatic, is the leader of a puritan group called 'the brotherhood'. After mysterious deaths, Weil and his henchmen, who believe the murders to be the work of the devil, abduct young women and burn them at the stake for alleged witchcraft. It is quite obvious though, that these women are innocent. The satanic Count Karnstein, who spends his time with bloody rituals, lives in the castle on a mountain near to the village...

"Twins of Evil" magnificently combines several great Horror themes. A classic Vampire story comes along with and Witchhunts, Devil-Worshipping, all presented in a Hammer-typical, beautifully creepy Gothic atmosphere. In my opinion, many of the greatest Hammer films are from the early 70s, as they maintained the beautiful Gothic style and elegant creepiness of their earlier gems, and, at the same time, mixed different Horror-themes and introduced the more explicit themes of the 70s (such more explicit gore and mild erotica). This film has all the classic Gothic Hammer elements - foggy grounds, dark forests, graveyards and eerie castles etc, combined with gruesome elements and genuinely frightening moments. Peter Cushing (in my humble opinion, one of the greatest actors who ever lived) shines as the merciless Witchfinder, a role that fits him brilliantly. The sexy leading ladies Madeleine and Mary Collinson make the film a joy to look at. Director John Hough, who would later make films such as "The Legend of Hell House" (1972) as well the "Treasure Island" adaptation with Orson Welles (1972), deserves great praise for making this one Hammer's most elegant, suspenseful and chilling films. Beautifully filmed in the Hammer-typical uncanny visual style and accompanied by a nice score, "Twins of Evil" is doubtlessly one of the most atmospheric Hammer films from the early 70s, and it also ranks up there among their all-time greats. Highly recommended and a must-see for all Hammer fans!