The Return of the Vampire

I really enjoyed this movie. It was unique in that the Vampire had a werewolf as his assistant. This werewolf wears a suit, talks, smiles and, in general, acts like a normal human being. The movie was basically a sequel to Dracula but the vampire played by Bela Lugosi could not use the name Dracula because this was a Columbia picture and Universal Studios had the legal rights to the Dracula character. But, it was still Lugosi at his scary, pompous best.

Bela Lugosi stars as Armand Tesla vampire, but this is the only movie I've ever seen that had a talking werewolf who carries the vampire's laundry in a package tied up with string. This was the only bad part of an otherwise very good 40's vampire movie. I'll give it an A.

Return of the Vampire is, despite its title not a sequel to Mark of the Vampire.

In this vampire movie, a vampire is staked during World War 1 but then in the Second World War, two gravediggers bury him again after an air raid. They don't realise this corpse is a vampire after pulling the stake out his chest. He regenerates and gets a job in a lab. He has the help of a werewolf that can talk and killings once again start...

One of the best things about this movie is that talking werewolf. I don't think I've seen another movie with one. Unusual.

The cast is lead by Bela Logosi as the Dracula-like vampire. I've never heard of anybody else in this.

Return of the Vampire is worth checking out, especially if you are a fan of Bela.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5.

Lew Landers directed a lot of crap during his long, prolific career, but when he was on his game, as in The Raven (1934), and this film, he could produce a horror movie as good as any. The Return of the Vampire may be nothing more than a little Columbia B picture, but it exhibits more craft, care, and professionalism than 90 percent of what comes out of Hollywood today. The foggy, expressionistic photography and sets are fantastic, with excellent use of shadow and camera movement, and the early scenes of Lugosi prowling through mist and darkness, shot mostly from behind, or in silhouette, are striking in their spectral intensity. Lugosi once again shows why he ranks among the immortals; he is more commanding and magnetic walking from point A to point B in his top hat and tails than most actors are emoting through pages of dialog. Screenwriter Griffin Jay and director Landers go out of their way to showcase Lugosi's unique talents; he is given a great part with many substantial scenes to play, and Landers shoots him to his fullest advantage. Frieda Inescort, as Lugosi's nemesis, is sublimely up to the challenge, and their scenes together, especially their climactic confrontation at the pipe organ, are the best in the film. Sure, Return of the Vampire has its weak elements, such as Matt Willis's unfortunate talking werewolf, but let them pass. There are few moments in cinema as inspiring as watching Lugosi at full throttle, and Return of the Vampire has that in spades.

This beautifully shot B&W 1940s vampire film is loaded with the kind of old fashioned, spooky atmosphere that fans of classic Gothic horror will love. The fogbound sets are deliciously creepy, the graveyard & crypt sets nothing short of fabulous! The spooky music adds a lot as well. Bela Lugosi, about 60 here and well into the undeserved waning days of his career, is damn good. Tall, imposing, and as strong a screen prescence as ever, he raises questions as to why the often heartless and stupid film industry did not make better use of his talents. He shows here that he could certainly still carry a film and command the screen. But the script needed work. Matt Willis as the talking werewolf is laughable. When he's seen entering the graveyard carrying what looks like a package of Chinese laundry, I howled! I just couldn't see him running shopping errands in his werewolf garb! And no explanation is offered as to why the vampire's slave turns into a werewolf, a state he retains regardless of whether or not the moon is full. He's a wolf even in broad daylight. Still, this is a fun, somewhat creepy film, and Lugosi is always worthy of your time.