Il mistero del castello

Stylish Hammer production involving a honeymooning couple lost in the Bavarian woods and their encounter with a (literally) hypnotic doctor who lives in a castle, which is a front for a cult of vampires. The couple are invited to attend a masquerade party there and (big mistake) they accept.

Originally intended by the studio as a Dracula film, the count's name is never mentioned in this film. The young couple (Edward De Souza, Jennifer Daniel) have much of the screen time and are both pretty bland as performers. De Souza's character is a bit of a dope (at least to experienced horror fans who can well see ahead in the story as to what is about to happen to them) while Daniel adequately serves her role's requirements by being young and attractive. Let's face it, folks, the cult of vampires don't want her attendance at the party because of her conversational ability.

The two most noteworthy cast contributions to the film are provided by Noel Willman, as the aristocratic Dr. Ravna, the cultured castle owner and head of the cult (watch out for those teeth when he gets up close and personal) and Clifford Evans as an alcoholic professor, the Van Helsing rep here, so to speak, who previously lost his daughter to the cult but knows the black arts and how to summon demonic forces in order to destroy the cult.

James Bernard supplies a big, booming musical score bringing impact to the visuals and handsome sets, in much the same manner as he had a few years before with Horror of Dracula. The climax, originally intended for that of Brides of Dracula, has special effects that seem barely adequate by today's standards but still remain fun to view even if you can't take them too seriously.

While Kiss of the Vampire is not quite in the same league as a blood chilling horror entertainment as the studio's Horror of Dracula or Brides of Dracula, fans of the genre should still be satisfied with the end results. It certainly plays much better than some of those later films in the Dracula series with Christopher Lee.

In the beginning of the Twentieth Century, the just-married couple Gerald Harcourt (Edward de Souza) and Marianne Harcourt (Jennifer Daniel) run out of gas while driving in Germany in a honeymoon trip. They have to stop for the night at a bed and breakfast and they are invited to dinner at the castle of the prominent Dr. Ravna (Noel Willman), where they are introduced to his family. They are invited to go to a party in the castle in the weekend and they accept the invitation. Gerard and Marianne go to the party and Marianne vanishes. Gerard asks for help to the local Professor Zimmer (Clifford Evans) and learns that Dr. Ravna is the leader of a vampire cult that had abducted his wife. What will they do?

"The Kiss of the Vampire" is a different but attractive vampire movie where there is no reference to Dracula. The vampires fear the cross and garlic as usual, but they can walk during the cloudy day and can eat and drink wine. Indeed they are a cult led by the notorious Dr. Ravna. The sets and costumes are very beautiful and the vintage car is a piece of art. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Beijo do Vampiro" ("The Kiss of the Vampire)

The basic plot: Gerald and Marianne Harcourt, a couple traveling through Europe for their honeymoon, break down in a small and secluded Eastern European village ,and one of the few places theyr'e welcomed is is the grand castle of the Count Ravna ,but when he turns out to be a bloodsucker and own a vampire cult and kidnap Marianne, Gerald must ally with reclusive vampire hunter Dr.Zimmer to defeat the vampires.

The praise:Ominous and entrancing. The scenes which are most effective are the ones when there is an air of unknowing and quiet terror, and a lot of creepy hypnotic feel. The masque scene is a masterpiece in structure, and Roman Polanski was definitely influenced by this in the making of his great suspenseful comedy "The fearless Vampire killers".The acting is solid , and the film is gorgeously ornate to look at, the Castle Ravna is being a place of complex architecture and decorative flourishes. The plot is pretty simple, but this small gem is all about mood.As well, the scene before Gerald and Marianne Harcourt come in is bloody good.

The flaws: The climax doesn't come together as well as the rest of the movie.

Don Sharp directed this entertaining vampire tale(not connected with the Dracula series) that sees honeymooning Gerald and Marianne Harcourt(played by Edward De Souza & Jennifer Daniel) develop car trouble on their driving trip in Europe, but are aided by a Count Ravna(played by Noel Willman) who invites them to his castle for a costume party after they check into a local inn. The party takes a dark turn after Gerald is drugged, and told that he has no wife! Confused and outraged, he seeks the help of Professor Zimmer(played by Clifford Evans) who is also staying at the inn, and informs him that Ravna leads a vampire cult that turned his own daughter, and now wants Marianne... Another atmospheric horror from Hammer with a fine score and direction. A pity it couldn't have brought back Peter Cushing as Van Helsing, but performances are still good, and leads to an exciting finale.

"The Kiss of the Vampire" is a Hammer Studios film from 1963 that should manage to surprise and impress even the most jaded horror fans. In it, British honeymooning couple Gerald and Marianne Harcourt run out of petrol near "Kronenbourg," Germany in the year 1910 or so (judging from their vintage automobile), and are soon befriended by the area's most prominent citizens: the family of castle-dwelling Dr. Ravna, a debonair host who just happens to head a clan of blood-loving vampires! Interestingly, these vampires differ somewhat from the type we've all come to know and love, in that they have a fondness for ordinary food and wine, and can walk about during daylight hours...as long as it's fairly cloudy outside. Still, they remain averse to garlic and definitely suffer from, uh, crucifixaphobia. But this film offers us much more than just a group of atypical neck noshers. "Kiss" has been beautifully photographed, boasts some truly striking sets (an "ornate coffin," Ravna calls his sumptuous home), and features a literate script and fine acting from its relatively no-name cast. There are also several impressive sequences: Ravna's son, Karl, playing his eerily dreamy piano composition; a flaming-hand cauterization following a vampire's "kiss"; a vampire masquerade ball; and perhaps the best pentagram/conjuration scene ever shown on film...at least, until "The Devil Rides Out" came along in 1968. And, without giving anything away, let me just say that the vampires are undone in this film in a manner I have never seen before. From its deliciously morbid vampire-funeral opening to its (perhaps too) abrupt conclusion, this concise little picture is still another winner from the great House of Hammer.