Zoltan - O Cão Vampiro de Drácula

Awesome 70's B Grade horror. It pretty much has everything from the campy vibe, the synth scores, the right ending, and more. I liked the directing style as well. Anyone who likes B grade horrors from the 1970's should look out for this, it underrated that's for sure. Just don't expect great acting, well not at the start anyhow.

This film is great. Dog lovers should get a kick out of this movie. Seeing Zoltan lick his chops after biting both humans and fellow dogs is worth a chuckle or two. The Reinfeld-type character is probably the ugliest human being I have ever seen. Michael Pataki, seen in many more horror films such as "Grave of the Vampire" puts in another B-movie "performance." Jose Ferrer is simply there to pick up a paycheck. The dog that plays Zoltan is the second best actor in the movie. Overall, if you don't expect too much you won't be let down. Definitely a gem in the "so bad it is good" genre. Check it out while downing a few beers. You might enjoy it.

Blending the vampire and creature feature themes, Albert Band's "Zoltan" is a haunting filmscape canvassing Dracula's faithful undead servant Veidt Schmidt (Nalder) and bloodhound named Zoltan, awoken from their eternal slumber to locate Dracula's last known descendant (Pataki) and restore the undead dynasty. Pataki is on vacation with his family and two German Shepherds when Detective Jose Ferrer arrives to deliver the bad news.

Routinely panned as a monumental lemon, I have no trouble enjoying the creepy performance of the tight-lipped, scar-faced Nalder, his dialogue delivered telepathically as he commands the dutiful Zoltan (a savage looking greyhound) to execute opposition to their mission. Pataki is virtually a bewildered bystander as Ferrer has to convince him that not only is he the last adult descendant of Count Dracula, but that his lineage want him converted to undead status. Arlene Martel has a small supporting role as one of the foolish uniforms who exhume the long-dead vampires in the film's prologue, while some viewers might also recognise Simmy Bow and JoJo D'Amore in a humorous cameo as a pair of ill-fated fishermen.

Suspenseful at times (e.g. Ferrer and Pataki holed up in the log cabin while the pack terrorise them throughout the night), "Zoltan" is a novel twist on the Dracula theme and not, in my opinion deserved of the criticism - it's clearly a B-movie, yet technically well constructed with a moody atmosphere, some gruesome shocks and downright entertaining.

A different sort of twist on the Dracula tale, the premise nevertheless wears thin by the second half, and overall the film is not too good either, despite having a degree of eeriness to it. The cheap special effects are hardly special, the dialogue is full of dud lines, and the quirkiness of the plot gives way to some awkwardly goofy silly moments. The dogs are the main aspect of interest here, better trained than what one would expect. Still, that is not quite a good enough reason to watch it. Some of the music is effective, and overall it is a bearable watch. It is a very trashy film and not at all very good, however it is still okay viewing if one is in the mood for some B-grade horror fluff.

A group of soldiers excavate a crypt, one of The Soldiers pulls the lid off a sarcophagus, unveiling a cloth covered figure with a stake through its heart, he removes it, and all hell breaks loose.

It's a horror flick from the 70's with a story about vampire dogs, a horrendous script and presumably a budget that would barely have funded the purchase of a second hand Datsun, but it is a bit of fun.

Nobody will convince me that this movie is anything other than shocking, too many of the elements are excruciating, including the wooden (stake) acting, the horrendous script and somewhat cute dog, but I wasn't bored, I wasn't distracted, and I didn't flick through it, it held my attention.

I didn't dislike some of the visuals, and some of the special effects aren't totally without merit.

What do you expect from a film called Zoltan, Hound of Dracula, you know full well what you're going to get.

4/10.