Doctor Dracula

I knew before the film began that it would be bad. After all, it was directed by Al Adamson--one of the only directors in the history of film that might have been worse than Ed Wood, Jr.! However, what I didn't expect was for the film to be so dull. Other Adamson "masterpieces" such as BRAIN OF BLOOD and Dracula VERSUS FRANKENSTEIN are horrible movies--dumb, cheesy and inept on every level--and a lot of fun to poke fun at with friends. However, with DOCTOR Dracula, while the movie still is dumb and cheesy, the film actually isn't 100% terrible--only about 95.6%! While the plot is totally convoluted and the film has way too many bad guys (plus, why have Dracula AND Svengali?), it did have appearances by the competent Don Berry (who has over 200 films to his credit) and John Carradine (who has over 300 films to his credit). Both (particularly Berry) were decent in their roles and Adamson manages to make a bad film that isn't bad enough to laugh at with friends--but it is bad enough to put you to sleep. As for me, this Adamson film was too good to watch and while still only managing to earn a meager 2, it's pretty much a waste of time even to bad film freaks like myself.

Beware this is great stuff if you need to sleep or if you need a mild headache.The back story of these two movies is better than either version. Lucifer's Women (1974/75) was indeed completed and shown theatrically. I believe it ran 65 to 75 minutes in length. So why can't anyone seem to find it haunting a dollar DVD bargain bin nowadays? Well because it was a poor mans hardcore porn/horror flick with very limited distribution. Skip ahead to 1977 and we find a slightly new haphazard plot line made from the footage of Lucifer's Women and newly shot footage by a different crew and actors! Since all the sex scenes were excised out of Lucifer's Women it was sold off to network TV as Dr. Dracula! Yes,network TV as in the ABC Network. Dr. Anton S. LaVey's involvement was only with Lucifer's Women as technical advisory. I believe there were a few of his Church members involved on the production side and that's how he became involved. As for the films them selves, they are only of interests to Satanists and low budget film scholars - from a minor historical point that is. If you can somehow locate one of the handful of bootlegged copies of Lucifer's Women floating around out there watch it (you'll need nerves of steel) on a double bill with Dr Dracula. Pay attention to the differences and learn how not to make a worse movie out of an already bad one.

This is a very scary movie. It is a true horror classic. It is not a 2. 2 is just underrating it. It has a great story line. It also has great acting. It also has great special effects. Dracula (Marsh 1931) is better. Dracula (1992) is also better. But still this is a great movie. If it does not scary you know movie will. Dracula (1958) is better. Still the movie is scarier then The Shinning. And that is not easy to do. Don Red Barry was a great actor. Nosferatu (1922) is also better. But still this is one of the better Dracula sequels. There have been a lot of Dracula sequels and most of them are great movies. This is one of the scariest movies from 1978. It is a must see.

The current DVD edition contains the feature itself, and a selection of well-worn trailers from other Sam Sherman/Independent International releases. These "coming attractions" are featured on a multitude of releases by Image, and it is curious that they did not offer an audio commentary by Sherman. This would have been especially helpful in determining which footage was newly shot by Al Adamson/Gary Graver, and which were from the feature Lucifer's Women (the only new trailer listed in the extras). It is also unclear whether Lucifer's Women was also released on it's own, or whether the footage extant in Doctor Dracula is the only stock currently available. I'm sure Sherman could have clarified all of this. Curiously, of all Adamson films released on DVD, this is the one that cries out for an audio track the most.

As for discussion of the movie itself, other comments in IMDB will suffice, this only to say that I find it an interesting salvage job. After all, in what other movie will you find Count Dracula disguised as a psychiatrist, an author possessed by a fictional character, and Regina Carol wearing too much makeup? (Oops...that's right. Any Adamson film for the latter).

I've been on a quest to see all of Adamson's films for years and so imagine my surprise when this rarity turned up on local TV before Halloween. This is another of Adamson's patchwork features cobbled together using an older unfinished film (LUCIFER'S WOMEN) mixed with newer footage featuring Adamson regulars John Carradine and Regina Carroll. During commercial breaks the host of the show mentioned the overabundance of blue eyeshadow used in the movie and how it doesn't make sense that a person can be possessed by a fictional character (Svengali). Unintentionally funny is the deep voice used by a possessed woman which makes her sound like she's been possessed by the spirit of Suzanne Pleshette. Be sure to take a nap before watching the movie because it may put you to sleep.