SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie
Aiden Melton The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.
Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
Cheryl A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.
Scott LeBrun Teenager-oriented monster schlock from producer Herman Cohen and director Herbert L. Strock has only a mildly amusing premise. The troubled Nancy Perkins (Sandra Harrison) is shuffled off to a girls school by her father (Thomas Browne Henry) and stepmother (Jean Dean). Here Nancy falls under the influence of her science teacher Miss Branding (Louise Lewis), who believes that her crackpot ideas are being discounted by male colleagues because she's a woman. Soon a series of murders plagues the campus.The title is a misnomer, as the story & screenplay by Aben Kandel really have nothing to do with Count Dracula. The only fresh bit of business is having a female in the role of a Dr. Frankenstein type of character, and Lewis is okay in this role. But the rest of the parts are strictly nondescript, and that includes our protagonist Nancy. Some fans of the genre may be disappointed, as the body count is quite low, and the plot is unfortunately bogged down in talk and short on horror. The makeup is bargain basement stuff. A.I.P. do populate the movie with attractive young performers, one of whom (Jerry Blaine as Tab) pads the running time a little bit with a ditty called "Puppy Love".At the very least, it's nice to see a couple of reliable character actors in supporting roles: Malcolm Atterbury as Lieutenant Dunlap, Richard Devon as Detective Sergeant Stewart, Paul Maxwell as Dr. Mike, Carlyle Mitchell as Stanley Mayther, and Voltaire Perkins as Dr. Lawson.Although "Blood of Dracula" kills 70 minutes fairly painlessly, it's dull when compared to the likes of "I Was a Teenage Werewolf".Five out of 10.
bkoganbing One thing I will say about Blood Of Dracula. It revives the tradition that was reserved for B westerns in that the title has nothing to do with the famous Transylvanian Vampire Count. Other than to say that the murders committed in this film are said to be Dracula like, Dracula has nothing to do with the film. I guess American International Pictures thought that the count's name would bring in some box office.Well if you're expecting Bela Lugosi or Christopher Lee pass this right on by. This concerns some chilling murders that occur in and around Mary Adams's school for girls. In this case we have a woman mad scientist in Louise Lewis and she's conducting experiments involving an impressionable young teen played by Sandra Harrison. A little hypnosis and Harrison reverts to the primitive which includes turning into a girl werewolf replete with fangs and sucking the blood dry out of those she kills. It's all a puzzle to the homicide cop Malcolm Atterbury.In the worst of science fiction films the scientist is always saying that this is all for the benefit of humankind. Even female scientists are saying that. How turning a young teen girl into a primitive homicidal maniac is beyond me.This film is one camp hoot with cheap cinematography, no production values and players delivering their lines in anticipation of their checks clearing. Let's hope they got paid for this drivel.
mlraymond This low budget 1957 monster movie is typical of the drive-in fare produced by AIP in the late Fifties to attract the teenage audience. It's a moody, low key story with some nice atmosphere, about a teenage girl embittered by her father re-marrying shortly after her mother's death, and dumping his daughter in a private school at the request of his new wife.The new student makes a good impression on the leader of the secret clique that runs things behind the lines, who advises her chemistry teacher mentor that they've found the ideal subject for the teacher's secret project, a girl filled with barely suppressed anger and violence.Many viewers have commented on the lesbian subtext of the teacher's relationships with Myra, the clique leader, and Nancy, the new girl. Louise Lewis gives probably the best performance of the movie as the feminist scholar determined to prove her thesis to a " world run by men for men". She strikes just the right note as the sinister scientist with a benign exterior, seeming only to want to be a helpful mentor to the girl, polite and efficient with the school dean, spouting her lunatic ideas with reasonable sounding phrases about progress and science.Some night time scenes of terror on the darkened grounds of the school are very effective, and the acting is fairly good. As usual for a Fifties AIP movie, there are lots of pretty girls to look at, some rock and roll music and dancing, and a subversive undertone in which virtually all adults are suspect in their motives.The movie isn't as dynamic as I Was a Teenage Werewolf, from which it's obviously derived, but it works pretty well on its own terms as a spooky little thriller. Definitely worth seeing for Fifties horror movie buffs.
Chris Gaskin Blood Of Dracula is a typical of the drive-ins that Americain International came out with in the 1950's, aimed at teenagers. I quite liked this one.After her mum dies and dad remarries, a girl is sent to a boarding school where she is hypnotised by one of her teachers as part of an ongoing experiment connected to the supernatural. This turns her into a fanged vampire and she kills several people. The police are baffled by these murders and when she refuses to look at her teacher at the end, tragedy strikes... Includes somebody singing Puppy Love.Blood of Dracula has some creepy music and creepy locations as well, especially the night scenes. The vampire make-up looks pretty good for a low budget movie.The cast is mostly made up of unknowns, lead by Sandra Harrison, her only movie according to IMDb.Blood Of Dracula is a must for B-movie followers out there.Rating: 3 stars out of 5.
