Countess Dracula: Special Edition DVD

Advantages: Good cast, sets, competent direction, nice score
Disadvantages: Uneven screenplay, too little of Dracula

...'Taste'. Peter Sasdy would contribute 2 more films for Hammer, the potboiling 'Countess Dracula' and the much more impressive 'Hands of the Ripper' before he slid into obscurity on the back of some truly wretched horror flicks. Hammer themselves would stumble on for a few more years, but 'Taste' was certainly the last of the Dracula films to possess any thought or quality in it's production. Released on DVD by Warners in 2004, it is another threadbare effort that gains kudos only for the superb uncut print on display. This print, a 1.85:1 anarmorphic widescreen transfer which preserves the original ratio, restores early scenes set in a brothel which were excised from US prints subsequently finding their way to these shores for television transmission. Rest assured, snakes and writhing belly dancers are back where they belong. The picture... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Faithful and Carefully Crafted
Disadvantages: Lacking cohesion and any real chills

...menace. All the special effects and bloodletting in the world can't save the fact that you've been introduced to someone who has 'good' in them. There are without doubt many good things about this production, but there are also many bad things, and in trying to condense a reasonably hefty text, full of characters, into feature length time we end up with a slightly unwieldy and uncohesive film. Characters come and go, and we scramble from set piece to set piece only for the momentum to be broken up with the interminable romance between Dracula and Mina, and the ending seems a very rushed affair and is quite unsatisfying, leaving a feeling of too many cooks spoiling this bloody broth. The story begins with the premise that Dracula is Vlad the Impaler, betrayed by God when his love committed suicide believing him dead from battle. It's all... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Great storyline with loads of brillant characters
Disadvantages: Could of had more action

...This film was a great film to watch. It had all the most classic characters of our history brought back to life and joining forces in order to save the world. The graphics were great also. My favourite bit would have to be of Countess Dracula changing and feeding. It was graphically done nicely. When a classic film is being out together you really have to resseacrh the characters so that the actors and actresses portray their roles in every detail of what myth has showed them to be like. Without fulfilling this the characters are blown out of propotion and that when people don't tend to watch. I would seriuously reccommend this film to anyone. It is a must see classic remake film.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful