SCARS OF DRACULA

(1970) 96 minutes, Technicolor. Rated R

CAST: Christopher Lee (Dracula), Jenny Hanley (Sarah Framsen), Dennis Waterman (Simon Carlson), Patrick Troughton (Klove), Christopher Matthews (Paul Carlson), Anoushka Hempel (Tania), Wendy Hamilton (Julie), Michael Gwynn (Priest), Delia Lindsay (Alice), Bobb Todd (Burgomeister), Michael Ripper (Landlord), Toke Townley (Elderly Wagonmater), David Lealand (officer), Richard Durden (Officer), Moris Bush (Farmer), Margot Boht (Landlord's Wife).

CREDITS: Director: Roy Ward Baker; Producer: Aida Young; Screenplay: John Eldar, based on Dracula by Bram Stoker; Director Of Photography: Moray Grant; Art director: Scott MacGregor; Music: James Bernard; Musical Supervisor: Philip Martell; Special Effects: Roger Dickens, Brian Johncock; Assistant Director: Derek Whitehurst; Editor: James Needs; Construction Manager: Arthur Banks; Makeup: Wally Schneidermann; Makeup Assistant: Heather Nurse; Sound Editor: Roy Hyde; Dubbing Mixer: Dennis Whitlock; Sound Recordist: Ron Barron: Recording Supervisor: Tony Lumkin; Production Manager: Tom Sachs; Continuity: Betty Harley.

The villagers suspect that Dracula has returned when one of the village girls is killed. The villagers storm the castle in an attempt to put an end to Dracula's reign of terror but as the village men destroy the castle, the Count unleashes an army of bats who kill all the women and children in the village.

Meanwhile, Paul and Simon, two brothers, are celebrating the birthday of Sarah. A Burgomeister arrives to arrest Paul because he slept with the Burgomeister's daughter. Paul escapes the village and finds himself in Dracula's castle where, after a near tryst with a vampire minion, Dracula arrives to kill his slave and make Paul a prisoner.

Sarah and Simon set out to find Paul and the trail leads them to the castle. Once inside they become guests and Dracula makes his advances on Sarah. As he moves in to take her blood a cross around her neck repels him. Dracula attempts to use his influence of Klove to get the girl to remove the necklace but Klove refuses and begins to help the couple make their escape. Sarah and Simon try to enlist the aid of the villagers to destroy Dracula but can only find assistance from the local priest. En Route to the castle the priest backs out and Simon must face Dracula alone. Sarah and the priest are attacked by a bat who kills the priest and Sarah rushes to Simon at the castle as Simon encounters the body of Paul impaled on a hook. Dracula attempts to control Sarah but is warned about the power of the cross by Klove. Dracula tosses Klove off a cliff as Simon drives a metal spike through the Counts chest. Apparently he misses the heart and Dracula dislodges the spike and turns to kill Simon with it. As he raises the Spike in the air to kill Simon, lightning strikes the spike and Dracula's cape bursts into flames as Sarah and Simon watch him die.


Christopher Lee (Dracula)	Jenny Hanley (Sarah)	Chris Matthews (Paul)	Anoushka Hempel (Tania)	Michael Ripper (Landlord)

SCARS OF DRACULA went into production on May 7 of 1970 and finished on June 23rd. Roy Ward Baker was brought in to direct. He was hesitant to direct the film because of it's overly complex story. He did manage to work in an interesting aspect of the original Bram Stoker novel where Dracula climps down the wall of the tower face first. Lee was very reluctant to do the film as well because the modern audiences were demanding more gratuitous violence. Still, both Lee and Baker joined the project and SCARS OF DRACULA went into general release on October 23rd of the same year.

For it's release, SCARS OF DRACULA was paired with another Hammer attempt at making their other popular franchise appeal to a more modern audience, HORROR OF FRANKENSTEIN.

SCARS OF DRACULA fails on several levels. First and foremost is that it lacks the visual style that had become a Hammer trademark. For the first time in the Dracula series, the low budgets of these filmed showed up on the screen. The young cast seems to forget that this is a period film. While Hammer was doing some very interesting things with other vampire films, the Dracula series was weakening with only the apparent success being the inclusion of Christopher Lee as Dracula.

For their next Dracula film, Hammer would go even further to make the film more appealing to a younger audience by placing Dracula in the early 1970's with DRACULA A.D. 1972