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Horror of Dracula
In 1958 Hammer Films of England began their "now classic" remakes of the Classic Universal Monster Films. Today the remakes themselves are considered Classics, revived in full Technicolor and wide screen.
With full canine fangs and Technicolor blood Christopher Lee gave us a more horrific and brutal version of Count Dracula which delighted the audiences and continues to do so today.
The shooting script, Pressbook and many photographs
Production background by Ronald V. Borst
Also contains:
THE VAMPYRE by John Polidori, 1819
the complete text to the original Gothic Vampire Story
With an introduction by Michael Hartley
With full canine fangs and Technicolor blood Christopher Lee gave us a more horrific and brutal version of Count Dracula which delighted the audiences and continues to do so today.
The shooting script, Pressbook and many photographs
Production background by Ronald V. Borst
Also contains:
THE VAMPYRE by John Polidori, 1819
the complete text to the original Gothic Vampire Story
With an introduction by Michael Hartley
Kindle Edition
First published April 10, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 4, 2025
A strong argument could be made that Universal Studios realized that they were making the final film in their "classic Monster" series with "House of Dracula." It was very quickly made to cash-in on the surprising financial success of "House of Frankenstein," they spent surprisingly little on its creation, the run time is very short, and the story does provide an ending for each of the ongoing Monster stories (aside from the later Abbott and Costello outings). Similarly, HOUSE OF DRACULA (UNIVERSAL FILMSCRIPTS SERIES: CLASSIC HORROR FILMS) receives a low-budget release with photographs reproduced in light-grayscale, and with typeface sometimes so light that it is initially difficult to read.
All of this is a bit saddening as the film release of "House of Dracula" had definite creative inspiration in it instead of merely rehashing "The Monster Is Loose" formula. Indeed, I would be surprised if the writers of the "Dark Shadows" daytime drama didn't borrow the idea of attempting to cure a vampire from it!
The major appeal of the book is that it provides a bit of the production history, includes the Pressbook, and the script contains moments that didn't survive to appear in the final film. (Again, that is too bad because they would have contained enhancements that would have strengthened both the story and character development.)
Whenever I watch "House of Dracula," I'm rewarded with a sense of closure. Now, I'll be watching it with a bit of wistful imagining of what it might have been.
All of this is a bit saddening as the film release of "House of Dracula" had definite creative inspiration in it instead of merely rehashing "The Monster Is Loose" formula. Indeed, I would be surprised if the writers of the "Dark Shadows" daytime drama didn't borrow the idea of attempting to cure a vampire from it!
The major appeal of the book is that it provides a bit of the production history, includes the Pressbook, and the script contains moments that didn't survive to appear in the final film. (Again, that is too bad because they would have contained enhancements that would have strengthened both the story and character development.)
Whenever I watch "House of Dracula," I'm rewarded with a sense of closure. Now, I'll be watching it with a bit of wistful imagining of what it might have been.
May 21, 2021
Really enjoyed his Universal Monsters series, and the behinds the scenes Hammer write ups were insightful.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews