Dracula A.D. 1972 [DVD] [1972]

Great picture and half decent attempt to breath new life into dracula films.

Best Hammer Horror (I heard that gasp of horror!) film imo. The whole cast (love Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee) are charming and often hilarious (Cushing/Professor Van Helsing regarding his specialised library of rare tomes, quote: “this is my place of work not WH Smith & Son”…hahaha!), and especially ‘Johnny ALUCARD’ (uncontrollable laughter whenever I think of this character creation and his name), played wonderfully by Christopher Neame. I love the 70s London setting too…very nostalgic. This setting and period was also highly effective in the classic horror film ‘Theatre of Blood’, starring the charismatic Vincent Price and Diana Rigg. Dracula A.D. 1972, fun for the whole classic horror loving family…’’Dig the music, kids!!’’

I regard Scars of Dracula as the best of these but this one is worth watching.

good old dracula

Good quality dvd. Brilliant old film.

Some 14 years and five sequels on from `The Horror of Dracula', the original and best Hammer film starring Christopher Lee as the anaemic Count and Peter Cushing as his stake wielding nemesis Van Helsing, comes this rather interesting attempt at reviving the ailing series. Following from the success of the original film, a whole series of sequels followed. The quality got steadily worse, until the absolute nadir was reached with camp and terrible `The Scars of Dracula', which preceded this film. None of the films repeated the pairing of Lee and Cushing, until this one. Deciding to try and recapture some of the old magic, and trying to take the series in a new direction, the producers brought back the classic double act of Lee and Cushing, and took the brave decision to update the series from the eighteenth century Gothic settings that had made Hammer's name, and set it in contemporary London. Largely, it works well. Dracula is an undead being, with unlimited lifespan, so why not? The presence of Van Helsing 100 years after his last appearance is easily and believably explained by his being the grandson of the original. Lee and Cushing are both, as usual, excellent value for money, and in their scenes together the old magic does show through a bit. Stephanie Beecham is pretty good as Van Helsing's granddaughter, who is unwittingly involved in the resurrection of you know who, and becomes the target of his vengeance on the Van Helsing line. And Michael Cole is excellent as the police officer investigating a series of strange killings in which all of the victim's blood has been drained from their bodies - sound familiar to anyone? The bad points are that the depictions of `Swinging London' have dated terribly, and some of the actors playing the thrill seeking young people are a bit wooden. And Johnny Alucard's name isn't exactly a subtle clue... In general, this is exactly what the producers had intended - 90 minutes of entertaining fun. It's always interesting seeing how Hammer are going to bring back the fanged one this time, and the scenes are nicely built up and well done here. The general plot is quite good, and certain scenes, especially Alucard's destruction, are highly entertaining. Not quite as good as the original, but not a bad attempt. This DVD presents the film in the original 1.78:1 aspect ratio, with a mono soundtrack. The print has not undergone any restoration, but nonetheless is pretty good with a minimum of artefacts. DVD extras are sparse, consisting of the original theatrical trailer. Recommended to any fans of the genre - just don't be put off by the very dated feel of contemporary London.

I remember seeing this when we were up in Leicester on a double glazing convention at the Holiday Inn in 1973. It was on as a double bill with Theatre of Blood at the Cinecentre (a sub-porno cinema with a lush bar) that was handy for the bookies, working girls and all-night blues dances. The film is a successful portrayal of the hippie ideology: sex drugs and Satanism. Only ‘Gimmie Shelter’ runs a close second in debunking the peace and love myth. Stephanie Beecham is outstanding in the lead role and the highlight of the film as it reaches its climax is when Van Helsing painstakingly discovers that Mr ALUCARD may indeed be a wrong un. Speaking of Leicester, this was the setting of the marvellous 1980s ‘Connie’ starring the glamorous Ms Beecham in a Dallas meets the midlands rag trade drama. It was supposed to be set in Nottingham but I recognised those Leicester bookies, boozers and red light districts. I still dig out my old VHS copy when the lady wife is away and Stephanie never fails to please. Dorothy, (the good lady wife) cannot bear horror films (apart from Salon Kitty) so I watched this DVD sharing our black leather sofa with the voluptuous Marjorie from next door. Needless to say the mix of dolly birds and Lees’ erotic charge got us going and one thing led to another. So Marjorie and I had an early night.

Campy fun. Not scary but always fun. Cushing and Lee masters of the genre

Item arrived in good condition and on the day that was predicted. This is a terrible movie. It is so bad that I loved it.

Eine super Idee, Van Helsing und Dracula aus den alten Gehröcken zu schälen und in die - zur Zeit des Filmdrehs - Gegenwart zu werfen! Aus heutiger Sicht ein besonderer Spaß, weil es diese schaurig-faszinierenden 70er-Frisuren, -Polyesterklamotten und -Hippie-Clubs zu bestaunen gibt, über die man sich kaputt lachen kann. Peter Cushing und Christopher Lee sind wie immer absolut großartig - und fast noch ein bisschen besser und energischer als in den Kulissen der vergangenen Zeit. Ich war von van Helsings feurigem Einsatz im finalen Showdown sehr überrascht. Fazit: Wegen der schlimmen Looks der Vampirbeschwörerclique und der grauenhaften Musik ein Must Have für jede Bad Taste-Party und wegen der tollen Performance des besten Horrorfilmduos ever ein Riesenspaß für alle Horrorfilmfans.

Un très bon film de la hammer studio qui réalisa les films d’épouvante culte des années 1960a 1990 avec Christopher Lee et Peter cushing

Consegna effettuata in orario e con cura per la merce. Prodotto conforme alle aspettative.

The video does not work in the US, so obviously it was a waste of money because it cannot be watched. There should have been a warning or something but I remember seeing nothing of the sort.