Dracula Has Risen From The Grave (1968)

 Dracula Has Risen From The Grave (1968)

Aside from Bela Lugosi's portrayal of Count Dracula, the next most beloved Dracula is by far Christopher Lee, who was the star of the Hammer Horror Dracula films.  Lugosi's Dracula, had this sexiness to him, where he was exotic and seductive, where as Lee's Dracula has a bit more of a forcefulness to him, he feels more threatening, and more evil (maybe it is the bloodshot eyes).   Christopher Lee's Dracula is a true monster, and one of the greatest on screen monsters.  

Dracula Has Risen From The Grave was directed by Freddie Francis, with a screenplay written by Anthony Hinds.  The film was produced by Hammer Films, and distributed by Warner-Pathe (UK), and Warner Bros-Seven Arts (USA).  Though the film wasn't well received by the critics, it was by the fans, and it is one of Hammer's highest grossing films.  The film also has a high rating on online film scoring sites, as it has continued to be popular among horror film fans.   Dracula Has Risen From The Grave was also the first of the Hammer Dracula films that was allowed by the Australian censors to be shown in Australian cinemas, and overall has a toned down level of violence, gore, and no nudity at all, and was even further censored to pass the censor boards in some countries. 

Dracula Has Risen From The Grave stars Christopher Lee as Count Dracula, Ewan Hooper plays the Priest who accidently brought Dracula back to life, Rupert Davies plays Monsignor Ernest Muller, Veronica Carlson plays his niece Maria Muller, and Barry Andrews plays her boyfriend Paul, Michael Ripper plays Paul's boss Max, Barbara Ewing plays his co-worker Zena, Marion Mathie plays Maria's mother Anna Muller, and Norman Bacon plays the Alter Boy (though in the film credits he is just called "Boy").  This film has a fantastic cast, especially with Christopher Lee as the evil Count Dracula, and honestly, he is one of the first Dracula's that really does feel like an evil monster, to be feared.  The beautiful Veronica Carlson is great as the absolutely beautiful Maria Muller, who Dracula takes for his bride which is the final act of revenge against the Monsignor who sealed the gates of his castle with a cross so that he couldn't return to his castle after coming back from the grave.   Barry Andrews is also great as Paul, the "hero" of the film.  The cast of the film is great at bringing to life these characters, and though none of the characters really go through any development, they are all great characters, and make the film interest. 

Though, to me Bela Lugosi will always be Dracula, Christopher Lee is probably the most terrifying Dracula, he is pure evil, and plays the role so perfectly.  I loved this film, I feel that it captures the feel of the original Dracula, but is a new and original story that doesn't exactly copy any of the Universal Films that predated it.  The film is well done, and looks beautiful, though the blood in the film is always just a bit too red, and looks a lot like red paint, but with technicolor that was often the case.  This film has a great script and a great cast to bring it to life, the pacing is a bit on the slow side, but the film doesn't really feel like it is ever dragging, because there is enough going on, even in the slow parts to make the slower pace work.  The film also has some great horror scenes, with just a touch of gore, to make it feel a little more grotesque, but it still keeps the great atmospheric horror that worked for Universal's original Dracula, and the film never digresses into gory trash or ever has a cheapness to it.  This is just a great quality classic horror monster film, and should be on everyone's must-see list, and no horror film collection is complete without it in your library.   So if you have not yet seen Dracula Has Risen From The Grave , I highly recommend checking it out.