Drácula contra Frankenstein (1972)

Dracula kills another innocent victim and Dr. Seward decides it's time to wipe him off the face of the earth. Armed with a hammer and a wooden stake, he arrives at Castle Dracula and duly ... See full summary »

Director:

Jesús Franco

Writers:

Paul D'Ales, Jesús Franco (foreword),

Stars:

Dennis Price, Howard Vernon, Paca Gabaldón

Cast

Cast overview:
Dennis Price	...	Doctor Frankenstein
Howard Vernon	...	Drácula
Paca Gabaldón	...	María (as Mary Francis)
Alberto Dalbés	...	Doctor Jonathan Seward (as Alberto Dalbes)
Britt Nichols	...	Chica vampira
Geneviève Robert	...	Amira - la gitana (as Genevieve Deloir)
Anne Libert	...	Primera víctima de Drácula
Luis Barboo	...	Morpho (as Luis Bar Boo)
Brandy	...	El Hombre Lobo
Fernando Bilbao	...	El Monstruo
Josyane Gibert	...	Estela - la cantante de cabaret (as Josiane Gibert)

Storyline

Dracula kills another innocent victim and Dr. Seward decides it's time to wipe him off the face of the earth. Armed with a hammer and a wooden stake, he arrives at Castle Dracula and duly dispatches the vampire Count. Next day, however, Dr. Frankenstein arrives with his assistant, Morpho, and a large crate containing the monster. Using the blood of a pub singer who has been abducted by his creation, the doctor brings Dracula back to life and uses him for his own ends. The Count and a female vampire continue to terrorise the town, so Dr Seward once again sets out for Castle Dracula. Unfortunately, he is attacked by the Frankenstein monster and left for dead. Amira, a gypsy, rescues him and summons up a werewolf to do battle with the forces of evil...

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Plot Keywords:

dracula | frankenstein | vampire | castle | frankenstein's monster | 

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Taglines:

They have awakened... and they are the sound of terror!

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Genres:

Horror

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Details

Country:

Spain France

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

17 October 1972 (France)

Also Known As:

Dracula: Prisoner of Frankenstein

Filming Locations:

Alicante, Comunidad Valenciana, Spain

Box Office

Gross:

ESP 18,550,818 (Spain)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Prodif Ets., Comptoir Français du Film Production (CFFP), Fénix Cooperativa Cinematográfica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bruno Nicolai's soundtrack score was first used in Justine by the same director.

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Connections

Followed by La fille de Dracula (1972)

User Reviews

The Madame Toussaud's wax figures have more action and life than these dullards!

The problem with "Drácula Contra Frankenstein" is not its cheesiness--though the film is truly the Velveta of horror films. The low production values and silly props can be forgiven. But what cannot be forgiven, especially in a film of this genre, is the amazing dullness of this film. If you were to go to the nearest branch of Madame Toussand's wax museum to cast a film, you couldn't get any less life-life and uninteresting people than the idiots who play monsters in this film. First, the Frankenstein looks like he was created by a group of 4th graders--complete with scars that are obviously drawn onto it face and skin that looks like green bonito shavings (fans of Japanese cuisine, this comment's for you). Second, Dracula could have almost as easily been played by a mannequin, as much of the film he stares into space like Captain Christopher Pike's head in Star Trek's "Menagerie". Most of his "action" is confined to widening his eyes--a bit. What makes it even more ridiculous are the bats that the vampires supposedly turn into, as they are the worst and most unrealistic bats you'll ever see (this includes in Ed Wood films and Three Stooges shorts as well as the little plastic ones you buy around Halloween).

For about the first 50 minutes or so, not a whole lot happens in the film. No, wait,...after 50 minutes STILL nothing happens in the film....nothing. There is almost no dialog (perhaps to supposedly make it easier to dub for international release)--with very, very long stretches with nothing being said or a bit of over-dubbed speech only. The "dialog" in many places consists of heavy grunting and a hilarious scene where a woman writhes about screaming like she's passing a kidney stone--a kidney stone the size of a basketball! Towards the end, there is more dialog but actual conversations between characters are almost completely absent. In some cases, the face was filmed from the nose up--so you couldn't see the mouth moving (again, to make over-dubbing easier). The net effect of all this is appallingly dull.

The plot, when it is at all apparent, involves Dr. Frankenstein reviving Dracula to be his slave (ooh, that won't end well) as well as the evil scientist reviving his green cheese-like monster. Dracula makes some female vampires and eventually a wolf-man shows up...though I have no idea why. It was as if the lack of coherent plot and dialog could somehow be compensated for by tossing in more and more monsters. Heck, I was almost expecting the Creature from the Black Lagoon or Godzilla to eventually make an appearance!! And they might have, had director Franco thought of it! The only thing going for this terrible film are the locales. Because it was filmed in Europe, the settings can't help but look pretty good. That alone is the only reason I gave this movie a score as high as 2--otherwise, it's even more dull and stupid than an Al Adamson horror film.

In a final note, you PETA-types out there may want to skip this one. Aside from the cheap fake bats, there are a some real ones that are mistreated rather badly. One was either drowned or near-drowned in blood in a jar and another one is held by his wingtips and made to flutter wildly (as best it could). I must say it was the first film I ever saw that made me feel sorry for the poor creatures.