Captain Kronos - Vampire Hunter (1974)

Director:

Brian Clemens

Writer:

Brian Clemens (writer)

Release Date:

June 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Adventure

Tagline:

Evil Ends Here.

Plot:

A master swordsman and former soldier and his hunchbacked assistant hunt vampires.

Plot Keywords:

Vampire | Vampire Slayer | Anvil | Obnoxious | Spittoon

Cast

Horst Janson	...	Kronos
John Carson	...	Dr. Marcus
Shane Briant	...	Paul Durward
Caroline Munro	...	Carla
John Cater	...	Grost
Lois Daine	...	Sara Durward
Ian Hendry	...	Kerro
Wanda Ventham	...	Lady Durward
William Hobbs	...	Hagen
Brian Tully	...	George Sorell
Robert James	...	Pointer
Perry Soblosky	...	Barlow
Paul Greenwood	...	Giles
Lisa Collings	...	Vanda Sorell
John Hollis	...	Barman

Also Known As:

Kronos (USA)
Vampire Castle

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | USA:R | UK:15 | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Black Park, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Hammer Film Productions

Trivia:

Ingrid Pitt has said in interviews she refused the Wanda Ventham cameo role

Quotes:

[Kronos's friend Grost, who is a hunchback, has just been mocked for this by Kerro, the village ruffian, and his two companions]
Kronos: To make sport of a physical affliction is both impolite and cruel. After all, I wouldn't dream of calling you
[to the man on Kerro's right]
Kronos: Rat Face, or
[to the man on Kerro's left]
Kronos: Fatty, or
[to Kerro himself]
Kronos: Big Mouth!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Blood Tide (1998) (V)

Horror Meets Spaghetti Western

While few of the Hammer horror films took themselves too seriously it was in the 1970s when the cycle became almost a parody of itself and "Captain Kronos, Vampire Hunter" is perhaps the best example of this. Although it is a little known film it is certainly one of the best horrors, largely due to its original take on the vampire theme and imaginative, albeit risky, casting.

Rather than offer the audience another Christopher Lee dominated vampire flick, "Kronos" features Horst Janson in the title role and he is essentially the Clint Eastwood character from the Sergio Leone Spaghetti Westerns. This means Kronos is unstoppable with a sword and can kill several men with one quick swish of his blade, best displayed when the brilliant Ian Hendry and his mob make the mistake of picking a fight with him.

It is important not to take the film or the cast too seriously as this is essentially a comedy-horror. There are several very amusing scenes such as when Kronos and his hunchbacked helper struggle to find a way to destroy a particularly nasty vampire, making light of the many and varied ways to supposedly kill one of the undead.

Like all Hammer Horror films "Kronos" benefits from having a short 90- minute running time, concentrating more on action and bloodletting than the idle chat that typified Francis Ford Coppola's "Bram Stoker's Dracula". It is also good to see a vampire film in which the hero is dangerous and unpredictable and not entirely wholesome such as the Van Helsing character often is.

Anyone who found "Blade" to be too noisy and over-the-top (karate and vampires do not go together) should watch "Kronos" which is essentially the same film but far more subtle - like the difference between using a scalpel and a chainsaw.