Haunting theaters at the tail end of 1970 was, in my opinion, the worst edition in Hammer Studio's famous vampire series, Scars of Dracula. This film suffers from pedestrian direction by Roy Ward Baker, unnecessary bits of sadism, uninspired performances by the cast, and cheap production values highlighted by some of the phoniest backdrops and laughably inept renderings of bats that one will likely see. While boasting some impressive set pieces, Christopher Lee's iconic personage, and another wonderful score by James Bernard this picture represents a nadir for the studio.
Ignoring events from previous films Scars of Dracula opens with a hilariously phony-looking bat vomiting some blood onto the powdered remains of the title character (Christopher Lee). After being reconstituted for the umpteenth time he puts the title wounds on the daughter of the local innkeeper (Michael Ripper) which prompts the villagers to assemble a Frankenstein mob and assault the Count's castle. The men haphazardly burn the structure after locking the women and children inside the local church and congratulate themselves on a job well done. However, upon returning to their town they discover everyone has been murdered by a team of vampire bats commanded by Dracula. Meanwhile, a few villages away Sarah (Jenny Hanley) is enjoying her birthday party with fiancé Simon (Dennis Waterman) and wondering why his brother Paul (Christopher Matthews) is absent. Turns out Paul is the town Lothario and has lapsed into forgetfulness of time after bedding the Burgomaster's daughter. Soon he is on the run from the authorities after being falsely accused by the young lady of raping her and, after a series of concocted events, winds up at Castle Dracula. Sarah and Simon search for the now missing Paul and find themselves fighting for their lives after being directed to the dreaded citadel.
Veteran Hammer producer and scribe Anthony Hinds, who wrote the previous two Dracula films, contributes a tired mishmash of regurgitated ideas under his seudonym John Elder. He put series continuity to rest and concocted this stand alone tale which is short on story and long on sadism. To be fair he attempted to provide some moments of levity - elements that were sorely lacking in his endlessly grim previous screenplay Taste the Blood of Dracula - but they are completely at odds with the overwhelmingly brutal and gratuitously gory nature of this edition. He filches ideas from four earlier movies and repurposes them to a much weaker effect here; most absurd is Dracula's red powder requiring only a couple drops of bat vomit to reconstitute (including clothing) while in Dracula Prince of Darkness it required an entire human body. Meanwhile this edition of the Count is more of a CEO; using bats and his hirsute assistant Klove (not to be confused with the Klove from DPOD) to do his dirty work rather than venturing forth and terrorizing the community himself. Perhaps the most striking issue is this film could have used any number of villains; Dracula seems shoehorned into the story instead of having the yarn built around him. Still, Hinds did provide some refreshing new ideas mostly cribbed from Bram Stoker's source material such as the Count's ability to commune with animals and providing a secret resting spot for Dracula accessible only to him (could have used that in the initial Dracula film instead of having his crypt be essentially an unlocked garage outside the main building).
Roy Ward Baker truly fumbles the ball in his directorial effort as Scars of Dracula cries out for the sure hand of Terence Fisher. Minimal atmosphere or eroticism is created; the lighthearted bits tend to fall flat and the visuals emphasize gratuitous brutality. Clearly he was hindered by a reduced budget as the trademark Hammer optical splendor is in short supply: sets look cheap and phony, the bats are comically rendered, and the pancake makeup on Christopher Lee looks awful. Furthermore there is an overuse of the color red as nearly everything in the castle from Dracula's powdered remains, drapes, bedding, candles, and wine is adorned with the blood hue. On the plus side Dracula's coffin has never looked spiffier with plush lining (red of course) and a fancy plaque on the front. Among the minimal highlights is Dracula exiting his secret bedroom and climbing up the outside wall to the closest open window and the sleeping vampire's red orbs projecting through his eyelids to unnerve Simon when the latter prepares to stake him. The final destruction of the Count is pretty spectacular but undermined by the obvious use of a stuntman and miniatures. Giving the film a much needed boost is the score by James Bernard that recycles a few themes from his previous works while avoiding the overused three note Dracula cue.
Contributing a comparatively tired turn in his signature role is Christopher Lee who returns to his cold, lord-of-the-manor persona from Horror of Dracula. He can still turn on the animalistic evil when attacking but his more urbane approach is somewhat disappointing. Nonetheless he cuts a commanding figure and provides much of the gravitas this film desperately requires. Jenny Hanley displays abundant cleavage in the undemanding role of Sarah while Dennis Waterman is suitable as the intrepid Simon despite suggestions from the director that he was miscast. Christopher Matthews cuts a rapscallion figure as the perpetually horny Paul; sort of a young Errol Flynn who wanders into the wrong castle. Cast as Klove Patrick Troughton lets his eyebrows do the acting while cutting a perplexing figure as Dracula's manservant; he seems to be willfully helping his evil master yet, in one of the oldest tropes in horror films, shirks his responsibilities when falling for the beautiful Miss Hanley. Other performers of note are Hammer vets Michael Gwynn as the cowardly priest and Michael Ripper, supporting a bizarre set of sideburns, as the rabble rousing innkeeper.
In the final analysis Scars of Dracula is a poor film that is probably the worst of the Christopher Lee Dracula movies. The reduced budget, tired screenplay, uninspired direction, and tepid performances conspire to stake the film. There is certainly entertainment value to be had as it is rarely dull but it lacks the eerie qualities of the better genre films and the unashamedly goofball premise of the later ones; existing in the nether region between legitimate horror film and campy sendup.
Ignoring events from previous films Scars of Dracula opens with a hilariously phony-looking bat vomiting some blood onto the powdered remains of the title character (Christopher Lee). After being reconstituted for the umpteenth time he puts the title wounds on the daughter of the local innkeeper (Michael Ripper) which prompts the villagers to assemble a Frankenstein mob and assault the Count's castle. The men haphazardly burn the structure after locking the women and children inside the local church and congratulate themselves on a job well done. However, upon returning to their town they discover everyone has been murdered by a team of vampire bats commanded by Dracula. Meanwhile, a few villages away Sarah (Jenny Hanley) is enjoying her birthday party with fiancé Simon (Dennis Waterman) and wondering why his brother Paul (Christopher Matthews) is absent. Turns out Paul is the town Lothario and has lapsed into forgetfulness of time after bedding the Burgomaster's daughter. Soon he is on the run from the authorities after being falsely accused by the young lady of raping her and, after a series of concocted events, winds up at Castle Dracula. Sarah and Simon search for the now missing Paul and find themselves fighting for their lives after being directed to the dreaded citadel.
Veteran Hammer producer and scribe Anthony Hinds, who wrote the previous two Dracula films, contributes a tired mishmash of regurgitated ideas under his seudonym John Elder. He put series continuity to rest and concocted this stand alone tale which is short on story and long on sadism. To be fair he attempted to provide some moments of levity - elements that were sorely lacking in his endlessly grim previous screenplay Taste the Blood of Dracula - but they are completely at odds with the overwhelmingly brutal and gratuitously gory nature of this edition. He filches ideas from four earlier movies and repurposes them to a much weaker effect here; most absurd is Dracula's red powder requiring only a couple drops of bat vomit to reconstitute (including clothing) while in Dracula Prince of Darkness it required an entire human body. Meanwhile this edition of the Count is more of a CEO; using bats and his hirsute assistant Klove (not to be confused with the Klove from DPOD) to do his dirty work rather than venturing forth and terrorizing the community himself. Perhaps the most striking issue is this film could have used any number of villains; Dracula seems shoehorned into the story instead of having the yarn built around him. Still, Hinds did provide some refreshing new ideas mostly cribbed from Bram Stoker's source material such as the Count's ability to commune with animals and providing a secret resting spot for Dracula accessible only to him (could have used that in the initial Dracula film instead of having his crypt be essentially an unlocked garage outside the main building).
Roy Ward Baker truly fumbles the ball in his directorial effort as Scars of Dracula cries out for the sure hand of Terence Fisher. Minimal atmosphere or eroticism is created; the lighthearted bits tend to fall flat and the visuals emphasize gratuitous brutality. Clearly he was hindered by a reduced budget as the trademark Hammer optical splendor is in short supply: sets look cheap and phony, the bats are comically rendered, and the pancake makeup on Christopher Lee looks awful. Furthermore there is an overuse of the color red as nearly everything in the castle from Dracula's powdered remains, drapes, bedding, candles, and wine is adorned with the blood hue. On the plus side Dracula's coffin has never looked spiffier with plush lining (red of course) and a fancy plaque on the front. Among the minimal highlights is Dracula exiting his secret bedroom and climbing up the outside wall to the closest open window and the sleeping vampire's red orbs projecting through his eyelids to unnerve Simon when the latter prepares to stake him. The final destruction of the Count is pretty spectacular but undermined by the obvious use of a stuntman and miniatures. Giving the film a much needed boost is the score by James Bernard that recycles a few themes from his previous works while avoiding the overused three note Dracula cue.
Contributing a comparatively tired turn in his signature role is Christopher Lee who returns to his cold, lord-of-the-manor persona from Horror of Dracula. He can still turn on the animalistic evil when attacking but his more urbane approach is somewhat disappointing. Nonetheless he cuts a commanding figure and provides much of the gravitas this film desperately requires. Jenny Hanley displays abundant cleavage in the undemanding role of Sarah while Dennis Waterman is suitable as the intrepid Simon despite suggestions from the director that he was miscast. Christopher Matthews cuts a rapscallion figure as the perpetually horny Paul; sort of a young Errol Flynn who wanders into the wrong castle. Cast as Klove Patrick Troughton lets his eyebrows do the acting while cutting a perplexing figure as Dracula's manservant; he seems to be willfully helping his evil master yet, in one of the oldest tropes in horror films, shirks his responsibilities when falling for the beautiful Miss Hanley. Other performers of note are Hammer vets Michael Gwynn as the cowardly priest and Michael Ripper, supporting a bizarre set of sideburns, as the rabble rousing innkeeper.
In the final analysis Scars of Dracula is a poor film that is probably the worst of the Christopher Lee Dracula movies. The reduced budget, tired screenplay, uninspired direction, and tepid performances conspire to stake the film. There is certainly entertainment value to be had as it is rarely dull but it lacks the eerie qualities of the better genre films and the unashamedly goofball premise of the later ones; existing in the nether region between legitimate horror film and campy sendup.