Count Dracula (1970)

Jesús Franco's version of the Bram Stoker classic has Count Dracula as an old man who grows younger whenever he dines on the blood of young maidens.

Director:

Jesús Franco (as Jesse Franco, Jess Franco, Jesus Franco Manera)

Writers:

Bram Stoker (novel), Erich Kröhnke (story) (as Erik Krohenke)

Stars:

Christopher Lee, Herbert Lom, Klaus Kinski

Cast

Cast overview:
Christopher Lee	...	Dracula
Klaus Kinski	...	Reinfierd (as Klaus Kinsky)
Herbert Lom	...	Dr. Van Helsing
Maria Rohm	...	Mina Harker
Fred Williams	...	Jonathan Harker (as Frederick Williams)
Soledad Miranda	...	Lucy Westenra
Paul Muller	...	Dr. Seward
Jack Taylor	...	Quincey

Storyline

Jesús Franco's version of the Bram Stoker classic has Count Dracula as an old man who grows younger whenever he dines on the blood of young maidens.

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Plot Keywords:

drive in classic | grindhouse film | suspense | fear | europe | 

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Taglines:

Finally! The Original Version!

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

Spain West Germany Italy Liechtenstein UK

Language:

English Spanish Italian German

Release Date:

12 October 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Count Dracula

Filming Locations:

Murcia, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmar Compagnia Cinematografica, Fénix Cooperativa Cinematográfica, Corona Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Apart from occasional shrieking, Klaus Kinski (Renfield) has no dialogue.

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Goofs

When Dracula and Harker pass in front of a mirror, the Count is holding a candelabra. Of course the Count has no reflection, but the candelabra should have been visible.

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Quotes

Count Dracula: [howling is heard from outside] The children of the night... what music they make.

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Crazy Credits

In the opening credits (English and Spanish prints only): "Over fifty years ago Bram Stoker wrote the greatest of all horror stories. Now, for the first time, we retell, exactly as he wrote, one of the first - and still the best - tales of the macabre."

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Alternate Versions

A 90-minute US version has the church-choir music removed from the climactic scenes, and tighter editing of those scenes.

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Connections

Version of Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)

User Reviews

Jess Frank's acceptable rendition of the Bram Stoker classic with two extraordinary actors : Lee and Lom

Jess Franco's version of the Bram Stoker classic has Count Dracula as an old count who grows younger whenever he dines on the blood of gorgeous maidens . Bram Stoker's Count Dracula" (1970) turns out to be an acceptable picture directed by Jesus Franco with a good cast as Christopher Lee , Hebert Lom , Maria Rohm and Klaus Kinski . It is a passable and average-budgeted version with splendid players , functional set design and brilliant costumes . The picture begins in a prologue: "Over 50 years ago, Bram Stoker wrote the greatest of all horror stories. Now, for the first time, we retell exactly as he wrote, one of the first--and still the best--tales of the macabre." A young lawyer named Jonathan Harker (Fred Williams) is assigned to go to a creepy castle in the mists of eastern Europe . Harker is captured and imprisoned by a strange character who is accompanied by his bloodsucker girlfriends (Emma Cohen , Jeannine Mestre) . He really is a vampire who lives on through the ages and gone back life . The undead vampire named Dracula (Christopher Lee) comes to England to seduce Mina (Maria Rhom) and Lucy (Soledad Miranda)and inflict havoc in the foreign land . As it is said that Dracula has extraordinary powers , but these supernatural powers have sinister origins ; and this is the first film in which , like in the novel, Dracula begins as an old man and becomes younger as he feeds. Later on , at a Sanitarium outside London: Harker awakens in bed with Dr John Seward (Paul Muller) at his side . Dracula goes London and starts a reign of seduction and horror, draining the life from Mina's closest friend , Lucy . But Dracula has not counted on young Lords (Fred Williams and Jack Taylor) acquiring the assistance of the Vampire hunter (Herbert Lom) .

European co-production between various countries as Spain | West Germany | Italy | Liechtenstein . This thrilling as well as terrifying film contains horrifying scenes , chills , lots of gore and red tomato was used for the blood . This version of Dracula is closely based on Bram Stoker's 1897 classic novel of the same title . Adequate version about the famous personage with an European all-star cast , poor cinematography by Manuel Merino though would have been necessary a photography similarly to Hammer Films , glamorous gowns and regular production design , including evocative sights on Victorian London , actually shot in Alicante, Barcelona, Cataluña , Estudios Cinematográficos Balcázar, Esplugues de Llobregat, Barcelona, Cataluña, Spain and Munich, Bavaria, Germany . Christopher Lee, who plays a splendid Dracula, and Herbert Lom, who plays stunningly Dr. Van Helsing , never saw each other during the filming. They shot all their joint scenes separately . Christopher Lee was reportedly tired of playing Dracula and was convinced to join the cast only after being promised that the film would be a faithful adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula novel , the film, however, ultimately made numerous significant changes to the story . Filmmaker Jesús Franco's first choice for the role of Van Helsing was Vincent Price. He was not able to obtain Price due to his exclusive contract with American International Pictures and second choice Dennis Price was forced to withdraw through illness , Franco was able to get his third choice, Herbert Lom, for the role. Although the producer claims that Klaus Kinski was hoodwinked into playing Renfield when producers gave him a script with a fake title, director Jesús Franco says this was not true and he claims that Klaus Kinski ate real flies as Renfield instead of fake ones. Special mention to rousing and powerful musical score composed and conducted by Bruno Nicolai . Interesting script by writers Jesús Franco Erich Kröhnke , Harry Alan Towers as Peter Welbeck, also film producer .

Other films retelling the known legend based as originally conceived on this novel are the following : ¨ Dracula¨ (1974) by Dan Curtis with Jack Palance , Simon Ward ,Nigel Davenport , ¨Bram's Stoker Dracula'with David Suchet as Abraham Van Helsing , Marc Warren as Count Dracula and Sophia Myles as Lucy ; the best results to be Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula with Gary Oldman , Winona Ryder , Gary Elwes , Keanu Reeves and Anthony Hopkins and last version ¨Dracula¨2012 by Dario Argento with Rutger Hauer as Abraham Van Helsing , Asia Argento as Lucy , Unax Ugalde as Johnathan Harker and Thomas Kretschmann as Dracula .