Hammer Vampire Films

Moonlight — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:00:41 +0000

Hammer Studios is a beloved name to hardcore horror movie fans. They completely redefined horror movies, especially those with vampires. A lot of what to see in horror flicks now originally came from the old school Hammer films. So let’s take a trip to the past and check out their legendary vampire movies.

Dracula (1958)

This flick is often considered the very first mainstream Dracula movie. It broke many norms in Hollywood horror and was hated by the majority of critics when it was first released. But thanks to its unique style it was absolutely adored by fans and gained a huge cult following which still thrives today.

Christopher Lee was cast in the lead role as Count Dracula and Terrence Fisher landed the gig of director. Thanks to this movie they are still Hollywood idols and will forever be known for their work in Dracula.

The Brides of Dracula (1960)

Two years after the release of Dracula, director Terrence Fisher returned with a new Hammer Vampire tale, ‘The Brides of Dracula.’ The big thing about this Dracula flick was that Dracula wasn’t even in it, which is what fans were expecting. But even though this movie didn’t share the success of the first Dracula film it still gained a huge fan base.

Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966)

Want to guess who directed this Hammer film? Once again it was Terrence Fisher. This movie is known for doing something completely different by not following Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula. The movie features an entirely new storyline and leaves out the lead characters from the book. But it was the end of the movie that shaped how future horror movies would be shot and viewed.

Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968)

This film once again reshaped Dracula’s image, while the older films were full of gore and violence, they still had Dracula charming and seductive. But in this new movie he was nothing but terrorizing, frightening and completely dark. But it did bring back the famed Christopher Lee.

Taste the Blood of Dracula (1969)

This Hammer movie, directed by Peter Sasdy, was released as a sequel to the 1968 film ‘Dracula Has Risen from His Grave’ and it brought back the legendary Christopher Lee. Sasdy introduced a darker Dracula, and many new spins to the vampire myth. Even though it had decent ratings at the time, it was quickly forgotten by most.

Scars of Dracula (1970)

A new director was brought onto this project. Roy Ward Baker created a movie that received such positive reviews some considers it the second best vampire movie out of all of the Hammer Dracula movies.

Some critics weren’t a big fan of this one since it was an incredibly dark film that strayed from past movies. Critics said that Dracula was made too cruel and that his romantic side was lost. But either way fans still think of this one as one of the best.

Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)

This movie was completely different than the past Hammer Vampire films since it wasn’t a period piece; it was set in the present. It is a fun movie that follows the hippie granddaughter of the last Helsing and her quest to kill Dracula.

The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973)

This movie is all about what is now a hugely popular vampire cliché, which is the vampires being resurrected by satanic cults and rituals. This flick was one of the earliest ones to portray this. If it wasn’t for the fact that it was Christopher Lee’s final role as Count Dracula this movie probably wouldn’t be remembered for much more.

The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires (1974)

This Hammer vampire film took a completely different path than other movies by involving kung fu and zombies – definitely not similar to the older vamp movies.

- Moonlight

Dracula: Prince of Darkness

Vampire Films

veritas — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:30:36 +0000

There are more than likely thousands of vampire movies out there, but most notably, the movie Blade, about the comic book hero, half vampire, half human, the definitive Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and Interview With The Vampire, the debut novel of the Vampire Chronicles authored by Anne Rice made into a film, with it’s sequel, Queen of the Damned. Also as equally definitive as Bram Stoker’s Dracula, is Nosferatu, eine Symphonie Des Grauens, one of the very first vampire films, released in 1922; the unauthorized adaptation of the novel by Bram Stoker.

Vampire films were inspired almost as soon as the ability to actually make, record, and exhibit films had been created; one of the first of many films was titled simply “The Vampire,” in 1913, and followed by “A Fool There Was” in 1915. Both of these silent films were about “vamps” or, femme-fatales; the inspiration for both the films and the terms came from the 1897 poem The Vampire, by Rudyard Kipling. The poem by Rudyard Kipling, was inspired by the famous painting ‘The Vampire’ by Sir Philip Burne-Jones, featuring a female vampire straddling a wounded, or sleeping man. The first really supernatural vampire film to emerge was Nosferatu; it was so closely related to Bram Stoker’s novel, that his widow sued, won, and all copies were destroyed, except for five. It was finally restored in 1994 in Europe.

Bela Lugosi later starred in the 1931 classic Dracula, and then in two more vampire films following that; one of them Abbot And Costello Meet Frankenstein, in 1948 which was the last time he would play Dracula. Then another in which he played a vampire character that was everything Dracula was, except his name; the film was Return of the Vampire. Bela Lugosi was in a number of early horror films throughout the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s and 50’s. In 1957 the movie ‘El Vampiro’ was produced, and was one of the first vampire films in which the fangs of the vampire were actually revealed. In 1958, the renowned Hammer Horror series debuted with the film Dracula, starring Christopher Lee, who acted in five of the following seven sequels. Later, Francis Ford Coppola’s groundbreaking classic ‘Bram Stoker’s Dracula’ emerged in 1992.

However, Dracula was not the only vampire novel to inspire directors and screenwriters. Although more distant from the novel by Bram Stoker, Carmilla, the short story by Sheridan Le Fanu inspired many classic vampires films. Carmilla put the sexual spin of lesbian vampirism on several popular vampire films in the 70’s, such as the Karnstein trilogy from Hammer Studios, as well as Blood and Roses, in 1960, Vampyres, in 1974, and The Vampire Lovers, in 1970, to name a few. The 1948 film with Abbot and Costello transformed many Dracula or vampire theme films into comedies. Sexuality has been drawn into the vampire genre of films from all orientations, and in both male and female roles. There are a few but still a strong flow of vampire films left that stick true to Max Shreck’s first portrayal of the disturbing, and monstrous Count Orlok in Nosferatu.

Vampires » hammer horror

Hammer Vampire Films

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