Could Dracula (and vampires in general) have what it takes to seem scary to a 1940's audience?
We open at Dark Oaks, a sprawling old plantation surrounded by deep swamps. The estate is owned by the Caldwill family. The aged Colonel Caldwell (George Irving) and his two daughters, Kay (Louise Allbritton) and Claire (Evelyn Ankers) are all that's left of the family. That might change though, as Kay is throwing a party in honor of a certain European count. Her fiancé Frank (Robert Paige) is a bit jealous, but he's sure there is nothing to worry about. After all, what could Kay see in this Count Alucard (Lon Chaney, Jr.) anyway?
The count arrives when the party is nearly over and makes his apology by murdering the Colonel. Announcing himself proper, he makes quite the impression on the guests, mostly by ordering them around. When the will is finally read, everyone (save Kay) is shocked. Claire gets all the money, but Kay is only given the estate. How can she maintain the property? Well, the Count is rather loaded...
And now comes the swerve. Kay knew the Count was a vampire from the start. In fact she's hoping to join the undead as soon as possible. Frank obliges by shooting her dead, thus necessitating a quick bite and transformation.
Locked up, Frank pleads his innocence to his friend Dr. Brewster (Frank Craven). The doc believes Frank is innocent, but when talking his colleague Dr. Lazlo (J. Edward Bromberg) he makes a more disturbing discovery-Alucard is actually Dracula!
Meanwhile, the now newly undead Kay pays a visit to Frank. She isn't angry, in fact she's quite pleased. She really loves Frank, but now that she has all eternity she's rather spend it with him rather than some old count. If Frank can find the count's coffin then the two of them will be together forever...
Pretty good and rather underrated. Chaney isn't nearly in the same league as Lugosi, but he does manage to across as menacing, but Allbritton manages to convey just the right amount of cunning. A marked improvement over the previous two (three if you want to get technical), but it's shame Universal ended the Dracula series with this one. The Count would return, but only as part of an ensemble cast.
We open at Dark Oaks, a sprawling old plantation surrounded by deep swamps. The estate is owned by the Caldwill family. The aged Colonel Caldwell (George Irving) and his two daughters, Kay (Louise Allbritton) and Claire (Evelyn Ankers) are all that's left of the family. That might change though, as Kay is throwing a party in honor of a certain European count. Her fiancé Frank (Robert Paige) is a bit jealous, but he's sure there is nothing to worry about. After all, what could Kay see in this Count Alucard (Lon Chaney, Jr.) anyway?
The count arrives when the party is nearly over and makes his apology by murdering the Colonel. Announcing himself proper, he makes quite the impression on the guests, mostly by ordering them around. When the will is finally read, everyone (save Kay) is shocked. Claire gets all the money, but Kay is only given the estate. How can she maintain the property? Well, the Count is rather loaded...
And now comes the swerve. Kay knew the Count was a vampire from the start. In fact she's hoping to join the undead as soon as possible. Frank obliges by shooting her dead, thus necessitating a quick bite and transformation.
Locked up, Frank pleads his innocence to his friend Dr. Brewster (Frank Craven). The doc believes Frank is innocent, but when talking his colleague Dr. Lazlo (J. Edward Bromberg) he makes a more disturbing discovery-Alucard is actually Dracula!
Meanwhile, the now newly undead Kay pays a visit to Frank. She isn't angry, in fact she's quite pleased. She really loves Frank, but now that she has all eternity she's rather spend it with him rather than some old count. If Frank can find the count's coffin then the two of them will be together forever...
Pretty good and rather underrated. Chaney isn't nearly in the same league as Lugosi, but he does manage to across as menacing, but Allbritton manages to convey just the right amount of cunning. A marked improvement over the previous two (three if you want to get technical), but it's shame Universal ended the Dracula series with this one. The Count would return, but only as part of an ensemble cast.
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