DVD review: Countess Dracula - Special Edition (1971)
Few films sum up Hammer like Countess Dracula.
Take an element of truth - in this case, Elisabeth Bathory, the "Blood Countess" of Hungary, who allegedly bathed in virgins' blood to maintain her beauty, then stretch the tale - by presuming the gruesome baths really did keep her young. Throw in a solid cast list, some period costumes, several heaving bosoms and an angry pitchfork-wielding mob (who strangely all talk with West Country accents despite it being set in Hungary) and you have one of Hammer's most memorable moments.
Ingrid Pitt is the widow Countess Elisabeth, who runs her kingdom mercilessly with her lover, Captain Dobi (Nigel Green). One day, in a fit of anger, she strikes out at a chambermaid and bloods splashes against her skin, turning the affected area youthful and smooth. The maid is slaughtered - and the Countess bathes in her blood, using her looks to snare the young son of her former husband's best friend (played by a horror regular of the period, Sandor Eles).
The effects aren't permanent - and to maintain her looks, she coerces Dobi to keep her supplied with young virgins - using their blood to keep her looks. Apart from the need to constantly kill, there's also another downside - each time she loses her youth, she becomes ever more ugly. You know it's all going to end in tragedy, but the climax is still an impressively OTT one.
The film has its comic moments - some intentional (a few Carry-On type gags), others less so - like the Countess wiping herself down with a large sponge soaked in blood in front of the mirror. But overall it's an entertaining and occasionally shocking movie that doesn't let historical accuracy get in the way of a good tale.
Picture quality is good, if a little over-coloured at the start (a few yellow faces) and the extras are worthwhile additions, including an entertaining episode of Thriller about an obsessive gambler (with Pitt starring), but they're mainly related to the film's stars rather than the movie itself.
If you love your Hammer horrors, you really can't go far wrong with this. And to be honest, don't we all?
Extras on the DVD:
Audio commentary with Ingrid Pitt and Kim Newman, Archive news clip of Hammer's 50th anniversary, archive interview with Ingrid Pitt, Thriller episode with Ingrid Pitt, Conceptions Of Murder: Peter and Maria (a play starring Nigel Green from 1970), trailer, booklet written by Stephen Jones.
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