Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Let's be realistic.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

Hammer's take on the real life Hungarian Countess Bathory, who tortured and murdered some 600 odd young girls, believing that their blood would retain her beauty. Needless to say we don't get anywhere near that number of deaths here, nor do we get any torture. Made in the early 1970's, when sex had become a big ingredient in vampire films, this stars the beautiful but sadly dubbed Ingrid Pitt in the title role. There's no Cushing, Lee or even a Michael Ripper here but the cast is good, in particular Nigel Green as the Countess's castle steward/lover, and also Maurice Denham as the elder castle historian provides some humour. This is a Hammer movie so production values are good. There is a fair amount of female flesh on show but the blood letting is rather restrained, and it all builds to a great, if predictable finale. I grew up watching Hammer movies and although this is far from their best it is still a good film, combining a love story with a different take on vampirism.

This unusual and stylish entry from Hammer studios is well worth a watch for those looking for a different kind of vampirism. This take on the legend of the infamous countess Elizabeth Bathory, who enjoyed torturing and mutilating hundreds of young virgins throughout her life, is actually rather muted when it comes to the violence. You would imagine lots of blood and guts on display here, but no, instead all we see are a few slashed wrists and a jumpy moment where an unsuspecting woman gets a hairpin jammed into her neck.For exploitational value, though, the film offers up ample naked flesh to satisfy any red-blooded male; indeed just about all of the female cast are required to lose their clothes at various intervals (Countess Dracula was one of the films to usher in the "new wave" of Hammer horror, along with THE VAMPIRE LOVERS: films which followed in their wake were made more appealing to the general public by the liberal inclusion of gore and nudity wherever possible). However, the main strength of this movie is its visual power; director Peter Sasdy gives it a unique style all of his own which effectively conveys moods of decay, regret and sadness.Physically, the movie is very colourful in places (when involving the young lovers), grey and gloomy in others; the photography is sharp and really helps to bring out the atmosphere of the castle in which this film is set. Incidentally, the sets were left over from a bigger production (of which the name escapes me) which accounts for the whole expensive look to this film. Add to this the authentic-looking costumes and village scenes, and you have a great-looking film.Sadly, however, this isn't a great movie. There are some great actors and scenes in it, yes, but as a whole it is flawed by the inclusion of some laughably cheesy love scenes between the wooden Eles and Pitt. At each of these moments, loud soapy music plays on the soundtrack. I was lucky enough to see this film on the big screen and the audience found these scenes very amusing indeed. Countess Dracula is also slightly too arty for its own good in places, and personally speaking I would have preferred to see some more traditional elements in the film (like more of the superstitious villagers, perhaps). There are some fine moments, like the opening where Pitt's cart rides over a peasant, crushing him to death, it's just a shame that there aren't more of these moments throughout the film.Ingrid Pitt is fine in the title role, although it's difficult to judge her entire performance as her voice is dubbed by another actress. However, she convincingly plays two versions of the same woman - the young and the old - and positively glows when appearing as the younger. The anguish that Elisabeth feels when she reverts to her proper age again is well done, only resorting to histrionics in one rather embarrassing scene where Pitt bangs her fists against the carpet. Pitt is ably supported by a distinguished cast. Leading this is Nigel Green (THE FACE OF FU MANCHU) who is very good indeed as the complex, lovelorn servant who worships Pitt but is snubbed by her every day. Maurice Denham is also on hand as an amusing librarian and makes a very atypical and interesting character out of his role.Sadly the younger performers are less convincing. Lesley-Anne Down is pretty but vapid as Pitt's daughter, while Sandor Eles is nothing more than a male pin-up, all looks but no brain; his dumb attitude threatens to have the whole film crashing down in places, and it's a good thing that the cunning Green is there to sort him out. One other actor I have to mention is the guy playing the moustachioed gamekeeper; he's one of the funniest bit-actors I've ever seen! Just check the moment where he attempts to lick a woman's shoe or the various amusing expressions on his face - classic!It seems to me that sometimes this film works at a purely soap-opera level, what with all the love triangles, lust, and passion on display. But underneath all this are subtle undercurrents about the price people are willing to pay to stay young and the dangers of hiding your true self from those you care about. Countess Dracula also has a superb ending, a simple freeze-frame on the horrible face of a decayed Pitt, which is both chilling and fascinating in equal measure. This marks the end of what has been an intelligent and highly interesting movie; although it lacks the pacing and excitement of a routine Hammer film, it more than makes up for this in terms of visual brilliance and an offbeat tone. Worth tracking down.

"LAS VEGAS – With her smooth skin and wavy, honeyed hair, Elena Caro was celebrated as a beauty by her husband and teenage daughter, who often told her that she didn't need cosmetic surgery. But at 42, Caro wanted firmer skin and a younger figure, so she secretly booked an appointment with a medical office recommended by a close friend." –AP 4/11/11Elena Caro is now dead after a second rate botched procedure that resulted in the arrest of the unlicensed staff. The question becomes "How far would you go to regain the beauty of your youth?". In Elizabeth Nodosheen's case she was willing to kill for it. I would think that instantly looking like Ingrid Pitt would make bathing in blood tempting for any girl. Ah vanity, it's my favorite of the deadly sins.Astringent, mud mask, exfoliant, emollient, lotions, pore strips, foundations, and powders are just a few things we ladies use to tighten skin, reduce fine lines, fade scars or spots, plump wrinkles, diminish pores, and to attempt to steal back lost years, because no matter how old she is, every woman wants to be twenty, or at least look it. Elizabeth Nodosheen gets the ultimate makeover in Hammer's Countess Dracula, and all it required was just a bit of virgin blood.Virgin after virgin dies in this well made seventies horror film. Despite Hammer's reputation there was very limited nudity showcased in Countess Dracula, disappointingly enough. There was one lovely Ingrid Pitt milky breast with nipple erect fondled in a brisk love scene, and the bare backsides of three dead virgins piled upon each other in a wagon covered with casks, and of course, the alluring image above.I began to consider it somewhat wasteful killing the virgins outright. Why not just keep one alive and drain a pint or so every other day? She only needed enough to wash up with after all. This seemed plausible to me and I even began to empathize with Elizabeth Nodosheen after each successful transformation. To be converted from a sagging wretch to a vibrant, youthful beauty, the requirement certainly seemed justified, despite my better judgment. I understood how the opportunity to regain youth could be too exquisite to deny oneself.The twist came when a love triangle formed between Nodosheen with her crusty previous lover and supple boy toy. Jealousies rage, there are levels of deceit throughout the castle, and ultimately a flawed plan to wed leads to the demise of Elizabeth Nodosheen. I love her story, and this film is certainly a morality lesson regarding the price of vanity, but if this tale can't teach us, maybe Elena Caro's will.

At the time of its release, Countess Dracula ticked every check box for what you might expect to find in a Hammer film of the period - a beautiful Gothic setting, death scenes that are actually shown on camera, several topless women and a cheesy 'boy meets girl' storyline that, really, takes second stage to the main storyline, which in this case is of a blood-obsessed countess. Oh, and not forgetting the obligatory European peasants who all speak with random accents from all over the British Isles!The storyline is based very loosely around the historical character of Elizabeth Bathory and, as such, contains no vampires, no fangs, and certainly no Dracula. For those who wish to know more about Bathory, it would probably be easier to do a quick Wikipedia search on her, but, in short, she believed that she could make herself younger by bathing in the blood of virgins and, as a result, killed a lot of young girls in order to achieve this.As long as you watch Countess Dracula in the context that it was intended, it is a thoroughly enjoyable film, featuring a career-defining performance from the great Ingrid Pitt (both for her acting, as well as her lack of clothing...), as well as a solid storyline and some great location work.On the downside, not that I look for a lot of gore and bloodshed in my films (far from it!), I was surprised at the lack of deaths of in the film - as the historical character was supposed to have murdered hundreds of young girls, you can count all of Countess Dracula's victims on a single hand.Overall: Highly recommended for fans of Hammer and vintage horror, but, for those looking for a traditional vampire film, look elsewhere - there are no blood-suckers here, just blood-bathers!