Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

hyped garbage

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

It's ironic that as Ingrid Pitt's Countess Elisabeth Bathory realizes that her true age is returning, she reaches for a rosary and begins to pray. That signals the obvious truth that she feels, via her birthright, that she has the right to not only be cruel to the poor (including her own servants) and commit murder if it benefits her. The film opens with the recently widowed countess planning to bring her daughter (Lesley Anne Downe) home to receive her inheritance. After a servant girl cuts herself and squirts blood on the countess, she finds that virgin blood gives her youthful skin. She schemes to have her own daughter abducted, posing as her daughter in order to land a young army officer she desires. But the virgin blood doesn't last, and that means more murders and a feeling of terror in the countryside, with great suspicions falling on the countryside, known as "the devil woman" by the superstitious villagers.It's not a role of vanity for the beautiful Pitt, made up plainly and getting uglier as her soul turns more evil. This doesn't feel fully set in its time period, with sets a bit more lavish than other films set during the time period. But, it's suitably sinister, never gross in its presentation of the sinister killings. Nigel Green is excellent as Pitt's accessory, not at all one dimensional yet guilty of allowing Pitt to continue her reign of terror. This gives no lame excuse for Bathory's actions, other than the fact that she was insanely vain and consumed with the hatred of any girl young and beautiful. Perhaps an influence for many vain wicked queens in the Grimm's fairy tales (particularly the queen in Snow White), the story of Elisabeth Bathory is an allegory to the evils of vanity, narcissism, and abuse of power. This is much better than more recent versions of this story, direct and without pretensions.

Countess Dracula may not be Vampire lovers, but again it has cult favorite Ingrid Pitt (both as herself and in old-age make-up and grey wig), sumptuous costumes, lighting and scenery, lovely score and young Lesley-Anne Downs as angelically pretty heroine. "Old women are gross evil monsters" morality stinks like a compost it is; in real life, Countess Bathory's crime career (if real) had nothing to do with becoming old and envying young girls. Anyway, it is yet another Hammer classic, and novelization by Michael Parry seems also very interesting. By the way, Grimm brothers is another sumptuously dressed, silly and enjoyable fairytale about Bathory legend.

Well. I am unfamiliar with the Hammer series, and so have nothing to add about that. This film was a bit of a disappointment. Yes, there were scenes of a lush countryside, and medieval costumes. There was some good acting (Nigel Green, Andrea Lawrence) and some so-so performances (Maurice Denham, Lesley-Anne Down). The direction was uninspiring, yet unobtrusive. I suppose the problem must lie in the writing. The main character, Countess Elizabeth Nodosheen (Ingrid Pitt) was of zero redeeming value. She invites the viewer's contempt, but other characters, such as Captain Dobi (Green) were little better. It isn't so much that characters are evil, but that they were (the unforgivable cinematic sin) boring.

One only has to take a look at Ingrid Pitt as she changes from Countess Elisabeth Nodosheen to a nineteen old version to immediately know why she is the Most Beautiful Ghoul in the World.A retelling of the Elizabeth Bathory tale with the gorgeous Pitt is certainly one worth watching if not for her, for the ample flesh that is displayed as girls are murdered to keep her beautiful.Nigel Green is the unfortunate Captain Dobi, the Countess' lover, who is charged with providing girls to die for her, only to see her go after a much younger man.Elizabeth has her own daughter Ilona (Lesley-Anne Down) imprisoned so she could pretend to be her.It gets more horrible when it is found that only virgins will do, and you can imagine Ilona's eventual fate.An exciting tale with a beautiful woman who we lost just this week.