Countess Zaleska has Risen

DRACULA'S DAUGHTER (1936)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

"Dracula's Daughter" is the fabulous and eerie sequel to Bela Lugosi's original "Dracula" film from 1931. This one has Countess Marya Zaleska (Gloria Holden) as the daughter of the infamous Count, who was staked to death by Professor Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan, who for some reason is named Von Helsing in this film). Interestingly, Von Helsing is about to be arrested for murder so long as the body can be recovered. At the beginning of the film, Zaleska retrieves her father's body and burns her it to free herself from her vampiric tendencies. Of course, you can never keep a good vampire or good countess down for long since she continues to stalk and drain the blood of female victims in London. The Countess hypnotizes her victims with the use of her magical, glowing ring, and often succeeds. However, she doesn't want to continue with her deeds and requests the help of a psychiatrist! This must be the first vampire in the history of cinema to ever seek help for his/her condition. In 1945's "House of Dracula," John Carradine's Dracula sought the help of a doctor to cure him of his vampirism but it is rarely touched on in any vampire film.

The psychiatrist in this story is Dr. Jeffrey Garth (Otto Kruger), a former colleague of Dr. Van Helsing - he is entranced by her piercing eyes and wants to help her. Zaleska has another plan, however, and that is to get eternal life and bring Dr. Garth with her. Her assistant, Sandor (Irving Pichel), sees things differently since he was promised eternal life. Sandor's appearance is a devious combination of Karloff's character in "The Raven" and Lurch from "Addams Family."

Based on Bram Stoker's "Dracula's Guest," "Dracula's Daughter" was released back in 1936 and was the first vampire movie coming out of Universal Studios since the Lugosi original. Why it took so long since Lugosi's film was a box-office hit is not clear. This film is notable for the subliminal lesbian tendencies of Countess Zaleska and her cunning ability to lure her female victims to her lair (she does lure one male victim though). Consider the controversial, memorable sequence where Zaleska lures a blonde, petite female to her studio to model. All we see is the girl's face and shoulders, and once again she is startled by the Countess's eyes and ring.

"Dracula's Daughter" is a splendid film with some of the gloomiest and most elegiac black-and-white images I've ever seen in a Universal production or in any horror film for that matter (not counting 1922's "Nosferatu"). There are stark, foggy images of London and a town called Chelsea where evil awaits near bridges and bookstores, always at night. Gloria Holden is excellent as the Countess whom you sympathize with, even when she's undressing a female victim before biting her. Irving Pichel is impressively solid as Sandor, who assures the Countess that she will always be overcome by darkness. I also like the continuous bantering and arguing between Dr. Garth and his secretary, Janet (Marguerite Churchill), who always fixes his tuxedo tie. But it is Holden who walks away with the film, showing us a helpless vampire who wants to be consoled for her unfortunate habits. It was a model for Anne Rice's "Interview With a Vampire" in more ways than one.

An underrated film and a classy, sophisticated picture in a less than reputable genre, "Dracula's Daughter" is a definite classic.

The Monster demands a Mate

BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1935)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

1935's "The Bride of Frankenstein" remains one of the great horror films of all time. It is cheerful, dark, mysterious, comical, compelling and quite frightening at times. It is the sequel to 1931's "Frankenstein," which starred Boris Karloff, and is significantly superior in every aspect.

The opening prologue is set in 1816 with Elsa Lanchester as the lovely author of the "Frankenstein" novel, Mary Shelley, who tells her close admirers, Percy Shelley, her husband, and Lord Byron, "London's greatest sinner," how her story didn't really end. Thus, we get the sequel with the Monster (Karloff again) escaping from the burning windmill and wrecking vengeance on everything and everyone who crosses his path. He attacks village women, gypsies, peasants and so on. He encounters a blind old man in one of the most famous sequences in history as the old man teaches him the virtues of fire, smoking, music ("Ave Maria"), and how to speak. Of course, two men (one of them is played by John Carradine) find the Monster and try to kill him. The Monster escapes again and is caught by all the villagers, tied to a pole in crucifixion-style, and eventually chained in prison before escaping yet again.

Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) managed to survive the fiery debacle of the original, and is all set to marry his sweet Elizabeth (Valerie Hobson, who was only 17 at the time) before being convinced to create a mate for the Monster by the evil Dr. Praetorius (Ernest Thesiger). Naturally, they create a mate with the help of a drooling assistant, Karl (Dwight Frye, in reportedly a combination of two roles) who memorably shrieks "It's a very fresh one" after killing a bystander on the street to get a fresh heart. The Monster finally has a new mate (Elsa Lanchester) who memorably shrieks herself and turns her head in jerky, robotic movements recalling Brigitte Helm in "Metropolis." The film ends with the fiery explosion of Praetorius's castle, and the good doctor and Elizabeth manage to escape and embrace in a happy ending devised to let the good doctor live.

"The Bride of Frankenstein" has some oddball moments although I can't say I know what era the film is set in. At one point, Dr. Praetorius lets Frankenstein communicate with Elizabeth through a voice transmission device! However, the villagers and every other citizen travel by horse and carriage, so is it set before the 1900's? And there's an abrupt finale where simply pulling a lever causes an explosion (this is how most mad scientist movies would end).

Still, "The Bride of Frankenstein" is a great film with some horrifying moments and some weirdly funny ones such as Dr. Praetorius's own creations which are life-like dolls in glass containers, including a smitten king, a ballerina, and a mermaid. "This is not science. This is black magic," says the dumbfounded Frankenstein. The scene is darkly comic yet there's something fundamentally horrific about it too - it shows a man who has gone at extreme lengths to give life to dead beings for his own pleasure, like Frankenstein himself. There are also several religious symbols throughout, especially during a quixotic moment when a crucifix shines brightly in the background while the blind man weeps after finding a companion in his home again. The entrance of the Bride towards the end is one of the loveliest sights in history as we see a ravishing beauty given life to please a monster whom she despises.

The performances are top-notch. Colin Clive is credibly and constantly uptight - he gets to yell the immortal line "She's alive! She's alive!" Ernest Thesiger plays the most evil villain in eons, and is unmatched in its baneful nature until Henry Fonda's cold killer in Once Upon a Time in the West. Thesiger has some delicious quips throughout and appears to be more frightening than the Monster itself. Karloff is given more to do this time as he's allowed to speak threateningly to Frankenstein, and even laugh! Elsa Lanchester is grandly beautiful and tremendously adept playing two roles: first as a delightful Mary Shelley in the wonderful prologue, and then in an extended cameo as the shrilly Bride with Nefertiti-shock hair and piercing eyes (if only screenwriters John L. Balderston and William Hurlbut gave her more to do). Also noteworthy is Una O'Connor who is hilarious as Frankenstein's maid servant, Minnie, who screams every time she sees the Monster - I love the way she utters "Dr. Praaeeetttorius!" when the doctor enters the house. Her role is quite similar to her equally delectable parts in "The Invisible Man" and "The Adventures of Robin Hood." Another small but significant role is the pompous burgomaster played by E.E. Clive with a big mustache - he was also cast in "The Invisible Man."

Other pluses in "Bride of Frankenstein" are the moody, evocative cinematography by John Mescall, including the justly famous graveyard scenes populated by fog and crucifixes; the creepy music score by Frank Waxman that is among the greatest ever composed for the silver screen and was used in many films since; and James Whale's fine direction and his extraordinary feel for the supernatural and the monstrous ironies in Shelley's text. There is simply not a better film about Frankenstein to see and, although it doesn't follow the novel too closely, this is among the finest and most visually spectacular Universal horror films ever made.

Nondescript freak of nature

THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED-UP ZOMBIES!!? (1964)

So we have a carnival where the palm reader throws acid in your face, especially at pizza owners! The palm reader is Estrella (Brett O'Hara) and her assistant smokes cigars and looks uglier than Rondo Hatton! We have some older teenagers, possibly leftover extras from "Rebel Without a Cause" and one of whom is a foreigner, who enjoy going to this carnival quite possibly because there are showgirls on the order of Bettie Page who sing and striptease!

What we have here is a mess called "The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies," which is the most surreal, wacky and nonsensical movie I've seen in some time (complete with the wackiest title of all time). The lead role belongs to the director himself, Ray Dennis Steckler (also using the alias Cash Flagg), who plays Jerry, a teen troublemaker who like to frequent the carnival (who wouldn't with all those peep shows and bad comics?) It turns out that Estrella, the palm reader, has thrown acid on one customer after another and has kept them in some sort of underground dungeon. They aren't exactly zombies, just some angry customers I would imagine with largely disfigured heads. Jerry is hypnotized into killing people at Estrella's command - he goes around wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt and brandishing a knife. He bears an uncanny resemblance to Charles Whitman, the infamous rifleman who stood on top of the University of Texas and shot several students.

The reason this movie has achieved cult status is because it makes no sense and contains more musical numbers than suspense. The benefits are that it is technically proficient and astoundingly and superbly photographed, considering one of the cinematographers is Laszlo Kovacs (although a lot of scenes are badly staged).

Other than that, it is quite a strange experience that can't be put in any real category. Not quite horror, not quite a suspense film, and not much of anything else other than a colorful blend of gaudy music numbers and some loose serial-killer subplot. There is an erratic energy to it that keeps you glued to the screen - it is a freak of nature. Describing what it is all about is another story.