Nonureva Really Surprised!

MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting

Bereamic Awesome Movie

Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Cineanalyst Hammer seems to have had a creative crisis of sorts regarding its vampire output in the eight-years absence, between the 1958 "Dracula" and the 1966 "Dracula: Prince of Darkness," of Christopher Lee in the Dracula role. "The Brides of Dracula" (1960) had Peter Cushing return as Van Helsing, but it's a dull retread, and kid-vamp Baron Meinster was a poor heir to Lee. Absent Lee, Cushing and any Dracula connection this outing, "The Kiss of the Vampire," at least, has a grown man in the role of its head vampire. And although it's slow going for a while after the opening credits, if you stick with it, you're in for a few treats.This probably would've benefited by being cut down to closer to an hour's length. The early automobile-out-of-gas episode, for instance, where the wife is left alone and, gasp, nothing happens, could've been left out. Or the innkeeper's sad wife, who disappears in the second half of the film, may as well have not been in the first half either. There probably could've been fewer protentive looks early on, as well. You can't really create mystery with such eyeballing when the movie's title tells us there's going to be vampires.Now, for the treats, we get one to start off when the Professor thrusts a shovel through the coffin and the heart of his turned daughter—resulting in the kind of blood splatter Hammer is beloved for. Vampires as decadent cultists is another good idea. Roman Polanski must've seen this for his ballroom sequence in "The Dance of the Vampires," a.k.a. "The Fearless Vampire Killers" (1967). The husband gives us Hammer's best makeshift cross yet by drawing it on his chest in his own blood. And for the grand finale, they realize the black-magic climax that, reportedly, Cushing thought (probably rightly) unwholesome for his Van Helsing in "The Brides of Dracula." Fortunately, the Van Helsing stand-in here, the Professor Zimmer, has no such qualms. The fake-bats biting the vampire cultists to death is just deliciously trashy.

moonspinner55 Exquisite-looking vampire outing from Hammer Films, quite beautifully photographed by Alan Hume and scored by James Bernard, was the studio's attempt to keep the genre going without the services of their star, Christopher Lee. Plot concerns newlywed couple in early 1900s Bavaria lost on the roadway and running out of petrol near the castle of one Dr. Ravna (Noel Willman). He invites them to dinner, where he checks out the Mrs. A few days later, the couple is invited to a masquerade ball, where the husband is drugged and the wife taken away into the clutches of Ravna, the vampire prince among a throng of devoted bloodsuckers. Marvelous tale comes complete with its very own Van Helsing in the guise of Clifford Evans' Professor Zimmer, who has been waiting to exterminate Ravna for many moons. Director Don Sharp doesn't rush through this narrative; he takes his time to set the stage, though buffs may find his pacing a bit slow. Sharp certainly doesn't skimp on the bloodletting, particularly at the rousing finish. Good show! *** from ****

Scott LeBrun Edward de Souza and Jennifer Daniel play the Harcourts, a honeymooning couple who strand themselves in the Southern European wilderness. They graciously accept the hospitality of a castle dwelling local family called the Ravnas, led by a pleasant patriarch (Noel Willman). Unbeknownst to Gerald Harcourt, this aristocratic family has sinister plans for his wife, so he must call upon a vampire expert named Professor Zimmer (Clifford Evans).A little more mystery may have added to the overall impact; as it is, we're all pretty sure of where this is headed. But that doesn't mean that this isn't good, under rated Hammer. It looks positively gorgeous (especially on Blu-ray), just like the majority of Hammer product, and is intoxicatingly atmospheric during its uneasiest moments. One does feel that they are in the presence of true Evil. James Bernard is again an essential element to this formula, adding another eerie score to his resume. The costume ball that plays into the story allows for one good twist. The film is directed by Australian born Don Sharp, definitely an under rated genre director during this era (he deserves to be just as well known as frequent Hammer director Terence Fisher). Screenwriter Anthony Hinds updates the action a bit; this takes place in a slightly more "modern" period than many Hammer stories, since the Harcourts are getting around in a car. His resolution offers another interesting twist that this viewer hasn't seen in any vampire film before.The cast is excellent. Evans is no Peter Cushing, but he's a reasonably engaging vampire hunter. Daniel and de Souza are very likable. Willman is an effective villain, and Barry Warren is likewise solid as his son. Peter Madden and Vera Cook are appealing as the innkeepers, and John Harvey impresses in his brief turn as a police sergeant. The young ladies present are often sumptuously lovely."The Kiss of the Vampire" entertains in deliberately paced, ominous fashion; it's a Hammer film that deserves to be better known.Seven out of 10.

AaronCapenBanner Don Sharp directed this entertaining vampire tale(not connected with the Dracula series) that sees honeymooning Gerald and Marianne Harcourt(played by Edward De Souza & Jennifer Daniel) develop car trouble on their driving trip in Europe, but are aided by a Count Ravna(played by Noel Willman) who invites them to his castle for a costume party after they check into a local inn. The party takes a dark turn after Gerald is drugged, and told that he has no wife! Confused and outraged, he seeks the help of Professor Zimmer(played by Clifford Evans) who is also staying at the inn, and informs him that Ravna leads a vampire cult that turned his own daughter, and now wants Marianne... Another atmospheric horror from Hammer with a fine score and direction. A pity it couldn't have brought back Peter Cushing as Van Helsing, but performances are still good, and leads to an exciting finale.