The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973)

User Rating:

5.2/10   

Director:

Alan Gibson

Writer:

Don Houghton (writer)

Release Date:

October 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

The King of the undead marries the Queen of the Zombies

Plot:

In London in the 1970s, Scotland Yard police investigators think they have uncovered a case of vampirism...

Plot Keywords:

Female Nudity | Good Versus Evil | Dracula | Secret Cult | Sequel

Cast

Christopher Lee	...	Count Dracula
Peter Cushing	...	Prof. Lorrimer Van Helsing
Michael Coles	...	Insp. Murray
William Franklyn	...	Torrence
Freddie Jones	...	Prof. Julian Keeley
Joanna Lumley	...	Jessica Van Helsing
Richard Vernon	...	Col. Mathews
Barbara Yu Ling	...	Chin Yang
Patrick Barr	...	Lord Carradine
Richard Mathews	...	John Porter
Lockwood West	...	General Sir Arthur Freeborne
Valerie Van Ost	...	Jane
Maurice O'Connell	...	Hanson
Peter Adair	...	Doctor
Maggie Fitzgerald	...	Vampire girl

Also Known As:

Count Dracula and His Vampire Bride (USA)
Dracula Is Alive and Well and Living in London
Dracula Is Dead... and Well and Living in London
Rites of Dracula

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Australia:R (DVD rating) | Iceland:16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | West Germany:18 | Australia:M | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) (1988) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Elstree Film and TV Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Stephanie Beacham was intended to reprise her role as Jessica but was unavailable

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Jessica is attacked by the female vampires in the basement of the sinister cult house, the brunette vampire menacing her from the rear is missing an important bit of anatomy- vampire fangs.

Quotes:

Count Dracula: [to Prof Van Helsing] My revenge has spread over centuries and has just begun!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Dracula: A Cinematic Scrapbook (1991)

Not As Bad As Is Made Out

The only problem I can see with this film is that it's very far removed from the horror franchise that started with the original Hammer Dracula in the late 50's, in fact I can't help thinking that it was conceived as a violent thriller that didn't feature Dracula or Van Helsing. That might explain the slightly lame ending.

As it stands THE SATANIC RITES OF Dracula does have some effective moments such as the opening escape scene and the plague victim , and there's a very bleak feel to the film through out. If you compare it to the earlier films in the Hammer cycle your enjoyment of this one will be spoiled . So don't compare it