Dracula Has Risen from the Grave

Plot synopsis:
NOTE: Sequel to "Prince of Darkness" (1966).A year has passed since the demise of Dracula, buried under the ice in the river that flows past his castle. Ernst Mueller [Rupert Davies], monsignor of the monastery at Keinenberg, has decided to visit the village to see that all is well. What he finds is appalling. The village priest [Ewan Hooper] has become an alcoholic. The villagers will not attend Sunday Mass because the shadow of Dracula's castle touches the church during the evening hours. The Monsignor decides to exorcise the castle and prove to the villagers that the evil is gone. He and the priest climb the hill to the castle, but the priest chickens out halfway. The Monsignor continues alone to the castle door where he performs his exorcism and seals the castle door with a large cross. The priest, in the meantime, is taking swigs from his hipflask. He stumbles over a cliff, cuts his head, lands on the river ice, causing it to crack open just above Dracula's body. The priest's blood drips through the cracked ice, flowing into Dracula's mouth, and Dracula is thus resurrected.Barred from his castle by the cross on the door, Dracula [Christopher Lee] must now find other lodgings. He enslaves the priest, forcing him to dig up a new coffin for him. He also forces him to reveal who is responsible for the exorcism. The coffin is loaded onto a funeral coach, and the priest and Dracula head toward Keinenberg. His exorcism finished, the Monsignor also returns to Keinenberg where he lives with his brother's widow Anna [Marion Mathe] and his niece Maria [Veronica Carlson]. It is Maria's birthday, and a dinner party is planned for her. Tonight, Maria will introduce her boyfriend Paul [Barry Anderson], who she has been climbing over the rooftops to meet secretly) to her family. Paul works as a baker at the Johann Cafe and engages in scholarly studies during his spare time. Scared to meet Maria's family for the first time, Paul's plight is not helped when his friends at the cafe spill beer down his shirt. Still, all goes well at the dinner until Paul, in a fit of truthfulness, admits to the Monsignor that he is an atheist. Paul returns to the cafe, downs 3 glasses of Schnapps, and passes out. The waitress Zena [Barbara Ewing] carries him up to bed just as Maria enters through a window.On her way home, Zena is attacked by Dracula. With Zena's help, Dracula and his coffin are moved into a storage room in the cafe cellar, and the priest takes a room at the cafe. The next evening, when Maria drops by the cafe to see Paul, Zena leads her into the bakery, covers her head with a bag, and takes her to see Dracula. Maria escapes, however, when Paul comes looking for her, and she tells of being attacked by a man "with burning eyes." Angry at the failed attempt, Dracula kills Zena and orders the priest to destroy her in the furnace fire. Later that night, Dracula comes to Maria's bedside and drinks from her. He returns the next night but, just as he prepares to drink from her, the Monsignor enters the room. Dracula sees the cross in the Monsignor's hand and leaps from the window. The Monsignor attempts to follow but is knocked out by the priest. As the Monsignor lies dying, he sends for Paul and tells him what he must do to save Maria. Paul finds Dracula's coffin and drives a stake through his heart but, because neither he nor the priest can pray to God, Dracula succeeds in removing the stake. He escapes, summons Maria and, together with the priest, they return to Dracula's castle. Paul gets a horse and follows.Upon reaching the castle, Dracula forces Maria to remove the cross from the castle door. As she throws it down the cliff, Paul arrives. He and Dracula battle. They both fall off the porch. Paul catches a branch on the way down but Dracula falls to the ground where he is impaled upon the cross just tossed away by Maria. As the priest recites the Pater Noster, Dracula turns to dust. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.]

Tags: revenge, cult, gothic

Review:
Rather because this film manages to squeeze just about all of Hammer's horror-show templates into it's 92 minute running time.Here we have the unmistakeably distinctive set design and music score by Hammer mainstays Benard Robinson and James Benard; romantic leads transposing post Summer-of-Love sexual mores (and hairstyles!) to the film's indeterminate post Victorian location; two pub locales, one peopled with wary, hostile, superstitious East-Ender types, the other rollicking with high-spirited youthful inebriates; a pious religious figure (and a much less pious one); a cameo by Michael Ripper; day-for-night location shots; attractive women in low-cut bodices and nightgowns; yet another outlandish method of using trickling blood to revive the antagonist; an eventful screenplay that doesn't measure up to critical evaluation --- whew!
From the scenes of a Monsignor (Rupert Davies) traveling with a priest to perform an exorcism on Castle Dracula in order to bring the superstitious (ha!) congregation back to church on Sunday, to the romantic subplot between a scholarly baker and the Monsignor's daughter, and a distinct lack of Drac, I began to wonder if I was being shortchanged by a title that looked to just capitalize on the success of the Hammer Dracula films.
However, the more I kept with it, the more I enjoyed "Grave"--the above-mentioned plot threads, which at first seem corny, are interwoven with delicate skill by director Freddie Francis; the characters and their conflicts are surprisingly endearing (including an angle that brings atheism into the mix); and Christopher Lee is in fine form as the brooding, red-eyed Count (though the production suffers from the absence of frequent co-star Peter Cushing)..
One year after destroying Dracula (Christopher Lee), Monsignor (Rupert Davies) returns to his castle in the mountains with the local priest (Ewan Hooper) to exorcise his castle.
What a great effect, one that still gets me 35 years after i first saw the film as a 14-year old in Los Angeles' San Gabriel Valley (and where I saw it on TV not 15 minutes ago).Hammer vets Freddie Francis and Anthony Hinds create killer-diller fun with strong atmosphere; eerie, colorful lighting and a solid story.
Released in the USA in the Winter of 1969, Hammer's "Dracula has Risen from the Grave" was the fourth entry in the series and the third with Christopher Lee in the title role.
I'm sure it's the latter; regardless, it's excellent film work and a unique feature of this film.Of course, Hammer films are renown for their curvaceous women and here we have two: Redhead Barbara Ewing as the very likable Zena, and Veronica Carlson, who can also be seen in the outstanding "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed".As with most of Hammer's horror flicks, the movie possesses a beautifully lush, Gothic atmosphere.Despite the weak first act, the positives noted above compel me place "Dracula has Risen from the Grave" as my second or third favorite of the series.
It has a weak mid-section full of repetitious scenes of Dracula about to take a bite out of a voluptuous female, scenes that don't advance the plot the way they should.For this reason, some may find fault with the slow pace of much of the film but there's no denying the impressive look of sets, costumes and the proper Gothic atmosphere.
Andrews plays the role of Paul with a saucy cockiness and a twinkle in his eye, easily making what is essentially a cardboard role a standout among the supporting players by virtue of his earnest performance and personality.Engaging enough as a typical Dracula thriller, but clearly not the best of the Hammer films in this series.
The film has all the elements for a successful Hammer film..great cinematography, gothic castle and settings, good acting with Christopher Lee, Rupert Davies, and Michael Ripper, beautiful Hammer Beauties(Veronica Carlson..Va Va VaBoom), lush costuming and so on.
The fairy-tale Central European setting , the Gothic Castle Dracula with the quaint little village huddling under it's menacing presence, Christopher Lee as the Count , Veronica Carlson as the flaxen-haired maiden threatened by the powers of darkness, the iconography of the crucifixes, garlic and rituals.
A product of its time, the script openly suggests sexual activity, when the beautiful niece of a monsignor spends the night with her boyfriend and film's hero, played by a sexy, young actor called Barry Andrews, who also gets involved with an even sexier barmaid, more than willing to take his pants off while he is drunk.
It's got all the things that make Hammer Films so great - gorgeous sets, a nasty and misogynistic Dracula, two beautiful lead ladies with boobs ready to bust out of their bosoms, and a nice little love story at its heart.
The familiar scenes near the castle and in the forest are beautifully filmed and thick with the right atmosphere.Of all the Hammer Draculas this one has one of the best supporting casts.
Rock It, Christopher Lee. When his castle is exorcised, Dracula (Christopher Lee) plots his revenge against the Monsignor (Rupert Davies) who performed the rites by attempting to make the holy man's young niece his bride.This film is scandalous.
Britain's Hammer Films, having scored with Christopher Lee in 1966's "Dracula: Prince of Darkness", attempts a repeat performance, but lightning fails to strike twice (it barely manages a crackle).
As the third in the series of the Christopher Lee Draculas from Hammer horror, I wasn't sure what to expect, and after Prince of Darkness (66) it was possible this one could've slipped farther into territory that was cheesy and unbelievable and all that.
Francis' direction and the Hammer-studio sets are magnificent, you get absorbed into the horror every time Lee comes on because nothing is rushed for a moment - even when Dracula has to get away when another mortal enters (because, you know, he can't just keep doing what he's about to with his female victims), there's a grace to it.
You can feel the dread mounting even more with that there, and it stays on for a good couple of minutes before leaving the film.Dracula Has Risen from the Grave has a lot of personality to its characters, great camera-work, and another masterpiece turn from Lee in the role that made him a household name (for most households, preferably the ones with good taste).
Director Freddie Francis is a little too gel happy with the crazy lighting schemes but the flick is fairly atmospheric, well acted and it has some decent set pieces to keep things lively.The story isn't exactly Oscar material, in fact, this fourth Hammer Dracula film reeks with a sense of over familiarity but it's enjoyable nonetheless.
Lee angrily seeks revenge on the monsignor of the church (a good job by Rupert Davies) and pursues the Man of God's attractive niece (Veronica Carlson in her first of a few Hammer parts) as a means of evening the score.Dracula's scripted motivation for his revenge in this chapter seems a bit forced, but what really sets this entry apart from some of the others for me is the visage of religion hovering over the battle between good and evil.
Here, the story centers on a young man named Paul, who is romancing the monsignor's niece but who is himself an atheist, and as such has more of a struggle not only in appeasing his girl's fundamentalist uncle, but also falters when it comes to satisfactorily dealing with the threat of Dracula himself; in the film's best scene (and one of Hammer's all-time finest), Paul tries to put an end to the Count but is unable to finish the job due to his religious convictions.I must put in a good word for director Freddie Francis here, who usually gets overlooked in the shadow of the more acclaimed Terence Fisher.
Dracula Has Risen From The Grave, the third outing for Christopher Lee in his iconic role as the Count, sees Oscar winning cinematographer Freddie Francis taking over the reins from Terence Fisher, a move that results in a film that is artistically impressive, but one in which the focus on gorgeous visuals is often to the detriment of the storytelling, the more interesting themes in Anthony Hinds' script—the hero's atheism, a priest's struggle against evil, and a tarty barmaid's longing to be wanted—being pushed aside in favour of a striking image or the experimental use of colour.The good news is that, even though the narrative could have benefited from a little more attention (and a quickening of the overall pace wouldn't have hurt either), Dracula Has Risen From the Grave is still a serviceable slice of Hammer horror, one that delivers most of the traditional Gothic elements Hammer fans know and love: bright red gore, foggy mountains, ominous woods, superstitious locals, and busty babes are all present and correct; the sets and costumes are as sumptuous as always (a smoky rooftop set is particularly effective); and the cast are uniformly excellent, Lee giving yet another chilling performance as Dracula, Rupert Davies, Barry Andrews, and Hammer regular Michael Ripper providing solid support, and beautiful blonde Veronica Carlson and winsome Barbara Ewing supplying the obligatory eye-candy (with buxom Marion Mathie for those who prefer their ladies a little more on the mature side)..
"Dracula has risen from the Grave" certainly isn't a bad horror movie but, compared to the previous three films about the bloodsucking count, it seriously lacks a tense atmosphere and creative story elements.
The supportive cast of "Dracula has risen from the Grave" is very interesting, with decent roles for Rupert Davies ("The Witchfinder General"), Veronica Carlson ("Frankenstein must be Destroyed") and the stunningly beautiful Barbara Ewing..
Still, the Hammer formula works, and "Dracula Has Risen From The Grave" delivers atmosphere and Gothic eeriness on more than one occasion.Christopher Lee is once again brilliantly creepy as Dracula, and the rest of the performances are also good.
Despite the error on this and the part where he is seen in the water's reflection it still rates as a classic.It is interesting how Dracula is revived from the ice to make this a direct sequel from "Prince of Darkness" but they could have done the priest's blood to his mouth scene better.
Dracula Has Rise from the Grave is the fourth film in Hammer's Dracula series and the third to star Christopher Lee. The action follows straight on from the events at the climax of Dracula: Prince of Darkness, with the Count being accidentally being unleashed from his watery grave and proceeding to wreak havoc on a local community in his quest for the niece of the local Monsignor.This is a classic Hammer Horror film with all of the vibrant colour photography and richness of both set and costume that the studio is best known for.
If anything, the production values are one of the film's biggest strengths, with the beautiful photography, wonderfully moody red colour filtering and lighting and sumptuously evocative Gothic sets(with some jaw-dropping rooftop scenes, an adventurous move for Hammer) Dracula Has Risen from the Grave looks great.
Freddie Francis, despite being more successful as a cinematographer, does a more than competent job directing(much better and far more adventurous than in his previous Hammer directing effort The Evil of Frankenstein), he directs with excellent style and while the story is not always as engrossing as it should be he gets the atmosphere of the film down-pat.James Bernard's music score booms thrillingly, without being too obvious or too much, and gives off a really creepy vibe.
Christopher Lee dominates however, even with reasonably diminished screen-time and with not a lot of dialogue (more than in Dracula: Prince of Darkness, where he doesn't even speak) he is superbly chilling as Dracula, even the look of Dracula here is enough to induce goose bumps.Dracula Has Risen from the Grave is let down by the script, which is very formulaic and vague with an over-reliance on turgid melodrama in the mid-section, there are some really interesting ideas here but the film doesn't do enough with some of them.
This was Barry Andrews' first film - he would later appear in a superior horror effort, THE BLOOD ON SATAN'S CLAW (1971) - and he makes a charming enough hero; the girls - Veronica Carlson and Barbara Ewing - are certainly good-looking, but hardly impressive in the acting stakes.The usual Hammer elements (bit player Michael Ripper, cinematographer Arthur Grant, production designer Bernard Robinson, editor James Needs and composer James Bernard) are in fine form here - but the overall result is still merely adequate and, on occasion, fairly clumsy!
I know one isn't supposed to look too closely at these films' plot-lines but, if Dracula was only revived by the blood from the cut to the head of the weakling parson (Ewan Hooper), who killed the girl found hanging in the belfry in the opening sequence?; also, why was Dracula so utterly terrified of a small cross the Monsignor was holding when the latter surprised him in his niece's room (the rooftop trysts/chases become awfully repetitive too)?; besides, at one point, Dracula shouts his orders to his henchman from inside the coffin (isn't he supposed to be asleep in there?) - not to mention the fact that, for a movie that's supposed to be mostly set at night, the sky looks awfully bright (the culprit being obvious day-for-night shooting).Even so, there are several good sequences along the way - notably the afore-mentioned opening scene and resurrection of the Count, the sluttish barmaid pleading with Dracula to take her over the virginal Carlson and the vampire's dual impalements towards the end of the film.
Also, John Elder's script adds some interesting (even novel) ideas to the tried-and-true Hammer vampire formula: the slackening of Christian belief in the village due to Dracula's evil influence; the opposing viewpoints of atheist Andrews and Monsignor Davies; the conflicted younger priest, etc.The copy I watched had a slight video glitch during one of Lee's close-ups (when he visits Carlson in her bedroom and is chased away by Davies) and, towards the end, it also went out-of-synch (but, thankfully, this was fixed when played again via the chapter menu).
Capably directed by renowned cinematographer & director Freddie Francis, "Dracula Has Risen from the Grave" is a good, not great, entry in this Hammer vampire series.
However, the Count is resurrected, and when he sees that he can't use his own place for sanctuary, he plots revenge against the man of God, by pursuing the Monsignors' lovely young blonde niece Maria (Veronica Carlson).Horror elements don't come into play that often in this story.
it only continues the story in a very dramatic way.Worth watching if you enjoy Dracula/Vampire films and Christopher Lee.9/10.
Freddie Francis directed this fourth Hammer studios "Dracula" film, which sees Christopher Lee return as Count Dracula, accidentally revived from his watery grave by a weak-willed priest with his blood, who sets upon a campaign of revenge against the monsignor(played by Rupert Davies) who had exorcised his castle; Dracula plots to deprive him of his innocent niece Maria(played by Veronica Carlson) but her boyfriend Paul(played by Barry Andrews) decides to discard his atheist beliefs to help her, and stop this evil...
Her boyfriend then has a final confrontation with Dracula...As always in Hammer movies, Dracula Has Risen From the Grave has an excellent and at times eerie music score and atmospheric photography.Joining Lee in the cast is Rupert Davies (Witchfinder General), Veronica Carlson (Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed), Barbara Ewing, Goerge A Cooper (best known for playing caretaker Mr Griffiths in Grange Hill) and Michael Ripper (The Reptile, The Revenge of Frankenstein).Have a good fright with Dracula Has Risen From the Grave.
The film never really kicks into high hear, but James Bernard's music is thrilling and really makes several average sequences very exciting.Christopher Lee is as awesome as ever, even if he is given little to do but bite people,Rupert Davies is quite a formidable adversary and Veronica Carlson is definately one of  the most fetching of Hammer's young starlets.
Good Film Not a Great One. Not the best of the Hammer Dracula's but certainly one of the most visually interesting.
The pace of this production is good, though the plot is rather threadbare and run-of-the mill and the script-writer's insistence on allowing Dracula to remove a stake from his body (which particularly annoyed an already indifferent Christopher Lee) is (almost)unforgiveable.The ending is quite memorable, and generally, you have one of the more energetic later Dracula films; worth watching..
This lack of faith plays a significant part in a great sequence later in the film regarding Dracula, a scene that's one of the high points in this series for me.Something seems to be missing this time, but DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE is surely worth a visit..
Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968) ** 1/2 (out of 4) The fourth film in Hammer's series picks up slightly after the events in Dracula: PRINCE OF DARKNESS.
The Monsignor Mueller (Rupert Davies) talks a priest (Ewan Hooper) into helping him perform an exorcism at the castle of Dracula but things backfire when the Count (Christopher Lee) comes back from his icy grave and sets his eyes on the Monsignor's daughter (Veronica Carlson).
This Hammer film is like so many of their products in that it's pretty good for the most part but at the same time you can't help but wish there was a stronger screenplay with much better characters.
Dracula lives again, in perhaps the best sequel Hammer produced with Christopher Lee. This time, the water Dracula is frozen in gets broken and blood from an unfortunate priest brings him back.
More than any previous Hammer film, "Dracula Has Risen from the Grave" is all about believing in good and evil.
By doing this he will achieve his goal - revenge against the Monsignor for sanctifying his resting place...Dracula Has Risen From The Grave was Christopher Lee's third Dracula film for Hammer following up the successful Dracula Prince Of Darkness, which made it into the top twenty money spinners of 1966.