The Brides of Dracula

Plot synopsis:
A gloomy wood is seen as a voice is heard, narrating:
Transylvania, land of dark forests, dread mountains and black unfathomable lakes. Still the home of magic and devilry as the nineteenth century draws to its close. Count Dracula, monarch of all vampires is dead. But his disciples live on to spread the cult and corrupt the world...
Marianne Danielle, a young French schoolteacher en route to take up a position in Transylvania, is abandoned at a village inn by her coach driver. Ignoring the warnings of the locals, she accepts the offer of Baroness Meinster to spend the night at her castle. There, she sees the Baroness's handsome son, whom she is told is insane and kept confined. When she sneaks into his quarters to meet him, she is shocked to find him chained by his leg to the wall, and when he tells her that his mother has usurped his rightful lands and pleads for her help, she agrees to steal the key to his chain from the Baroness' bedroom. Discovering this, the Baroness is horrified; yet when her son appears, she obeys him and accompanies him back to his room. Later, Marianne discovers the Baroness' servant Greta, who has also taken care of the Baron since he was a baby, in hysterics: She shows Marianne the Baroness' corpse, and the puncture marks in her throat. Marianne flees into the night upon seeing this, while Greta chastises the Baroness for raising her son on cruelty and cavorting with bad company in the past, which lead to one such being (Dracula) turning him into a vampire and the Baroness having to chain him in his room (while feeding him any girls that she lured to the castle). Despite knowing the evil he intends to the village, Greta remains loyal to the Baron.
Marianne is later found, exhausted, by Dr. Van Helsing the following morning. She doesn't remember all that has happened, nor is she familiar when asked about the words "undead" or "vampirism." He escorts her to the school where she's to be employed.
When Van Helsing reaches the village inn, he finds there is a funeral in progress. A young girl has been found dead in the woods with wounds upon her throat. He contacts Father Stepnik, who had requested Van Helsing's presence, having suspicions about the castle and the Baroness. He tries to dissuade the girl's father from burying her, but he doesn't listen, allowing more time for her transformation to be completed. Indeed, Stepnik's fears are confirmed when Helsing (and later Stepnik himself) goes to the cemetery that night in hopes of stopping the transformation, only to find Greta already there; Greta aides the newly vampirised village girl to rise from her grave. The men try to stop her, but Greta holds them off and allows the girl to flee. Van Helsing goes to the castle and discovers the Baroness, now risen as a vampire herself, as well as the Baron. After a brief scuffle, the Baron flees on a coach driven by the village girl, abandoning his mother, who is full of self-loathing and guilt over her actions with her son. Knowing that the Baron has no interest in controlling her — and that the transformation was his revenge on her for locking him up — Helsing takes pity on her and, after sunrise the next morning, kills her with a wooden stake as she slumbers.
The Baron, meanwhile, visits Marianne at the school and asks her to marry him. She accepts, much to the good-natured envy of her roommate Gina. However, once Gina is alone, Baron Meinster appears in her room and drains Gina of her blood. When Van Helsing visits the next day, he finds the school in a small uproar over Gina's death. After inspecting Gina's body and finding bite wounds on her neck, Helsing orders that her body be placed in a horse stable with people watching it until he returns. That night, Marianne relieves the headmaster's wife of her watch. Initially she is with the stable keeper, Severin, when, in a scene derived from M. R. James' "Count Magnus," one of the padlocks on the coffin falls off without unlocking. Severin goes outside to fetch another lock, but is killed by a vampire bat (presumably the Baron or the village girl from earlier) while inside the last lock falls from the coffin. The coffin lid is pushed opened and Gina rises, now a vampire, and smiles her newly formed fangs at Marianne. She approaches Marianne, asking forgiveness for letting the Baron "love her". She also reveals the whereabouts of the Baron, who is hiding at the old mill, and tries to convince Marianne to come with her so "they can both love him".
Van Helsing discovers the body of Severin, and enters the stable, saving Marianne from being bitten by Gina, who then flees. Van Helsing takes Marianne back to the school to calm her down. Marianne doesn't want to believe that Gina or the Baron are vampires, but Van Helsing confirms that they are, stating to Gina she once knew is indeed dead and has been resurrected as the Baron's newest vampire bride, now evil and completely under his control. If not stopped, neither the Baron nor she will have qualms attacking school under his commands and adding to their undead ranks. Reluctantly, Marianne tells Van Helsing what Gina told her. The vampire hunter goes to the old mill and manages to find the Baron's coffin, but is soon confronted by both of Meinster's "Brides" as well as Greta, who commands Gina and the village girl to obey their master's commands and kill Helsing. Helsing wards the brides off with his cross, but Greta, who is human and unaffected, manages to wrestle it away from him only to trip and plummet from the rafters, dying in the fall. However the cross falls into the well below the mill and is now out of Van Helsing's reach as the Baron arrives, brandishing a length of chain. In the fight that follows, the Baron manages to subdue Van Helsing and bites him, inflicting him with vampirism before leaving. When Van Helsing wakes, he realizes what has happened. He heats a metal tool in a brazier until it is red hot, then cauterises his throat wound and pours holy water on it to purify it. The wounds disappear as Gina and the village girl watch from the rafters, shocked that Van Helsing overcame a vampire bite and saved himself from vampirisim.
Baron Meinster, meanwhile, abducts Marianne from the school and brings her to the mill, intending to vampirise her in front of Van Helsing. As Meinster attempts to hypnotise her, to make her compliant to his will, Van Helsing seizes a canteen of holy water that dropped in their earlier fight and throws its contents into the Baron's face, which sears him like acid. Meinster kicks over the brazier of hot coals, starting a fire. The Baron runs outside and his brides make their escape. Van Helsing takes Marianne up into the mill, then out via the huge sails, which he moves to form the shadow of a gigantic cross over Meinster. Van Helsing goes to ground level to make sure he's dead, then comforts Marianne as the mill burns.

Tags: gothic

Review:
This film lacks the star power of Christopher Lee in Hammer's second vampire outing, yet does not suffer greatly due to the wonderful performance of Peter Cushing reprising his role as Dr. Van Helsing and the incredible direction of Terrence Fisher.
Almost everything that fans love about this particular vein of horror is here; the great Peter Cushing as Van Helsing, atmospheric sets and lighting, a creepy baroness, direction from the celebrated Terence Fisher...
Van Helsing (Peter Cushing) returns to Transylvania to battle evil Baron Meinster (David Peel), a Dracula wannabe freed from captivity by a young schoolteacher (Yvonne Monlaur).
Naive young teacher Marianne is on her way to a new position when she takes pity on a young man she finds manacled to the wall in an old castle.But she doesn't realise that Baron Meinster has been chained up by his mother because he's a vampire.Before long Meinster is on the prowl targeting the nearby girl's school-but vampire hunter Dr Van Helsing is on his trail...Very well-directed and fabulously acted follow-up to Terence Fisher's "Dracula" with fantastic acting and plenty of eerie atmosphere.The exterior shots of the windmill in the film's climax are both iconic and awe-inspiring and Peter Cushing is truly memorable as a quick-witted Van Helsing.The script is truly superb with such lovely nuances as never before seen way of destroying the vampire.There is also a spooky village that appears in every movie of this type,utterly interchangeable with the Klausenburg of "Horror of Dracula" or the Vandorf of "The Gorgon".9 out of 10..
She is great eye candy, however, as are the two other "brides' Andree Melly and Marie Devereux.No matter what your film viewing pleasure is,this is Hammer,Terrance Fisher, and Peter Cushing at their best and you won't miss Christophrt Lee at all..
Yvonne Monlaur is rather wooden in the female lead role, the bat effects are truly laughable and the film drags a tad at the halfway mark but that's it for the flaws personally.Hammer horrors are always at least visually good, and The Brides of Dracula certainly looks good.
Terrence Fisher's direction is unflinching and the performances on the whole are very good, especially from a classy and typically impeccable Peter Cushing as one of the best screen Van Helsings and Martita Hunt as a sometimes sympathetic but genuinely scary Baroness, especially in the scene when she's standing behind Monlaur.
To me the movie hits a lull around 50 min to an hour into the film but does pick back up in the end.David Peel was pretty good as Baron Meinster but just not very convincing as a vampire IMO.
And Peter Cushing is, once again, smashing as Doctor Van Helsing.Just some random thoughts on the title of the film because the title is a bit disappointing - yes The Brides of Dracula does fit it to a degree because as they basically said in the beginning narration that Dracula is dead but his brood is still around but maybe a title like "Meinster Manor", "Castle Meinster" or even "The Baron" would have fit the film better.
With Fisher's direction full of classy shots and Asher's Technicolor photography deliciously ornate, it's one of Hammer's best vampire based movies.Cushing again is the star, and tantalisingly we are made to wait here for the appearance of his vampire slaying Van Helsing.
Bernard Robinson's production design is one of Hammer's best (Castle Meinster, The Running Boar Inn, The Windmill) and Williamson's music is in turns ominous and evocative.From the eye scorching blood red opening titles, to the stunning and ingenious finale (the final shot is a doozy), The Brides of Dracula is a damn enjoyable Hammer Horror picture that's the equal of the first film.
When wealthy Baroness Meinster (Martita Hunt) offers Marianne a room for the night in her mountain-top château, the desperate woman gratefully accepts, unaware that the Baroness's son (David Peel), a vampire, is chained up in the castle.Brides of Dracula is regarded by many Hammer fans to be the best of the studio's 'Dracula' movies (despite the absence of Christopher Lee in his iconic role as the Count), but I really don't understand the unequivocal acclaim: although Terence Fisher's direction is admittedly impressive, his measured camera-work making the most of the excellent set design and coloured lighting, and Peter Cushing gives another impeccable performance as Doctor Van Helsing, the film certainly isn't without its faults.The pacing is rather slow at times (particularly before Cushing appears on the scene), the so-so script throws up a few too many unanswered questions whilst taking liberties with accepted vampire lore, and the ending is especially weak (Death by shadow?
Is that the best they could come up with?): all of these negative elements serve take the film down a notch or two in my opinion, although one should still be aware that even a flawed Hammer film is, more often than not, still well worth a watch (avoid Brides of Dracula, for example, and you'll miss the wonderfully atmospheric scene in which an old hag, under the control of the Baron Meinster, coaxes a recently 'turned' vampiress from her grave)..
If one film were needed to showcase Hammer horror at it's finest, then this would be it.Peter Cushing is once again superb in his role as the stern Doctor Van Helsing, courageous and brave, battling the vampires at every turn.
David Peel looks suitably handsome as the Baron, and there is something strange about him which makes him a very good vampire.There are a number of substantial supporting actors and actresses, such as Martita Hunt, a suitably fearsome old woman, and Freda Jackson who gives a performance which recalls Dwight Frye in some aspects (the manic laughter being one).
The title of the movie is "The Brides of Dracula" and it gets presented as a direct sequel to the 1958 "Dracula" and it besides features a most excellent Peter Cushing in it as 'a' Van Helsing but the main villain isn't even Dracula.
The first half of the movie is mostly slow and atmospheric but the second half is a bit more like a 'normal' standard Hammer Dracula movie, with Peter Cushing trying to kill the evil vampire.Not a lot of excitement in this movie but it still has a good atmosphere to it and works out as something original.6/10 http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/.
This is cheap fare indeed - a confused plot and a poor script, relieved only by tasteful set-design and pretty cinematography.Despite the title, Dracula himself appears nowhere, the star-role being filled by Peter Cushing as vampire-hunter Dr. Van Helsing.
Maybe it doesn't have Christopher Lee playing Dracula, but this film is still a classic.Yvonne Monlaur is absolutely enchanting as the naive student teacher on the way to her first assignment, in this Terence Fisher film, featuring Peter Cushing as Dr. Van Helsing.Marianne Danielle's (Monlaur) assignment is at a school for girls - a veritable feast for the Baron Meinster (David Peel), who just happens to belong to the cult of the undead.Peel and Martita Hunt, who played the Baroness Meinster, gave excellent performances and really stole the show.Freda Jackson, as Greta the servant, was hilarious with her cackle, as was BAFTA and Golden Globe nominees Mona Washbourne (Stevie), the wife of the school master.Dr. Van Helsing (Cushing) wasn't a very competent vampire hunter as he let the village girl (Marie Devereux) and Gina (Andree Melly) escape and join the Baron; and he lets Greta take his cross away leaving him defenseless..
Title: Brides of Dracula (1960) Director: Terrence Fisher Cast: Peter Cushing, David Peel, Yvonne Monlauer Review: When Horror of Dracula first came out and was such a huge success for Hammer Studios they immediately started working on a sequel for it.
Marianne thinking this to be cruel, releases the Baroness's son without realizing that she has just released a vampire into the world.Even though Christopher Lee doesn't show up as Dracula (and he is very missed) we do get Peter Cushing reprising one of his most famous roles as Dr. Van Helsing which at least gives the proceedings an air of familiarity and continuity.
But there are brides aplenty for the Count Meinster and there's also Dr. Van Helsing making house calls as it were.Peter Cushing is the intrepid vampire hunter who knows well that Dracula is not the only undead creature out there.
Terence Fisher returned to direct this sequel to "Horror Of Dracula" that sees Peter Cushing return as Professor Van Helsing, who is now called upon to help a young French schoolteacher named Marianne(played by Yvonne Monlaur) who, while traveling in Transylvania, stayed at the castle of Baroness Meinster(played by Martita Hunt) and unwittingly freed her vampire son(played by David Peel), who had been a disciple of Count Dracula(still deceased) Now free, the vampire sets his sights on Marianne, and the inhabitants of the girl's school she will be teaching at.
This is another well-staged, handsomely mounted production from Hammer Films in rich Technicolor with lots of atmospheric touches throughout to keep all of the chills intact.YVONNE MONLAUR is the fetching young French woman who makes the mistake of taking pity on a young man chained by his mother (MARTITA HUNT) to prevent him from having his freedom in a castle in Transylvania.
Not a moment seems wasted and there's no chance a viewer will want to turn away from any of the events, which get off to a good start with the young woman seeking shelter for the night with a mysterious Baroness (crisply played by Martita Hunt).Well worth watching and a good follow-up to "Horror of Dracula," even though Christopher Lee has been replaced for this outing by Baron Meinster, David Peel.
Though David Prowse is not scary, he does not have the same presence as Christopher Lee does when he plays a vampire.If you like Hammer and Peter Cushing then buy this film, if you're looking for a good Dracula film then look elsewhere..
As incredible as it may sound, "The Brides of Dracula" still emerges as a better film than its forerunner and is a ghoulishly good time all around for horror movie lovers.A well-rendered opening narration eschews the Dracula reference right away by letting us know from the get-go that even though the infamous Count is now dead, his legion of disciples continue on to spread his evil.
Enter Dr. Van Helsing (Peter Cushing) once again, who uses his wits and knowledge of vampirism to take on the evil forces of darkness.Regular Hammer director Terence Fisher is better than usual this time, really cooking up some scary images as he incorporates good old fashioned thunderstorms, grave-groping ghouls, maniacal madness, and even some welcome vampire bats (I guess Van Helsing was wrong in "Horror of Dracula" when he claimed that it was merely a "common fallacy" that vampires were capable of changing into different forms - hmmmpphh!) to great effect.
Granted, Peter Cushing clocks in his expected scene-stealing performance as the indefatigable Dr. Van Helsing (and is easily the best reason to watch), but the script (by stalwart Hammer scribe Jimmy Sangster) never gives more than a flimsy pretext for bringing the character out of retirement: wayward Marianne (Yvonne Monlaur), on her way to teach at a German girls' school, is accosted by an aristocratic matriarch who invites her to spend the night at her lonely castle; when Marianne discovers the woman's chained-up son (the handsome yet bland David Peel), she sets him free, little realizing he is a descendant of Count Dracula.
Not surprisingly, Van Helsing shows up and there is the usual showdown at the end, though how Meinster is destroyed is rather creative.This is one of the lesser vampire movies from Hammer films for a wide variety of reasons.
"The Brides of Dracula" is one of the better entries in the Hammer saga.**SPOILERS**Arriving in Transylvania, Marion Danielle, (Yvonne Monlaur) finds that the locals are less than hospitable towards her, but after becoming stranded in the town, direct her towards the lodgings of Baroness Meister, (David Peel) a local who lives in a castle just outside of town.
After the tremendous success of "Horror of Dracula" in 1958, the now-legendary film studio, Hammer Film Productions, began working on the sequel to their successful horror movie again with director Terence Fisher at the head of the project, but sadly without Christopher Lee returning as the Count.
"The Brides of Dracula" also continued the adventures of Dr. Van Helsing (Peter Cushing), and even when the Count himself was absent in this film, his absence doesn't harm the film in any level.The film begins with a young french woman, Marianne Danielle (Yvonne Monlaur), going on her way to Transylvania to work as a teacher in a girls school.
Fortunately, Dr. Van Helsing (Peter Cushing) is still in Transylvania, in his everlasting mission to exterminate vampirism.Director Terence Fisher once again makes the most of the limited budget he had at his will (it was bigger than his previous movies, but still nowhere near a Hollywood production), and recreates Dracula's haunting world with great care for detail and an amazing eye for the visuals.
In fact, the over-the-top acting of certain characters adds up to the Grand Guignol feeling the movie has, almost like watching a horror-themed opera."The Brides of Dracula" is a film that divides the fans, mostly because of Christopher Lee's absence, but still, its impact is quite powerful (it inspired most of Polanski's "The Fearless Vampire Killers") and is definitely among Hammer's best.
Terence Fisher's directing is among is finest, and the acting is for the most part top-notch (though missing Christopher Lee, David Peel is very effective, cold and very calculating as the bloodsucker).Horror film fans MUST VIEWING, see why "old-school" film making is so good..
As good as the Cushing/Lee/Fisher Dracula films are, this is Hammer's best vampire film.
Peter Cushing is fantastic(as usual)as Van Helsing and David Peel makes up for the absence of Lee with a great performance as the Baron Meinster.
Probably Hammer's best horror, even though it doesn't have Christopher Lee. But David Peel is equally formidable as an aristocratic young disciple, and Peter Cushing's Dr Van Helsing is still the scourge of vampirism in Victorian Europe.It begins with a wonderfully spooky tracking shot over a misty woodland lake (actually Black Park next to Pinewood Studios) and ominous narration (`Transylvania, land of dark forests, dread mountains and black unfathomable lakes.
Determined to make a sequel to HORROR OF Dracula, but with a lead character turned to dust and an actor refusing to be 'typecast' (Christopher Lee), the film still manages to be one of the best "Dracula" films (as well as one of Hammer's of the era).Set up with a narrated prologue (sublimely eerie photography) that explains that Dracula has left a 'cult' legacy behind, BRIDES picks up with a gorgeous French woman (Yvonne Monlaur) who is passing thru (does one pass thru Transylvania??).
The young ladies are beautiful, and "The Brides of Dracula" has the typically authentic look of any period Hammer genre piece.This time, Van Helsing must battle the young Baron Meinster (David Peel), a vampire and disciple of Count Dracula.
Most ironically of all, it is also reflected in how this is probably the best vampire film Hammer ever made, and despite the title; Dracula is nowhere to be seen, but that doesn't stop this film from becoming a first rate chiller.While traveling through the Transylvanian countryside to her new job; a young french student-teacher named Marianne(Yvonne Monlaur)'s coach is stolen after a highwayman bribes the driver, and she is stood up by the villagers, but finds temporary refuge in the castle of the mysterious Baroness Meinster(Martita Hunt)and her creepy maid Greta(Freda Jackson).
Will he have enough time to rescue Marianne from Baron Meinster's deadly influence?The first half hour of "Brides of Dracula" is already great, with eerie images of the grim Transylvannian landscapes and both Martita Hunt & Freda Jackson deliciously going over the top in their roles as motherly guardians of evil, but the film REALLY kicks off when the almighty Peter Cushing joins the party.
Marianne Danielle, a young woman travelling through Transylvania to take up a teaching post, spends the night at the guest of the mysterious and imposing Baroness Meinster, and becomes irrevocably tangled in her strange family history.Hammer's second vampire film isn't really a Dracula movie because they killed him off in the first one and he doesn't appear here.
He's get them all astir, trust him." David Peel, despite his some hilarious expressions, is classy vampire as Baron Meinster(booo, modern upstarts!), Peter Cushing is dignified and energetic Van Helsing, old Baroness (Martita Hunt) is tragic, complex character and red-haired Marianne, dressed sensuously in finest pastel and crimson, is perfect Gothic heroine: epitome of angelic beauty and purity, sneaking to help man she thinks is insane and seeing him chained, she releases him, paradoxically causing all the deaths!
Lee himself always claimed he was never offered a chance to appear; but it's possible that Hammer, having focused on the Baron in their Frankenstein pictures, decided to focus on Van Helsing in its vampire ones - a perfectly logical choice as they considered Peter Cushing their star name.Whatever the reason, this is a terrific movie, with only its episodic script reducing its effectiveness.
And of course, Peter Cushing himself on top form.David Peel makes an excellent vampire nemesis for Cushing's Helsing, and in an opening prologue is set free by Marianne Daniel (Yvonne Monlaur) - a finishing school teacher on her way to a new job.
Peter Cushing turns in an excellent performance as Van Helsing; Hunt is outstanding as the Baroness whose love for her son is the source of her misdeeds; Freda Jackson is hilariously Over The Top as the devoted (and demented) servant, Greta; and the other characters, both major and minor, are well acted and well drawn.I would heartily recommend this film to any fan of vampire movies or Hammer horror.