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Topic: Dracula-Prince of Darkness/17mins/scope
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Andrew Wilson
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 784
From: dundonald,belfast,co.antrim,northern ireland.
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted September 23, 2006 08:23 AM
Here's my view on this old derann release from years gone by.
After the success of the 1958 hammer Dracula,the main problem for
the boys at Bray was,how do we resurrect the evil CountD.
Well soon many bizarre resurrections and gory downfalls were on the way!.
Horror buffs know how the evil Count came to his sticky end at the end of the first film.
This two reeler opens with that pre-title sequence as we are reminded how Dracula was destroyed;this disintegration to ashes
is still the best of all of Dracula's demises.
After the titles,we join Barbara Shelley and Charles Tingwell who
are trying to get some sleep in a spooky castle.A noise outside in the corridor leads Charles to investagate.A hanging tapestry moves,a knife flashes and poor Charles is being dragged down to the cellar.
The faithful old servent of the departed Dracula then ties a rope
around his victim's ankles and hauls him,upside down over the empty tomb.From the black altar,he reverently takes a small casket and scatters the contents-CountD's ashes-into the coffin.
He then calmly slits the throat of poor Charles who is swinging
above.Blood spatters into the coffin and slowly mixes with the ashes.Slowly Dracula takes shape and we see a hand claw over the edge of the coffin.
Dracula is once again on the prowl,but soon it is time for him to
be commited once more to the grave.As well as sunlight,and the usual stake thru the heart;a vampire can also be destroyed by,running water.-I wonder what BRAM STOKER would have made of this!.On the frozen moat around his castle,Dracula tries to survive but,as always,as the ice gives way and he sinks,screaming,into the murky water below.I got this two reeler
second hand,so colour fade is there for all to see.I still enjoy it though,and now thankfully,Derann have made ammends,by releaseing the full feature on super 8;on low fade stock to.
This was and is a nice sovernior of the old release by Derann.but
now i am sure is of no interest now because Derann have given us what we Hammer fans like.-the full feature in scope.Dont forget,this release dates back to around 1978 or so,and at that time this title was the only Hammer title,released by Derann in scope.I enjoy this two reeler;maybe someone could review the feature.I hope to get the feature someday.Andy.
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Adrian Winchester
Film God
Posts: 2941
From: Croydon, London, UK
Registered: Aug 2004
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posted September 24, 2006 06:28 PM
There are a few prints in circulation on low fade stock, released after the Super 8 revival began. Don't know if any are worth having, though, as one I used to have was poor and had a 'washed out' look. The feature is much better, though, and definitely worth having. Incidentally, the feature is a slightly 'milder' cut, so it doesn't have the brief shot of the stake being hammered (no pun intended) into Barbara Shelley. I think this shot might be in the old 4 x 400' flat version but I can't remember for sure.
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Adrian Winchester
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Adrian Winchester
Film God
Posts: 2941
From: Croydon, London, UK
Registered: Aug 2004
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posted September 27, 2006 05:50 PM
I think it mainly comes down to economy. Remember that the vast majority of digests were released before the days that full length feature releases became common, and also at a time when Super 8 films, once you take inflation into account, were significantly more expensive than they are now. Although it may be frustrating if there's room for more on a reel, I bet most distributors would have charged more if they had opted for 20 min releases rather than 17 minute. Having said that, some of the common 4 x 400 releases (eg Walton) ran for about 72 mins, so you might imagine that when a great film like 'Twins of Evil' was released, people might have complained that they would rather have paid more for another 15 mins, in order to have it full length.
However, it's true that there were times when distributors would only allow (eg) a 400' or 2 x 400' version on 8, presumably so that there was no chance of it being presented as a complete feature.
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Adrian Winchester
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Gary Crawford
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 979
From: Manassas, VA. USA
Registered: Jun 2003
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posted June 14, 2017 08:47 AM
To answer Alan's question....there are some outstanding prints of several Hammer films out there. I can only testify personally about a few. I have the Scope Dracula, Prince of Darkness...and it is perfect in every way. The others I have are flat... best quality probably The Mummy...just super color and sharpness. The uncut feature versions of Vampire Circus and Twins of Evil are superb prints..complete with nudity , vampires and violence. My favorite is Twins fo Evil due to a very nice performance of Peter Cushing. I know they did release the first Dracula (Horror of) but I have never seen a super 8 print. I have an IB tech of it in 16mm.
Also, the uncut feature , Scars of Dracula, is a great print, giving Christopher Lee more dialog ..and has a terrific ending. Not the best Hammer, but very entertaining. I have seen a print of Curse of Frankenstein, but the print I saw had a greenish tint to it.
If you are equipped for Scope...then I think the best is Dracula-Prince of Darkness.
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