Horror Bites - The Bloodthirsty Trilogy

THE EVIL OF DRACULA (1974)

So we reach the third and final chapter in The Bloodthirsty Trilogy. At this stage it's foolish to expect Vlad to show up of course, but there are various other new inclusions to discuss. It's a darker and more sombre affair for one thing. Well, beyond some of the silly Amicus style music effects that play every so often. It's an apt title in other ways, as the events of the story are pretty darn evil as things unfold. A lot of things are repeated too of course, whether they're old clichés or simply images from the previous movie. Shin Kishida is the vampire again, which means that the first film in this series is the odd one out. Or maybe it just means the writers were lacking new ideas. Perhaps they just wanted a popular returning actor. But the rest of the tale isn't so much of a carbon copy.

Horror Bites - The Bloodthirsty Trilogy

LAKE OF DRACULA (1971)

Dracula returns in the second instalment of the Bloodthirsty Trilogy. Well, in spirit anyway since he never shows up. Again. If anything Legacy of Dracula would have been the more appropriate title this time around. In terms of content its influences sit somewhere between the original story and the 1958 Christopher Lee version. It's another remix of old and new images. It's far more stylish and colourful than the previous entry in this brief series. Does that make it the superior film? Well it depends on what you're after, as both have their flaws. The presentation is more interesting, but it lacks any real characterisation. It's flashier but less theme driven, so your mileage may vary.

Horror Bites - The Bloodthirsty Trilogy

THE VAMPIRE DOLL (1970)

Also known as Legacy of Dracula, despite the fact that the man himself makes no appearance, and is never mentioned. So perhaps this alternative title refers to the legacy of English language fiction in general? There are a lot of horror films from Japan, many of them dealing with spirits and demons from regional folklore. Vampires, if they show up at all, are more likely to be blood sucking ghosts than reanimated corpses. Kwaidan and Kuroneko are some of the more famous releases. But in this less well known series of chillers the film-makers looked to the West for inspiration. The later films in this loosely connected trilogy do include pale men wearing capes. But interestingly this first instalment includes elements from other examples of American cinema. 

Scorecard

APRIL

FILM OF THE MONTH: Heat ☆☆☆☆

Horror Bites - Going Underground

DAY OF THE DEAD (1985)

With the market flooded with zombie movies following Dawn of the Dead, it's surprising that George A. Romero didn't decide to hold off and wait a full ten years before revitalising the genre one more time. Perhaps it would have been more warmly received if it wasn't competing with tongue-in-cheek fare like Demons and Return of the Living Dead. Maybe it was just the wrong year to release something like this, which is easy to say in retrospect. Times had changed and fun was back in vogue. Films from Amblin and John Hughes were now all the rage. But refusing to read the room like any true pioneer, George went into darker territory and refused to include any glib nonsense. It's still another horror classic in its own way.